Blunt Welcomes Signing of NRCS Record of Decision on East Locust Creek Reservoir Project

WASHINGTON- U.S. Senator Roy Blunt (Mo.) today applauded the Natural Resources Conservation Service's announcement that it has signed a record of decision supporting the installation of the East Locust Creek Reservoir.

"The signing of the record of decision marks a huge step forward for the East Locust Creek Reservoir project and all of the families, farmers, and local businesses that will benefit from it," said Blunt. "A project of this size and significance does not get done without a tremendous amount of hard work and problem-solving on the local level. I'm grateful for all the NRCS, North Central Missouri Regional Water Commission, Locust Creek Watershed District, and other stakeholders have done to get us to this point. The East Locust Creek Reservoir will go a long way toward addressing severe water shortages that have disrupted businesses and daily life in the area. Improving water infrastructure and reliability will, in turn, support stronger economic development in the years to come. I have been proud to make the East Locust Creek Reservoir a priority in the appropriations process and I'm committed to doing everything I can to ensure the federal resources are in place to complete the project."

The East Locust Creek Reservoir service area includes Mercer, Putnam, Schuyler, Grundy, Sullivan, Adair, Livingston, Linn, Macon, and Chariton counties.

As a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Blunt has led efforts to secure resources for the East Locust Creek Reservoir project in every government funding bill since FY2016. The recently-enacted FY2022 Senate agriculture appropriations bill included an additional $10 millionin funding.

Blunt was in Milan in 2019 when the NRCS announced that the project received an additional $5.6 million, which was included in the Blunt-backed FY2019 funding bill. Following Blunt's advocacy, the Department of Transportation also awarded a $13.5 million BUILD Grantto the East Locust Creek Reservoir project in November 2019.

In August 2018, Blunt announced that the USDA invested $20 millionin the project to prepare the dam's site, access corridors, and other key infrastructure for the next phase of construction.

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