Flooding in Mo. Imminent According to Gov. Nixon
Gov. Jay Nixon says Missouri is gearing up for imminent and "unprecedented" flooding along the Missouri River.
Nixon said Thursday in St. Joseph that Missourians will face flooding soon along the Missouri River because of rising water levels in the river basin in the northern Plains. He says people with property and businesses in the floodplain should prepare for "unprecedented high water levels."
The governor also says the state is taking necessary action to prepare for the flooding. He said state officials have been working with the Missouri National Guard, the State Emergency Management Agency, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and other agencies to prepare for the flooding.
MSD Settlement to Cost Billions
A lawsuit brought by the EPA against the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District back in June 2007, could soon be resolved.
The EPA and later the Missouri Coalition for the Environment alleged MSD had violated the Clean Water Act by discharging raw sewage into some rivers and streams through combined sewer overflows.
All parties have negotiated a consent decree that the member of MSD's board will vote on next week. It will then go to the Coalition and on to the EPA for signatures. A federal judge will have to sign off on the settlement.
In MSD's meeting agenda, the district says complying with the decree will likely cost more than 4 billion dollars over 23 years.
Elk Released in Southern Mo.
The first elk have been released into the wild as part of a repopulation effort in southern Missouri.
The Missouri Department of Conservation says 34 adult elk and five new calves were released this week from their three-acre holding site at the Peck Ranch Conservation Area. Conservation staff members say they believe that additional female elk remain pregnant and could give birth anytime. The animals have been fitted with GPS radio collars to help track their movement, health and preferred types of vegetation.
The elk were brought to Missouri from Kentucky.
