Act Now to protect the Clean Water Act and wetlands along the Mississippi River

Great Egret on the Sunflower River | Photo by Stephen Kirkpatrick

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has announced an unprecedented move to resurrect the wasteful, environmentally devastating Yazoo Backwater Pumps Project in Mississippi's South Delta, a plan that is so harmful it was vetoed by the George W. Bush administration. The costly, outdated project—originally authorized by Congress in 1941—would drain and destroy 200,000 acres of Mississippi River wetlands that support more than 450 species of birds and wildlife.

Despite the veto, issued under the Clean Water Act, the Trump Administration’s U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is proposing to move forward with the project!

The Yazoo Pumps is being billed as the panacea for flood problems in the Southern Mississippi Delta. But the Corps' own analysis has found that most of the area would continue to flood even with the Pumps in place. Indeed, Pump proponents and Corps documents state explicitly that the Yazoo Pumps would do little more than drain marginal land to increase agricultural development.

South Delta residents deserve better.

There are more effective, less expensive flood risk reduction measures that can be deployed NOW to reduce flood losses in the region without draining and damaging 200,000 acres of wetlands that are a critical part of the Mississippi River ecosystem and flyway.

Protect the Clean Water Act! Tell the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that you oppose the Yazoo Pumps and that you want to advance immediate, affordable flood risk solutions that will protect local communities and birds that depend on the Mississippi Flyway. The deadline to comment is June 15.

Note: Your letter will be sent directly to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as part of a public comment period, and will become part of the public record.

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Kenneth

Parrish

USACE

To U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,

I am writing to express my opposition to the Corps' initiating a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on the wasteful, environmentally destructive drainage project known as the Yazoo Backwater Pumps. Instead of spending more time and taxpayer money on a vetoed project while flood-stricken communities in Mississippi's South Delta continue to suffer, I ask that you prioritize immediate, effective flood relief alternatives. The Corps should advance common sense approaches already employed across the U.S. that can help those impacted recover from recent flooding and manage future flood risk.

I oppose the Yazoo Pumps because I care deeply about reducing flood risk for people, the integrity of the Clean Water Act and our country's natural resources.

I understand that the Corps' own analysis of the 2019 flooding found that under the best-case scenario, 68 percent of the area would continue to flood even with the Pumps in place. This finding makes it clear that the Pumps are not designed to protect people from flooding, but rather to drain or damage 200,000 acres of wetlands to expand a small number of agribusiness operations.

Communities plagued by flooding in the Mississippi Delta deserve smart safeguards that get people and property out of harm’s way, not false promises. The Corps should not be sidelining proven alternatives, like buy-outs, flood proofing, and easements, in favor of building the costly, destructive Yazoo Pumps.

In 2008, the George W. Bush administration vetoed the project through the Clean Water Act based on the Pumps' environmental impacts. As one of 13 vetoes in the law's history, the decision was supported by tens of thousands of Americans. The administration also raised major concerns about the Pumps' economics and found that less damaging, more affordable alternatives to floodplain management had not been adequately considered. The veto was upheld by a federal judge and affirmed by the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Situated in the Mississippi River floodplain, the Clean Water Act veto protected some of the nation’s “richest wetland and aquatic resources” in the Big Sunflower River watershed, which includes the Delta National Forest. The area is an important part of the Mississippi River ecosystem and critical stop for migrating birds along the Mississippi River Flyway.

Instead of plowing ahead with Yazoo Pumps, I urge you to advance project alternatives that will immediately provide affordable flood risk solutions that will protect people and nature.

Sincerely

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