Marion County Will Appeal Ruling On Draining Detroit Lake
Salem, OR — Marion County officials say they will immediately appeal to the Ninth U.S. Court of Appeals, to prevent a drawdown of Detroit Lake this fall. This comes after Wednesday’s ruling by U.S. District Judge Mustafa T. Kasubhai, denying County’s motion for a preliminary injunction to stop the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers from draining Detroit Lake.
“We are extremely disappointed in today’s decision, but this fight is far from over,” said County Commission Chair Colm Willis. “The Army Corps is endangering our drinking water, our farmers, our fish, and our canyon communities. We are immediately appealing to the Ninth Circuit and asking for an emergency injunction during the appeal.”
Wednesday’s ruling did not resolve the merits of the case, but would allow the Army Corps to move forward with the first year of its new policy of annual deep drawdowns, which would drain the lake to its lowest level ever. County officials say this is happening even though the Army Corps still has not completed the turbidity report required by law, and despite the documented damage caused by a similar drawdown at nearby Green Peter Lake.
In 2023, a court order forced similar deep drawdowns Green Peter Lake, which killed thousands of salmon and caused massive increases in turbidity that harmed downstream water systems.
The underlying lawsuit continues in District Court, as Marion County also attempts to stop an even deeper drawdown that the Army Corps plans to do in the fall of 2027, threatening the clean water supply for over 220,000 people, hospitals, schools, businesses, firefighters, farmers, recreation, fish, and the environment.