City of Salem sues to pause Army Corps plan to drain Detroit Lake

Fall color at Olallie Creek, Oregon by Bonnie Moreland (free images) is licensed under pdm

The City of Salem has filed a lawsuit over a plan by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to drain Detroit Lake this fall.

The city says the plan would jeopardize their drinking water supply.

Marion County also filed a similar lawsuit against the Army Corps in May. Several cities including Stayton, Sublimity, Mill City and others joined Marion County in calling for a stop to the lake draining.

Both lawsuits seek to protect the community’s drinking water by asking a federal court to pause the plan until the Army Corps completes a federally required turbidity study.

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