Return lake to natural state
Thank you for publishing a well researched and written article (Dam's fate still up in air) on the history and issues involved with Little Sugar Creek and the Lake Bella Vista dam.
When an improperly built earthen dam is leaking from several locations and reported to be a "high-hazard" dam in danger of imminent collapse, it is time to consider if it makes more sense economically and environmentally to rebuild it from the ground up or remove the dam and restore the waterway, in this case Little Sugar Creek.
The Wisconsin River Alliance estimates that removing old dams in their state costs about 30 percent of what it would cost to rebuild it.
In the 21st century we know that dams cause significant harm to our Ozark waterways by stopping the sediment flow, altering the temperature of the water, blocking fish passage and degrading the water quality. These changes take their toll on the health of the ecosystem and waterway.
This science is not disputed or argued about like the science of climate change. This science is more fundamental. An impermeable wall built across a creek will, over time destroy the creek's ecosystem. We know this now, but we didn't completely understand the long-term consequences of damming our waterways in the early twentieth century.
Recognizing the science available to us today when we are deciding to rebuild a failed dam there should be compelling and valuable reasons, which may include generating electricity or storing drinking water, but not for reasons solely associated with the aesthetics of looking at an artificial lake.
Most understand that looking at a flowing creek is also aesthetically pleasing and we will be looking at a more healthy and sustainable ecosystem.
Personally, I feel that the sentiment for Lake Bella Vista is misplaced in this artificial reservoir, which failed to provide recreation and received so much flood damage that preserving structures beside the lake proved impossible.
We should focus our nostalgic attention on the history of the valley and the reasons people were originally drawn to this special area, an area with clear, spring-fed streams. Unlike Minnesota, there are no natural lakes in the Ozarks, but our natural, flowing waterways are one of the Natural State's best attributes.
Restoring Little Sugar Creek to its natural state and including historical information in the park about the history of Bella Vista and the history of the valley is a great idea that we support.
Replacing the dam will not solve the issues with stagnation, flooding and harm to the environment. Restoration of the creek and park could provide a natural and beautiful recreational amenity for the region and the Natural State. Let's take advantage of the opportunity that this obsolete dam has provided for us to recreate a living, moving waterway.
Let's restore a part of our natural history.
Greg Van Horn
Friends of Little Sugar Creek
479-659-8101
Editorial on 05/20/2015