Public meeting set on Twelve Mile Lake drainage; county legal counsel says DNR has authority to lower levels

Supervisor Jeff Quastad told the board Aug. 11 that he spoke with Doug Stryk, IDDA legal counsel, about the Iowa DNR's plan to drain down Twelve Mile Lake. According to the meeting minutes, Stryk told Quastad the Iowa DNR has authority over draining a natural watercourse and that Twelve Mile Lake could not be annexed into the drainage district because the lake receives no benefit from the drainage district.

Quastad said he would like to attend the DNR meeting to establish more communication; the minutes record that the Iowa DNR is hosting a public meeting on the project at the Wallingford Community Center on Wednesday, Aug. 26, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., and that the meeting is open to the public.

The board's minutes document Quastad's request to engage and the legal counsel's summary of the DNR's authority, but they do not record additional county action or a formal position by the board at this meeting.