Plan to Divert Yellowstone River Water Approved for Farmers

Federal regulators have approved a plan to divert water from the Yellowstone River to help farmers in eastern Montana.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers agreed to allow the Lower Yellowstone Irrigation Project to use boulders to rebuild a diversion barrier to irrigate about 55,000 farm acres between Glendive and Sidney.

According to the Billings Gazette , federal regulators said earlier that a permit might not be issued until fall. That would be too late for Eastern Montana farmers.

The diversion is often destroyed by ice flows on the Yellowstone River, keeping water from flowing into the irrigation system.