There are a lot of people who use those two ferries, including emergency vehicles, he said. There would be a whole lot of traveling if people cant use the ferries.

BROWNSVILLE Edmonson Countys Kentucky Farm Bureau chapter is hoping that its 2,100 members will be heard when it comes to deciding the fate of a lock and dam here. The chapters board of directors went on record Monday as opposing the lock and dams removal, Chairman Terry Cowles said. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is leaning toward removing five lock-and-dam systems on the Green and Barren rivers but wont have a final recommendation to Congress until June, project Manager Jane Ruhl said. Removing the Brownsville lock and dam is not a done deal, Ruhl said. Public opinion, which will be heard in a series of public meetings, will have weight in a final recommendation that ultimately needs Congressional approval, she said. The Corps will consider the impact of removing the locks and dams and what can be done to curtail any problems, Ruhl said. Cowles is concerned about how an 8- to 12-foot drop in Green River water levels that would follow the lock-and-dam removal will affect ferry travel in Mammoth Cave National Park and the soil erosion it could cause along the rivers bare banks. There are a lot of people who use those two ferries, including emergency vehicles, he said. There would be a whole lot of traveling if people cant use the ferries. The Corps is reviewing how often the ferries are used and how often they have been closed for repairs and for low and high waters, Ruhl said. Its possible that ramps and approaches to the ferries could be lengthened or the river dredged to make it deeper, she said. If that didnt work, we might look at the construction of a bridge, she said. Cowles said that was the first hed heard of such alternatives and that, until transportation through the park can be guaranteed, his board will remain against removing the Brownsville dam. Cowles sees removal of the dam as just another hindrance to traveling through the park; passage through the national park reportedly was guaranteed when Edmonson Countians turned over some 48,000 acres of land to the National Park Service. Concerns also have been expressed about how the Miss Green River steamboat could continue to operate, but its possible that people could board the boat in Brownsville, instead of in the park, Ruhl said. Farm Bureau concerns that a lower water level also would affect the quality of water for Edmonson County Water District are unfounded, Ruhl said. The county draws its water from a pool caused by lock and dam No. 5 at Glenmore, which wouldnt be affected by removal of the dam at lock No. 6.But the Corps also is deciding what it wants to do with the Glenmore system and locks and dams in Rochester, Woodbury and on Barren River in Warren County. The Rochester dam likely will remain because it creates a pool for water intakes in Ohio and Butler counties, Morgantown and Rochester, as well as for a Perdue poultry processing facility, Ruhl said. The Corps probably will recommend stabilizing that dam and offering the property to the public, she said. Thats wonderful news, Butler County Judge-Executive David Martin said. Butler County Fiscal Court has passed a resolution opposing the Rochester dams removal.