Pipeline would pump river water across North Dakota

BISMARCK, N.D. – North Dakota officials are promoting a decades-long idea of pumping Missouri River water across the state to central and eastern North Dakota to combat future drought conditions.

A groundbreaking is planned Tuesday near Carrington to mark the start of pipeline construction for the Red River Valley Water Supply Project. It’s a more than $1 billion project that still faces huge funding and legal hurdles.

Fargo relies primarily on the Red River for its water. During the 1930s, the river almost dried up.

Backers say similar conditions today would cause extreme water shortages and billions of dollars in economic damage to the region.