Planning to Protect Tribal Water Resources

“In selecting an engineer for the tribe’s water infrastructure planning, the tribal selection committee was looking for a firm that seemed down-to-earth and had a sense of the challenges that we faced ahead in our future water supply planning. Houston Engineering did that,” said Gene Laducer, Tribal Water Planner for the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa in Belcourt, North Dakota. “I am very pleased with the work that Houston provides.”

In Laducer’s work as tribal water planner, he stated that “the employees of Houston are always ahead of the game providing support and insight when needed. The overall goal in our planning is to have a water system that will meet the future and current demand of the water users with available water capacity and water pressure. I believe in Houston’s professional services and look forward to carrying out my work with them,” said Laducer.

“Houston Engineering is my one-stop call,” said Laducer. “They provide such good service, going beyond the call of duty because they care. The staff that I work with is always accessible, providing their services when needed. There is always someone in the Bismarck office willing to help.”

“Houston Engineering utilizes the newest technology to accommodate the tribe’s needs,” said Laducer. “They created a hydraulic flow modeling system for us. This technology enables the tribe to plan for future expansion. And with the correct data that pertains to our water system, we have the ability to look at alternatives.”

The hydraulic flow modeling system has already proved useful. Twelve miles west of Belcourt is the city of Dunseith. The community needed a supplementary water supply, so the tribe, in concert with the city of Dunseith, looked to Houston Engineering for the answers. The engineering team gathered the necessary information and plugged it into the flow modeling system, which allowed them to see what would happen if water was diverted from Belcourt’s supply to Dunseith. “We are currently providing 300,000 gallons per month to Dunseith without any overburden to the water system and our water consumers—technology that works,” said Laducer. “We are very pleased indeed.”

- Gene Laducer
Tribal Water Planner for the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa