Part Of Ocheyedan River In NW Iowa Pumped Dry For At Least The 4th Time Since 2015
A significant stretch of a northwest Iowa river has run dry several times in the past seven years as a rural water utility has pumped more water from the ground — at least a quarter of which is sold out-of-state — with the approval of state regulators.
A two-mile segment of the Ocheyedan River dried up this year in September amid drought conditions and increased pumping by Osceola County and the Osceola County Rural Water System, according to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. That led to the deaths of an undetermined, large number of fish and other aquatic life, diminished wildlife in the area and less available water for local livestock.
The Ocheyedan River runs for about 60 miles from Ocheda Lake in far southern Minnesota to Spencer in Iowa, where it joins the Little Sioux River. A segment of the river about four miles south of Ocheyedan has run dry at least four times since 2015. “It’s surreal,” said Ed Jones, who owns 90 acres of pasture land that abuts the river. “There’s no water. There’s no mud. There’s no nothing. It’s just gravel.”
Jones said the DNR — which oversees the state’s water-use permits — has been slow to remedy the ongoing problem. State law says a permit for the large-scale withdrawal of water from the ground shall be denied or discontinued “if it will impair the navigability of any navigable watercourse” or “if it will unreasonably impair the long-term availability of water.”
EDIT
https://minnesotareformer.com/2022/12/19/part-of-a-northwest-iowa-river-has-been-pumped-dry/