Other options besides rebuilding Delhi dam

Two wrongs don't make a right. The dam at Delhi should not have been built in the first place; rebuilding the dam will compound that mistake.

Damming rivers is passé. The trend around the country has been to remove dams and other barriers to the natural flow of water. Damming a river destroys the ability for aquatic wildlife to migrate; it reduces our natural bounty. The watershed is too large for the area. The impoundment has silted-in before and will do so again. An impoundment at Delhi is not naturally sustainable.

I do sympathize with the property owners at Delhi. However the artificial creation of value for their recreational property does not warrant funding from the state, especially in such economically distressed times.

There are options. If the state were to decide to spend millions on the Delhi area, then it could offer to purchase the flooded and devalued properties and reclaim the area. Imagine the recreational and environmental potential for we the people owning miles of both sides of a significant wild river? Such an area would cost little to maintain and would provide recreational opportunities and tourism revenues for perpetuity, as noted by the 2010 Iowa State University report.

John L. Hanson

Marion