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State Representative Carolyn Laine
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
651-296-4331
For more information contact: Joan Nichols 651-29X-XXXX
Column/LTE
The Next Preventable Disaster
Dear Editor:
I stood next to a fence in northern Minnesota that is about to fall into the huge "lake" created from the Canisteo Mine Pit. Incredibly, this lake is as much as 400 feet deep and six miles long. This enormous volume of water, which is amazing to behold, is continuing to rise as the aquifers tapped into during the mining period fill the pit. One might think Minnesota has gained another lake, and all is well.
On the contrary, this is another disaster waiting to happen in our state.
The reason the fence is about to fall into the lake is that this powerful quantity of water is eating away the sides of the pit. A very possible scenario is that the pressure of the water in this gigantic bowl will break through the soft soil on its lowest side, which is closest to the small city of Bovey, and come rushing out with its powerful surge tearing away more land as it moves.
Part of Bovey is much lower than the level of the water in the pit. Fifty to 60 people live in this section and could be swept away. Highway 169 runs just beyond these homes, connecting the Range cities from the east end to the west end. Culverts, to direct the natural flow of storm water under the highway, would never be able to handle this torrent, and another important transportation link in our state would be broken.
If this were in your backyard, would you take preventative measures? As we are now somberly aware in Minnesota, prevention is always cheaper than repair, especially when human lives are involved. Yet the state's response to this situation has been less than stellar. The DNR Commissioner visited the site last week and agreed to move the fence immediately. That's all. The Army Corps of Engineers has said they have the money to fix the problem should it overflow or break, but cannot put anything into preventing it. The bonding bill from this legislative session contained $1.3 million to provide half the costs of siphoning or pumping the water in order to lower its level, but this bill was vetoed by the Governor.
Once again, Minnesota refuses to invest in infrastructure. The next structural and preventable disaster we experience in this state may not be a bridge falling.
Sincerely,
Carolyn Laine
State Representative, 50A
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