83 years after the federal government approved plans to protect the south Delta area of Mississippi from flooding, efforts to construct the “Yazoo pumps” could soon come to fruition.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) signed a landmark record of decision on Thursday, marking a significant milestone in the efforts to address flooding and environmental challenges in the region. Maj. Gen. Kimberly A. Peeples, the commander of the USACE’s Mississippi Valley Division, etched her name on the 2024 Yazoo Backwater Study Area water management plan to get the ball rolling on long-awaited improvements.
The corps’ decision now paves the way for highly-anticipated pumps to be built to protect those in the region from flooding, which impedes farmers’ ability to cultivate crops. After decades of public outcry over the devastating effects of flooding, officials with the USACE worked with federal environmental regulators to ensure a flood control plan complied with federal requirements.
Today, we took another huge step forward in our fight to Finish The Pumps!
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers signed a Record of Decision, clearing the way for the construction of the pumps.
Thanks to Senators @cindyhydesmith and @SenatorWicker, @VicksburgUSACE, and YOU for… pic.twitter.com/MJ56gob7xi
— Governor Tate Reeves (@tatereeves) January 17, 2025
Officials’ plan includes the installation of high-volume pumps at the Steele Bayou Water Control Structure and managing water levels to the 90-foot elevation mark during crop season and the 93-foot elevation mark during non-crop season.
Per a release from the USACE, a nonstructural feature will be implemented to address flood impacts on properties in impacted areas, which includes a voluntary acquisition program for affected structures and agricultural lands, along with options for floodproofing or raising structures.
“Reaching this milestone is a testament to the technical expertise, dedication, and collaboration of our team. This record of decision reflects our shared commitment to serving the Yazoo Backwater community and to finding solutions to a longstanding issue that has affected our Mississippi Delta communities for decades,” said Col. Jeremiah Gipson, commander of the USACE Vicksburg District. “I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve accomplished together, and this marks an important step forward as we continue to address this challenge and work toward lasting solutions.”
The USACE reached three memorandums of agreement with the Environmental Protection Agency and Fish and Wildlife Services. The three agencies will coordinate with one another before changes are made to water control structure plans, ensure that harmful impacts on natural resources are offset, and collectively determine whether or not the water management plan is working as intended.
This is great news – the USACE cleared the way for the construction of the Yazoo Backwater Area pumps to move forward. I remain fully committed to doing everything that I can to see this critical flood control project through. #FinishThePumpshttps://t.co/cGFf0zc61T
— U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (@SenHydeSmith) January 17, 2025
The USACE will move into a planning stage, figuring out construction engineering and mitigation plans moving forward. Officials with the corps will work to secure funding for the project. No official cost has been tallied at this time. A potential date for the finalization of the design process has not been released.
Backstory
The Yazoo Backwater Study Area is located in west-central Mississippi, immediately north of Vicksburg. The area extends northward about 65 miles to the latitude of Hollandale and Belzoni, comprises about 1,446 square miles, and forms a triangle. The Big Sunflower and Little Sunflower Rivers, Deer Creek, and Steele Bayou flow through the area, which consists of 30,500 residents, 80% of whom are reported to be underserved and environmentally burdened.
Plans to mitigate flooding in the south Delta were proposed in 1941. By 1978, levees and drainage structures had been constructed, but the pumps had not been installed. For decades, federal politicians, local officials, and area residents have advocated for the addition of the pumps.
Even with the Corps greenlighting the proposal, pump installation has continuously been stalled. In 2008, federal officials ruled the pump project posed a grave threat to the environment. During President-elect Donald Trump’s first term in office, the federal government reversed course and approved the project. That was derailed in 2021 when the Environmental Protection Agency restored the 2008 ruling, prohibiting pumps from being constructed.
Perpetual flooding in the south Delta has yielded a detrimental blow to Mississippi’s agriculture industry and small businesses alike. According to the Mississippi Department of Agriculture, the agriculture sector employs 17% of the state’s workforce and is a nearly $9 billion industry. The Yazoo Backwater Study Area, in particular, is within the top 10% of the U.S. agriculture production for catfish, rice, corn, and soybeans.
Proponents of the pumps argue that the pumps would protect Mississippians in the south Delta from flooding while simultaneously clearing the land of floodwater to the benefit of farmers. Critics of the proposal, including social justice advocates, environmental activists, and conservation groups, maintain that the project would damage up to 200,000 acres of “ecologically significant wetland.”
Instead of installing the pumps, the groups argue that a better plan would consist of elevating homes and roads in the region while turning croplands into wetlands. Nonetheless, the Corps’ proposed water management plan is designed to reduce backwater flooding for local communities and agricultural production while ensuring that necessary measures are in place to offset any impacts to wetlands, fish, wildlife, and their habitats.
In December 2024, the USACE issued its final environmental impact statement (EIS) for the Yazoo Backwater Study Area and supported the pumps project, reversing decisions from 2008 and 2021. This came more than five years after a major flood overwhelmed close to 500,000 acres of land, wrecking agricultural areas, destroying hundreds of homes, causing more than $800 million in damages, and adding increased risk to human health.
After a decades-long series of battles, the pumps are in a good position to be built in an area that has faced insurmountable levels of suffering.
