Devils Lake Outlet, North Dakota

Devils Lake is the second largest lake in ND, after Lake Sakakawea, but unlike that massive reservoir, Devils Lake is not formed by a dam, but is a terminal or endorheic lake, one that is in a basin with no normal drainage, and as such it is salty, and subject to great fluctuations in its water level, based on season and weather, and agricultural drainage effects. The lake can double in size in just a few years, as it did in the late 1990s, flooding homes and roads, prompting proposals to provide a drainage system for it. One was finally constructed by the state, in 2005, ending its endorheicity (and its status as the state’s largest “natural” lake, perhaps). The $28 million 15-mile long canal and tunnel system moves water from an outlet on the shore, into the Sheyenne River. That river flows into the Red River, and into Canada, which opposes the use of the outlet, due to the invasive species that would cross its borders, and potentially contaminate Lake Winnipeg and waterways along the way. This has led to much debate and discord between the two countries, as other solutions for the increasing water level are sought, as the lake continues to rise, and has become a flood attraction.