Latest news with #USArmyCorps
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Lake Lure: Long road to recovery
LAKE LURE, N.C. (WSPA) – 'Immediately, we had no services. We had no sewer. That was probably the worst part of it. We had no water,' Carol Pritchett, Mayor of Lake Lure, said. 'The water was restored more quickly because we have wells. So, that was probably just a matter of a few weeks. Lack of any cell service was tantamount.' It wasn't just Lake Lure that saw its own debris collect in the Broad River, but also from nearby towns as well. Just a few miles up the river, at Chimney Rock and Bat Cave, is where over half a million cubic yards of non-natural debris ended up flooding across Lake Lure. Just a few days later is when natural debris of another 500,000 cubic yards ended up covering that non-natural debris. It was shortly after Hurricane Helene was gone that the US Army Corps of Engineers showed up to begin the cleaning process. Makenzie Leonard, with the US Army Corps, said the contractors are working diligently to get everything cleared. 'The Corps of Engineers and our contractors are out here seven days a week, 12 hours a day, trying to get as much of this done as quickly as possible so that life can go, back to normal for as many folks as possible.' Even after over 230 days of digging and cleaning, they are only 43% of the way done with waterway clearing, including creeks, rivers, and lakes. Lake Lure typically has a season that runs from Memorial Day through Labor Day. Mayor Pritchett said that due to the cleaning, the lake will not be open this year. 'We as a town wanted everybody to know, we need to focus on all the other wonderful things there are to do besides just the lake.' Some of those things include bed and breakfasts and resorts like Lake Lure Inn and Rumbling Bald. Pritchett is also very happy with another nearby feature. 'The trails are one of them. We have beautiful trails. We did have landslides on some of the trails. We've worked hard and we've had a lot of volunteers from, like, Carolina Conservancy to help us get rid of that and restore the trails. And so those are open for people now.' Pritchett strives to learn from Helene and learn what can be done in the future for whenever the next natural disaster strikes. 'Our emergency management team was prepared as well as anybody could possibly be for what you envisioned might happen. But we're going to capitalize on what we know now.' So, as Lake Lure continues to be cleaned, Pritchett invites travelers to the area. 'We would love to have people come here. We really would. And it's perfectly safe. And we are very dedicated to ensuring that we're not going to promote anything for tourists to come that's not safe.' Mayor Pritchett also said that the water is constantly tested and is safe. And while some of the beach areas may be open, you still cannot get in the water just yet. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
E&E News
5 days ago
- Business
- E&E News
Tribe appeals ruling on Dakota Access pipeline
The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe is launching the latest round of its legal fight to shut down the Dakota Access pipeline for continuing to operate without a valid easement. On Tuesday, the tribe told a federal judge it was appealing his ruling that their lawsuit against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was premature. The agency has been in the process of conducting a supplemental environmental review of the oil conduit, which passes beneath Lake Oahe in the Dakotas, after a federal appeals court tossed out the existing National Environmental Policy Act analysis as inadequate. Advertisement In the meantime, the Army Corps has allowed the pipeline to continue to carry oil beneath the lake, which is located close to the Standing Rock Sioux reservation, provided pipeline operator Energy Transfer complies with set safety requirements.
CBS News
12-05-2025
- Business
- CBS News
Trump administration promises Illinois it will pay to keep invasive carp out of Great Lakes
A stalemate between President Donald Trump and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker that threatened a $1.2 billion plan to keep invasive carp from reaching the Great Lakes appears to have been settled after the Trump administration offered assurances it will cover its share of the costs. After a delay that has stretched on since February, Illinois officials are set to resume closing on property they need to continue work on a project that will generate vast bubble curtains to deter the carp, stun them with electrical fields and play sound frequencies to disorient them. The project has been on the drawing board for years The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers along with state officials in Illinois and Michigan have been planning since 2020 to install a gantlet of technologies in the Des Plaines River near Joliet, Illinois, to deter invasive carp from entering Lake Michigan. The Corps and the states signed a deal in 2024 to work together on the project using $226 million allocated through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. And elements of the Water Resources Development Act adopted last year call for the federal government to cover 90% of operating and maintenance costs. Pritzker demands assurances from Trump Construction on the project began in January. Pritzker's administration was set to close in February on a parcel of property for the project and transfer it to the Corps. Everything appeared on track until late January, when the Trump administration froze federal grants and loans as it reviewed whether spending aligned with Trump's priorities on issues such as climate change and diversity. The administration rescinded the freeze less than two days later but questions persist about the federal government's spending commitments. Pritzker, a billionaire heir to the Hyatt hotel empire and a potential 2028 Democratic presidential contender, is one of Trump's fiercest critics. He has described the early months of the Trump administration as "true villainous cruelty by a few idiots." Days before Illinois was to finalize a property deal for the carp project, Pritzker hit pause and demanded assurances that the federal government would honor its spending commitment. Site preparation has continued since then, but substantial work to install technology has been on hold. Trump signals the project is a priority The White House issued a memo late Friday saying the Trump administration recognized the threat invasive carp pose to Great Lakes recreation and fishing and that it's committed to protecting the lakes. The federal government is prepared to do its part so long as states cooperate, according to the memo, which calls on Illinois