Minnesota paper company sues feds over beaver dam removal

A paper company in northern Minnesota is suing the federal government over what it said was a bungled beaver dam removal that flooded two roads and a campground and left a lake clogged with debris.

Blandin Paper Co., which owns 180,000 acres of forest in seven counties, contracted with the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 2019 to manage beaver dams on its land in Itasca County, near Pokegama Lake.

But two USDA employees blew up a dam on the company's property without first dismantling another beaver dam downstream on the same creek, an action that caused a cascade of water that ultimately put the paper company under the scrutiny of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, according to the complaint.

Blandin also claims that it appealed directly to USDA for repayment of the costs to fix damage from the flood but was denied. The company's suit was filed Dec. 14 in federal court.

Blandin declined to comment through an attorney.

USDA also declined to comment through a spokesperson and has not filed an answer in court.

According to the agency's website, it offers technical and direct assistance for farmers and foresters in dealing with beavers and notes that an analysis of its work showed "$20.93 was saved for every dollar spent on beaver damage management."

Once the two USDA contractors blew up the first dam, a second one downstream was overwhelmed, which "caused a tremendous flash flood of water and sediment," according to the suit. Water gushed downstream on the creek bed, uprooting trees and boulders, clogging the culvert under Sugar Hills Road, then washing over that road and Sherry's Arm Road beyond it. The water flooded private property and parts of Fishing Springs Campground, then finally deposited dirt, rock and debris across 19,000 square feet of Pokegama Lake.

The DNR later ordered Blandin to repair the damage to the unnamed creek and the lake, which are public waters. A document provided by the DNR showed 14 sites where Blandin was responsible for stabilizing streambanks, fixing floodplains and repairing the original flow of the waterway. The company eventually removed some 1,100 cubic yards of dirt from the lake.

According to an agreement between Blandin and USDA, the federal agency was responsible for obtaining permits to do the dam removal work. But the DNR later informed the company that no one had secured the permit necessary to alter public waters.

Blandin hired USDA to reduce beaver damage by removing the animals from their land by either trapping or shooting, and removing their dams with either explosives or hand rakes. But Blandin claims the two USDA employees were negligent in failing to study how the first explosion they set off would affect the rest of the terrain.