City of Salem Files Lawsuit Against US Army Corps of Engineers Over Detroit Reservoir Drawdown

Today, the City of Salem filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon in Eugene. The suit challenges the Corps' intended drawdown of Detroit Reservoir, a critical water source for Salem. The City is seeking legal relief to protect the community's drinking water supply.

"Our drinking water is safe, clean and plentiful, but the Corps' plan raises critical concerns about the long-term reliability of our water supply," said Krishna Namburi, Salem's city manager. "Our actions today will help safeguard our water source now while allowing the system to support future population and economic growth."

Background and Need for Legal Action

For more than a year, the City of Salem has actively engaged with the Corps, providing detailed feedback and proposing measures designed to protect and preserve the quality and quantity of Salem's drinking water - not only today, but for future generations. Among the City's key requests was a safeguard to pause or stop the drawdown when the amount of sediment in the North Santiam River harms Salem's water treatment systems and causes those systems to shut down.

Despite these efforts, the Corps is planning to proceed with the drawdown without incorporating these essential protections into their plan, the final Supplemental Environmental Impact statement. The Corps has also failed to fulfill its federal obligation to publish a study of the impacts of previous drawdowns, and to apply federal law in its analysis of the proposed drawdown.

Relief Sought by the City

The City remains committed to protecting the health and safety of its residents and ensuring the long-term sustainability of its water supply. Through this lawsuit, the City of Salem is seeking the Corps:

• Comply with the National Environmental Policy Act, the Administrative Procedure Act and the 2024 Water Resources Development Act by preparing and publishing a comprehensive turbidity impact and assessment report from previous drawdowns conducted on similar water sources in other areas.
• Establish a trigger that would halt or pause the drawdown if sediment levels in the North Santiam River reach thresholds unsafe for Salem's water treatment infrastructure.
• Construct a long-term physical solution that was outlined in the 2008 Willamette Project Biological Opinion to help young salmon migrate.
  

Detroit Reservoir Drawdowns, Sediments and Salem's Drinking Water

The City has been working with the Corps throughout the development of the plan for drawdowns, which would lower the elevation in Detroit Reservoir to a level not seen since the dam was built over 70 years ago. Such deep drawdowns would result in high levels of suspended sediments - fine particles of clay, silt and other matter - in the North Santiam River downstream of the dam.

Drinking Water for 220,000

The City of Salem is responsible for supplying safe and reliable drinking water to about 220,000 residents, as well as hospitals, schools, businesses and other critical infrastructure. Our service area includes the City of Turner, two water districts and portions of unincorporated Marion and Polk counties. We also provide water in sufficient quantities for firefighting and other emergency needs. This is the only emergency source of drinking water for the City of Stayton and the City of Keizer.

Efforts to Expand Water Supply

Despite this legal action, we are prepared to continue to provide safe and clean drinking water to residents and businesses during a deep drawdown of Detroit Reservoir. During a drawdown, the City will use other water sources to meet the anticipated demand. These alternative sources include existing and new groundwater wells on Geren Island, the Aquifer Storage and Recovery facility in South Salem and an emergency supply of drinking water through connections with the City of Keizer. The City has invested nearly $8 million the past 18 months making these facilities available if the drawdown proceeds as planned by the Corps.

The City anticipates these sources will meet the expected water demand during the initial drawdown and recovery period planned by the Corps for this fall.

Customers should contact Salem Public Works Dispatch at 503-588-6311 if they have any questions or concerns about their drinking water. Visit Salem's Drinking Water for more information.

Visit Special Projects & Upcoming Improvements to learn more about the deep drawdown and what the City is doing to prepare.