— A Eufaula-based water conservation group applauded news that a lake advisory committee is coming closer to fruition.

The Lake Eufaula Advisory Committee was authorized by Congress through the Water Resources Development Act of 2007. The legislation directed the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to start the process of selecting the panel.

The 12-member advisory committee will be made up area residents and local business leaders. Don Edgar, a publicist for Save Our Water, said the panel is expected to study the reallocation of Lake Eufaula’s water resources for recreational purposes.

“We’ve been trying to get this for a very long time,” Edgar said about the formation of the advisory committee. “The objective is to provide input to the Corps about how the water in the lake is being used.”

Jeff Knack, the Corps of Engineers’ project manager for Lake Eufaula, said the paperwork authorizing the formation of lake advisory committee must be signed by the secretary. Once that is done, a notice will be published in the Federal Register and open for public comment before the panel is selected

The creation of the lake advisory committee will allow citizens to work with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and others regarding Lake Eufaula’s operations. Knack said while the Corps of Engineers will not have a representative on the committee, it will appoint a liaison to work with the advisory panel.

Edgar said Save Our Water played an instrumental role in the establishment of the advisory committee. It lobbied two years for the inclusion of measures in the 2007 federal water bill in an effort to protect Lake Eufaula and the businesses there that depend upon tourism.

The organization formed in 2005 in response to concerns about how Lake Eufaula’s water was being used in the midst of a drought. Lake levels fell so low that most of the boat ramps were rendered useless, and the  economy suffered.

The group expanded its membership to include concerned citizens from across the state and beyond as officials began to focus on a comprehensive water policy. Those efforts were spurred in part by out-of-state demand for Oklahoma water resources.

Save Our Water also pushed for the inclusion of provisions to cover nonconsumptive uses of the state’s water resources in its comprehensive water plan. The plan was finalized without addressing recreational uses such as swimming, boating and fishing.

State lawmakers did very little this year to implement recommendations made in the comprehensive plan, which took five years to complete.

Reach D.E. Smoot at (918) 684-2901 or dsmoot@muskogeephoenix.com.