Bayou Meto project station gets first pump

BAYOU METO, Ark. – Water started flowing at a nearly 75-year-old project on Wednesday afternoon, with those benefiting the most being farmers.

A ceremonial “first pump” event was held Wednesday at the Marion Berry Pump Station in Scott.

The pump was first approved in 1950 through the Bayou Meto Management District but wasn’t finished until 2015.

Once fully operational, the station will move water from the Arkansas River to farmers in eastern and central Arkansas.

It’s a move that Sen. John Boozeman said will protect groundwater levels and give farmers a sustained water supply.

“We’re so blessed in Arkansas, we have all of this surface water that just kind of runs off someplace,” Boozeman said. “Now we have the opportunity to actually channel it, use it in a way that I think is going to be great for our farmers, great for our communities.”

Essential crops that will benefit from the pump station include rice, cotton, corn and soybeans.

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