Attorney General's News Release

May 18, 2005

AmerenUE to pay $1.3 million to state of Missouri for 2002 fish kill at Bagnell Dam, under agreement with AG Nixon

Jefferson City, Mo. — AmerenUE will pay the state of Missouri $1.3 million in an agreement with Attorney General Jay Nixon over a fish kill at Bagnell Dam on the Lake of the Ozarks. Approximately 43,000 fish were killed in May and June of 2002 when they were sucked into the dam's turbine generators as AmerenUE released large amounts of water to keep the lake level down after heavy rains.

The consent judgment, which was entered today in Miller County Circuit Court, resolves a lawsuit Nixon filed on behalf of the Missouri Clean Water Commission against AmerenUE in 2003.

"Many of the fish killed by the turbines three years ago were paddlefish stocked in the lake at no small expense by the Missouri Department of Conservation," Nixon said. "This court order and the companion agreements will provide restitution to the state for the fish and require AmerenUE to take significant steps to ensure that this type of fish kill does not occur again."

Under the court order, $1 million will go to the Conservation Commission Fund and the other $300,000 will go to the Natural Resources Protection Fund.

In addition to the money paid to the state, AmerenUE will construct and operate an approved net-like barrier at the dam to prevent fish from being destroyed in the power plant. That is one of the provisions in an agreement between AmerenUE and the Department of Conservation, the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, the U.S. Department of the Interior, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Park Service. The agreement, which will be filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, also requires AmerenUE to:

• Pay $134,000 annually to the Department of Conservation for fish stocking, with the amount to be adjusted each year for inflation.
• Pay $2.1 million as mitigation for impact to the Missouri Division of State Parks and Historic Sites. Among other things, the money will be used to address erosion and develop a satellite law enforcement center in Lake of the Ozarks State Park.
• Install new turbines that will more efficiently generate electricity and help improve water quality.
• Receive new water quality certification from the Department of Resources that will require the dam to meet water quality standards for dissolved oxygen, which can negatively impact aquatic life.
• Pay $175,000 annually, to be adjusted each year for inflation, for activities under the Endangered Species Act, at the direction of the Fish and Wildlife Service.

As part of an accompanying settlement agreement between the Attorney General, the Department of Conservation and AmerenUE, the Department of Conservation will dismiss its lawsuit against AmerenUE. That lawsuit also sought compensation for the fish kill.

Inquiries from consumers should be directed to consumer@ago.mo.gov or 1-800-392-8222 (from within Missouri) or 573-751-3321 (outside Missouri).

All media inquiries should be directed to Press Secretary John Fougere.

E-mail      Phone: 573-751-8844         Fax: 573-751-5818