Royalties owed for our water resources

As we look out our windows at Lake Pend Oreille there appear to be far fewer boats on the water and the shoreline seems a lot bigger. Why? Because the Army Corps of Engineers didn’t manage its dam.

This shortage of water in the lake is caused by the draining, in the fall to provide electricity to surrounding communities in both North Idaho and Eastern Washington. This saves the providers both money and pollution concerns by not using oil.

I should point out that oil comes with costs, including royalty payments to the owners. The standard federal royalty payment was 12.5%, (Pheasant, Fort Worth, Texas). When the Corps drains our lake they pay nothing in royalty payments to Bonner and Kootenai counties, but we as citizens get to pay “full boat” for our electricity.

Perhaps we need to begin looking at the water of Lake Pend Oreille as a resource that under the law belongs at minimum to the state of Idaho. The federal government owns the land underneath, not the water.

Our royalty could be passed on as reduced electric bills, property taxes, or even a dividend. Funds that could help the economy of the surrounding counties.

JIM POUND

Sagle