LEVEE REPAIR COMPLAINTS RECEIVED BY MDC OFFICIALS

JEFFERSON CITY -- The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) has received what agency officials believe is unwarranted criticism from some landowners over delays in levee repairs. The complaints relate to a prohibition against removing trees riverside of levees in the process of collecting fill material needed for repairs.

In many instances these sites are classified as wetlands by the Corps of Engineers. According to Gary Christoff, environmental coordinator for MDC, federal law requires the Corps to issue a permit before fill material can be placed in a wetlands area. To save affected landowners the usual 90-day waiting period required for issuance of individual permits, the Corps agreed to issue a general permit for flood-damaged areas along the Missouri River.

In return, however, the Corps attached several conditions designed to address environmental concerns. Those concerns include the loss of wildlife habitat resulting from the clearing of mature timber from the river corridor.

"State and federal agencies, including MDC, work with the Corps of Engineers to devise a permit that meets the needs of landowners and our natural resources," explained Christoff.

MDC Director Jerry Presley said he believes MDC was targeted as the source of the regulations because of its advisory capacity. "When some landowners felt that repairs to their levees were taking too long, they looked around to see who was involved in the process," Presley stated. "Somehow folks heard that the permit restriction involved protecting fish and wildlife and so our agency got the blame.

"We want people to understand that MDC has no regulatory authority over whether trees on the river side of the levees can be removed.

That's not within our purview," Presley said.

Only three of 40 levee districts involved in the general permit experienced delay to levy repairs that were attributable to the permit condition. "We have been working with the Corps in devising solutions when farmers have problems with the permit," said Christoff. "In two of the three problem areas, compromise has already been reached between the landowners and the Corps."