to complete the property deal by July 1 and promises the federal government will streamline permitting and environmental reviews. "My Administration fully supports preventing the spread of invasive carp," the memo said. "The State of Illinois, where the (project) is located, must cease further delay in cooperating with this effort, for the sake of its own citizens and economy and for the sake of all of the Great Lake States." Pritzker's office issued a news release late Friday evening saying the governor was satisfied. Work on the project isn't slated to finish until 2032, but Joel Brammeier, president and CEO of the nonpartisan Alliance for the Great Lakes, said Monday that prospects suddenly look dramatically better than they did last week. "We're back to business as usual. That's a good thing," he said. Why the carp would be bad news for the Great Lakes Four species of carp were imported to the U.S. from Asia in the 1960s and 1970s to clear algae from sewage ponds and fish farms in the Deep South. They escaped into the Mississippi River and have moved north into dozens of tributaries in the central U.S. Government agencies, advocacy groups and others have long debated how to prevent the fish from reaching the Great Lakes, where scientists say they could out-compete native species for food and habitat in waterways where the fishing industry is valued at $7 billion. A shipping canal that forms part of the link between the Mississippi and Lake Michigan has a network of fish-repelling barriers, which the Corps says is effective, but critics consider inadequate. The new project at the Brandon Road Lock and Dam on the Des Plaines River near Joliet will provide another layer of protection at a downstream choke point between the Illinois River, which is infested with invasive carp, and Lake Michigan. "I'm hopeful everyone is taking this project seriously now and we're not going to see any more delays," Brammeier said.
The Independent
12-05-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Trump administration promises Illinois it will pay to keep carp out of the Great Lakes
A stalemate between President Donald Trump and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker that threatened a $1.2 billion plan to keep invasive carp from reaching the Great Lakes appears to have been settled after the Trump administration offered assurances it will cover its share of the costs. After a delay that has stretched on since February, Illinois officials are set to resume closing on property they need to continue work on a project that will generate vast bubble curtains to deter the carp, stun them with electrical fields and play sound frequencies to disorient them. Here's what to know: The project has been on the drawing board for years The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers along with state officials in Illinois and Michigan have been planning since 2020 to install a gantlet of technologies in the Des Plaines River near Joliet, Illinois, to deter invasive carp from entering Lake Michigan. The Corps and the states signed a deal in 2024 to work together on the project using $226 million allocated through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. And elements of the Water Resources Development Act adopted last year call for the federal government to cover 90% of operating and maintenance costs. Pritzker demands assurances from Trump Construction on the project began in January. Pritzker's administration was set to close in February on a parcel of property for the project and transfer it to the Corps. Everything appeared on track until late January, when the Trump administration froze federal grants and loans as it reviewed whether spending aligned with Trump's priorities on issues such as climate change and diversity. The administration rescinded the freeze less than two days later but questions persist about the federal government's spending commitments. Pritzker, a billionaire heir to the Hyatt hotel empire and a potential 2028 Democratic presidential contender, is one of Trump's fiercest critics. He has described the early months of the Trump administration as 'true villainous cruelty by a few idiots.' Days before Illinois was to finalize a property deal for the carp project, Pritzker hit pause and demanded assurances that the federal government would honor its spending commitment. Site preparation has continued since then, but substantial work to install technology has been on hold. Trump signals the project is a priority The White House issued a memo late Friday saying the Trump administration recognized the threat invasive carp pose to Great Lakes recreation and fishing and that it's committed to protecting the lakes. The federal government is prepared to do its part so long as states cooperate, according to the memo, which calls on Illinois to complete the property deal by July 1 and promises the federal government will streamline permitting and environmental reviews. 'My Administration fully supports preventing the spread of invasive carp,' the memo said. 'The State of Illinois, where the (project) is located, must cease further delay in cooperating with this effort, for the sake of its own citizens and economy and for the sake of all of the Great Lake States.' Pritzker's office issued a news release late Friday evening saying the governor was satisfied. Work on the project isn't slated to finish until 2032, but Joel Brammeier, president and CEO of the nonpartisan Alliance for the Great Lakes, said Monday that prospects suddenly look dramatically better than they did last week. 'We're back to business as usual. That's a good thing,' he said. Why the carp would be bad news for the Great Lakes Four species of carp were imported to the U.S. from Asia in the 1960s and 1970s to clear algae from sewage ponds and fish farms in the Deep South. They escaped into the Mississippi River and have moved north into dozens of tributaries in the central U.S. Government agencies, advocacy groups and others have long debated how to prevent the fish from reaching the Great Lakes, where scientists say they could out-compete native species for food and habitat in waterways where the fishing industry is valued at $7 billion. A shipping canal that forms part of the link between the Mississippi and Lake Michigan has a network of fish-repelling barriers, which the Corps says is effective, but critics consider inadequate. The new project at the Brandon Road Lock and Dam on the Des Plaines River near Joliet will provide another layer of protection at a downstream choke point between the Illinois River, which is infested with invasive carp, and Lake Michigan. 'I'm hopeful everyone is taking this project seriously now and we're not going to see any more delays,' Brammeier said.
