PRESS
RELEASE
POC:
CRST Public Relations
Rock
LeBeau
(605)964-8308
For
immediate release October 09, 2005
CRST
TO RECEIVE $1M FOR WATER INTAKE
In Jan. 2005, the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe
sounded the alarm that the Reservation, Ranchers
and surrounding towns would be out of water.
Chairman Frazier called the problem a three headed
monster: He told the news media; “We have
a water system that is breaking down and only has
a capacity of 1.2 million gallons a day when it
is working. We have a drought which is going to
result in the water source soon to be below the
level of our intake valve and finally, we have
an intake that, having been lowered once already,
is now close to be silted in. The silt covering
this area is contaminated with arsenic, heavy metals
and mercury. 14,000 People are in danger of being
out of water!”
A water meeting was held on Mar. 28, 2005 with
the purpose of informing the public about the gravity
of the situation and to coordinate efforts of all
concerned. It is commendable that everyone came
together to seek solutions to solve the problem:
Indians, Ranchers, Farmers, Mayors, Healthcare
providers, Firemen, Teachers, Businessmen and citizens
of 4 Counties; Dewey, Ziebach, Meade and Perkins.
This group continued to work on fixing the problem,
Meetings were held with Senator Johnson, Senator
Thune and Rep. Herseth. The media was kept informed
and many meetings occurred with the Corps of Engineers
who had the responsibility of providing the Tribe
with water. Chairman Frazier and Wayne Ducheneaux,
Director of Housing for CRST made trips to Washington
DC to educate Members of Congress. Reports, Plans
and information was put together and distributed.
Water is not only necessary for life, but also
necessary for economic development: the CRST is
planning a new hospital, a new Nursing Home, 400
new homes for Members and other projects requiring
water.
Due to this concerted effort and the assistance
of our Congressional Delegation, the CRST has been
informed of a $1 Million dollar federal grant
to help fund the emergency water intake project
for the Mni Waste’ Water system.
Senator Johnson visited the site of the intake
pipe in Sept. and made the following comment; “The
Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe and people across central
South Dakota depend on the safe and reliable water
service provided by the Mni Waste’ system.
However, the current drought situation has the
potential to cause a devastating loss of water
service to the area. This emergency intake will
address the immediate dangers posed by the drought
and will provide protection in the long-term against
future droughts.”
The $1,000,000 grant money augments the public
funds provided for by the Army Corps of Engineers
to extend the drinking water intake. The funding
comes in the form of a Water and Waste Disposal
Grant from the Rural Development Agency within
the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).
Chairman Frazier said he is extremely thankful
for all the coordinated effort put forth by everybody. “This
is another example of what we can accomplish when
we all come together in unity to solve what could
have been a disastrous problem. I especially want
to thank our Congressional Delegation for listening
to us and doing follow up to get the funding for
us. The Coup of Engineers deserves appreciation
also, now we can get on with development!”
| 
