|
(Continued from page 29)
• "The system does not guarantee a flood-free zone in the Missouri River reaches between the system reservoirs and below the system," the government's lawyers wrote. "Downstream flooding will occur even if releases are reduced to minimums from the system dams because enough uncontrolled area exists downstream from several of the dams to cause major flooding if significant rainfall occurs."
• The landowners argued that the recurring flooding along the Missouri River has improperly deprived them of their land, so they should be compensated because the government improperly took it.
• Eddie Smith, one of the plaintiffs' lawyers, said he wasn't surprised by the government's initial response. He said the lawsuit is likely to take several years to resolve.
• The 2011 flooding lasted more than three months after the Corps began releasing massive amounts of water from reservoirs upstream that were filled by melted snow and heavy rains. The floodwaters overwhelmed levees, carved gouges up to 50 feet deep, created sand dunes 15 feet deep and deposited strange debris on farmers' fields.
• Outside experts who reviewed the 2011 flooding said the Corps did the best it could in dealing with record amounts of water that flowed into the 2,341-mile-long river after unusually heavy spring rains in Montana and North Dakota.
•
Museums, musicians say ivory order hampers travel
DIRK LAMMERS, Associated Press
• VERMILLION, S.D. (AP) -- Museums and musicians are concerned that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's stricter rules on the transport of items containing elephant ivory are inflicting unintended complications on the music community.
• The new strategy for fighting trafficking through enforcement, approved by President Barack Obama in February, puts a near complete ban on the commercial trade of elephant ivory.
• Musicians and collectors say the rules will limit their ability to travel abroad with antique and vintage instruments they acquired decades ago, and could put them risk of fines and the possible seizure of their instruments.
• "We've kind of been caught up in the clampdown that's designed to prevent the extinction of these populations, but we're not really the ones causing the problem," said Arian Sheets, curator of stringed instruments for the National Music Museum in Vermillion.
• The order from agency director Daniel Ashe initially allowed the noncommercial import of worked elephant ivory that was legally acquired and removed from the wild (Continued on page 31)
|
|
