The Obama administration is getting tough on the keep-busy ways of the Corps of Engineers. It’s insisting on scrapping projects that don’t provide a sufficient return on investment.
That’s the good news. Now the irony: The decision means the Corps is being forced to scrap a hydroelectric project on the Arkansas River about 35 miles east of Fort Smith. According to this, shutting down the project will cost $4 million more than it would cost to complete it.
Rep. John Boozman, that crusader against government spending, represents the district in which the project sits and you know what he wants to do — keep busy. The Ozark-Jeta project could still get money from Congress.
Longtime observers of the Army Corps say the Arkansas project is a symbol of a venerable problem: No one is in charge of crafting a coherent vision for the nation’s water infrastructure.
Needed here: George Fisher.