The Baldhill Dam at Lake Ashtabula north of Valley City, N.D. The Sheyenne River forms the lake behind the dam. Photos by David Samson / Forum Communications Co.
Kristen M. Daum - Reporter - The Forum
“The Sheyenne River is a North Dakota natural resource. … Some of the things we find there we don’t find many other places,” said Andre Delorme, a Valley City State University professor. “The Sheyenne really is a gem in this state.”
Delorme has been studying this aquatic jewel for more than 15 years and serves as director of the Prairie Waters Education and Research Center in Kathryn, about 18 miles south of Valley City.
With North Dakota’s climactic wet cycle raging on, Delorme said he continues to see “unbelievable” water levels coming down the Sheyenne, including the late summer flood that inundated the lower river valley last August.
Delorme said the high water by itself doesn’t necessarily harm the Sheyenne’s aquatic residents, but he fears other long-lasting effects – such as erosion and chemical imbalance – could have far-reaching consequences.
Continued releases from Devils Lake into the Sheyenne River are the biggest threat to the Sheyenne’s vitality, Delorme said, and the consequences could start appearing in the tiniest of places.
Among 60 river sites across North Dakota, Delorme’s research has found the Sheyenne River to have the best mussel population in the state, he said.
Mussels depend on good water quality to survive, and they help promote continued quality by filtering river water through their bodies, Delorme said.
While many species of mussels are endangered across North America, the healthy quality of the Sheyenne River allows mussels a place to thrive.
Of the 15 species of mussels found in North Dakota, 11 reside in the Sheyenne River, Delorme said.
The river’s health also attracts unique diversity in its aquatic population, including various species of fish, leeches, crayfish and insects, he said.
But the Sheyenne’s natural balance is slowly deteriorating because of relentless floods and continued releases from Devils Lake.
With massive amounts of water rushing through the river valley during floods, the Sheyenne riverbed is slowly eroding.
While that may benefit residents by broadening the river channel over time, Delorme said it’s potentially bothersome to aquatic life.
Erosion churns up the soil and scours out the natural riverbed, he said.
The onslaught of Devils Lake water sparks greater concern for both biologists and residents along the Sheyenne River.
Even though the upper Sheyenne River passes just south of Devils Lake, the two bodies of water are inherently separate and do not naturally interact.
But because of the threat of an uncontrolled spillover at Devils Lake, North Dakota officials devised the solution of slowly emptying the lake by way of man-made drainage outlets into the Sheyenne River.
Delorme and others fear possible damage to the Sheyenne’s natural water quality, especially as officials prepare to open more outlets on the east end of Devils Lake this year.
Devils Lake water contains varying levels of sulfates, a natural mineral that isn’t dangerous in small doses but can cause problems at higher levels.
Officials at the North Dakota Department of Health have said residents who use water from the Sheyenne could see minimal digestive impacts from the higher sulfate levels brought on by the Devils Lake outlet.
To maintain taste quality, drinking water would also need to be purified more thoroughly to compensate for the sulfates.
But on a biological level, Delorme said the increased sulfates could potentially be devastating to the Sheyenne’s inhabitants, depending on organisms’ tolerance to higher doses of the mineral.
For instance, various species of fish would likely survive against the sulfates, but the minerals could impede their ability to reproduce, eventually diminishing the river’s fish population, Delorme said.
The sulfates could also target the Sheyenne’s unique mussel community.
Delorme said three of the 11 mussel species in the Sheyenne will likely be tolerant enough to withstand the sulfates.
“The other eight, I really worry about,” he said. “Some you only find in the Sheyenne; that’s their main home in the state.”
The well-being of mussels and other aquatic in the life is a notable indicator of the Sheyenne’s water quality, one that the valley’s residents shouldn’t overlook, Delorme cautions.
“If these organisms are dying, that’s telling you something is wrong with the water quality,” he said. “As a citizen of North Dakota, the Sheyenne River is a natural part of our state that we need to protect.”
Kristen Daum reports for The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead.
