DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has taken the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to task for its handling of the Missouri River in a letter questioning its decision not to release more water from dams earlier in the spring to prevent prolonged flooding this summer.
The river is near historic flood levels along the more than 800 miles it stretches from the Gavins Point Dam in South Dakota to its confluence with the Mississippi River. More than 560,000 acres in seven states have flooded, including nearly 447,000 acres of farmland, Vilsack spokesman Justin DeJong said. The flooding followed unexpected spring rains and the melting of a deep snowpack in the Rocky Mountains.
Vilsack outlined his concerns in a three-page letter sent to Major Gen. Meredith W.B. Temple, the acting commander of the Corps, and obtained by The Associated Press. Although Vilsack said he wasn’t in a position to judge how the Corps handled its dams, he asked pointed questions about the agency’s decision not to release more water earlier and criticized it for not providing farmers and ranchers with more up-to-date information.
His comments add to a growing chorus of officials questioning the Corps’ handling of the situation. U.S. Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., announced Friday that a bipartisan group of 14 senators from Missouri River states has requested a Senate hearing on the Corps’ management of the river. Vilsack noted the Corps said in a March 3 report in the Omaha World-Herald that there was no need for early releases from the Gavins Point Dam and there would be little flooding unless the region received a lot of rain.
Corps spokeswoman Jasmine Chopra defended the agency’s management of the river, saying it released more water than usual from Missouri River dams last fall and during the winter and this year’s flooding was unprecedented. However, she also said the Corps will take another look at its response when the river recedes.

The Missouri is expected to remain near record flood stage into the fall.