Associated Press
12-05-2025
- Business
- Associated Press
Trump administration promises Illinois it will pay to keep carp out of the Great Lakes
A stalemate between President Donald Trump and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker that threatened a $1.2 billion plan to keep invasive carp from reaching the Great Lakes appears to have been settled after the Trump administration offered assurances it will cover its share of the costs. After a delay that has stretched on since February, Illinois officials are set to resume closing on property they need to continue work on a project that will generate vast bubble curtains to deter the carp, stun them with electrical fields and play sound frequencies to disorient them. Here's what to know: The project has been on the drawing board for years The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers along with state officials in Illinois and Michigan have been planning since 2020 to install a gantlet of technologies in the Des Plaines River near Joliet, Illinois, to deter invasive carp from entering Lake Michigan. The Corps and the states signed a deal in 2024 to work together on the project using $226 million allocated through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. And elements of the Water Resources Development Act adopted last year call for the federal government to cover 90% of operating and maintenance costs. Pritzker demands assurances from Trump Construction on the project began in January. Pritzker's administration was set to close in February on a parcel of property for the project and transfer it to the Corps. Everything appeared on track until late January, when the Trump administration froze federal grants and loans as it reviewed whether spending aligned with Trump's priorities on issues such as climate change and diversity. The administration rescinded the freeze less than two days later but questions persist about the federal government's spending commitments. Pritzker, a billionaire heir to the Hyatt hotel empire and a potential 2028 Democratic presidential contender, is one of Trump's fiercest critics. He has described the early months of the Trump administration as 'true villainous cruelty by a few idiots.' Days before Illinois was to finalize a property deal for the carp project, Pritzker hit pause and demanded assurances that the federal government would honor its spending commitment. Site preparation has continued since then, but substantial work to install technology has been on hold. Trump signals the project is a priority The White House issued a memo late Friday saying the Trump administration recognized the threat invasive carp pose to Great Lakes recreation and fishing and that it's committed to protecting the lakes. The federal government is prepared to do its part so long as states cooperate, according to the memo, which calls on Illinois to complete the property deal by July 1 and promises the federal government will streamline permitting and environmental reviews. 'My Administration fully supports preventing the spread of invasive carp,' the memo said. 'The State of Illinois, where the (project) is located, must cease further delay in cooperating with this effort, for the sake of its own citizens and economy and for the sake of all of the Great Lake States.' Pritzker's office issued a news release late Friday evening saying the governor was satisfied. Work on the project isn't slated to finish until 2032, but Joel Brammeier, president and CEO of the nonpartisan Alliance for the Great Lakes, said Monday that prospects suddenly look dramatically better than they did last week. 'We're back to business as usual. That's a good thing,' he said. Why the carp would be bad news for the Great Lakes Four species of carp were imported to the U.S. from Asia in the 1960s and 1970s to clear algae from sewage ponds and fish farms in the Deep South. They escaped into the Mississippi River and have moved north into dozens of tributaries in the central U.S. Government agencies, advocacy groups and others have long debated how to prevent the fish from reaching the Great Lakes, where scientists say they could out-compete native species for food and habitat in waterways where the fishing industry is valued at $7 billion. A shipping canal that forms part of the link between the Mississippi and Lake Michigan has a network of fish-repelling barriers, which the Corps says is effective, but critics consider inadequate. The new project at the Brandon Road Lock and Dam on the Des Plaines River near Joliet will provide another layer of protection at a downstream choke point between the Illinois River, which is infested with invasive carp, and Lake Michigan. 'I'm hopeful everyone is taking this project seriously now and we're not going to see any more delays,' Brammeier said.
