Don Nickles: “included in S. 640, the Water Resources Development Act, is a provision which provides for the reallocation of a…”

“included in S. 640, the Water Resources Development Act, is a provision which provides for the reallocation of a sufficient amount of existing water supply storage space in Broken Bow Lake to support the Mountain Fork trout fishery on a permanent basis. The bill also requires releases of water from Broken Bow Lake to be undertaken at no expense to the State of Oklahoma to mitigate the loss of fish and wildlife resources in the Mountain Fork River as recommended by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation [ODWC] began stocking trout in 12 miles of the lower Mountain Fork river in December 1988. I worked on legislation in 1992, Public Law 102-580, section 102(v), which authorized the reallocation of unobligated water supply storage for the purpose of maintaining the trout fishery. As a result, it is estimated the trout fishery generates over $1 million annually in aggregate benefits to the economy of southeastern Oklahoma.”