WDFW proposed restoration project would flood 98 acres

The Skamokawa Diking District invited the public to a meeting on Wednesday, May 7, at the Skamokawa Grange Hall. Restoration Coordination Manager from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) Laura Brown presented attendees with a preliminary proposal for a fish habitat restoration project that involves breaching a dike and flooding 98 acres of privately owned land. In Skamokawa, a culvert collapsed inside resident Herman Migliore’s property. Though water is still moving through it, the tide gate has failed. The WDFW is proposing the removal of the existing dike and the installation of a setback levee. The levee would be built around Migliore’s property, protecting the neighboring properties and allowing Migliore’s 98 acres to flood; thus, restoring it to its historical floodplain status for the fish to access. Brown also pointed out that this would give the river more space and could lessen the likelihood of flooding in the area. Brown then expressed interest in hearing all of the concerns and questions of the local community.

The diking district was presented with this proposal after Skamokawa Board Member Tom Bosh reached out to see about a permit and get suggestions on how to fix the floodgate. “It's going to cost a lot of money and our district doesn’t have a lot of money,” said Bosh. Board member Jerry Bowden, also a senior estimator for an industrial construction company, estimates the costs to repair this would run upwards of $300,000. There are 350 acres inside Skamokawa’s diking district, and the district only brings in around $1,000 in yearly income. The WDFW responded to Bosh’s inquiries with a proposal for the setback levee on Migliore’s property. “This is a proposed situation,” said Brown. “I have no regulatory authority. I cannot make anyone do anything. I work with volunteers; folks who are interested and willing. The moment a landowner says, ‘No, thank you.’ I will say, ‘Okay’... and back off.”

Funding for this project is through WDFW, but the money comes from BPA (Bonneville Power Administration), which transmits and sells power produced in the Pacific Northwest through hydroelectric dams in the Columbia River Basin. The Fish & Wildlife website for Nespelem’s Colville Confederated Tribes (CCT) explains why BPA provides funding for habitat protection and improvement, According to the site, BPA is under legal obligation to “protect, mitigate, and enhance fish and wildlife, including related spawning grounds and habitat affected by the development and operation of hydroelectric projects.” Brown explained that they are trying to levy some of this with what she refers to as “fish money,” which BPA has been required to mitigate into restoring aging infrastructure.

Several community members attended the meeting. One asked why the original tide gate couldn’t be fixed. “It is possible to fix the original, but we don’t have the money,” responded Bosh. “We’d have to find funding. We’d need a permit from the fisheries. This [levee] is just a suggestion.. They [WSFW] have the money to do this... But [Herman] said that if it is going to negatively impact his neighbors, he will walk away from the deal.” When asked what plans are in place for addressing any potential negative outcomes for neighboring properties at any other sites where they’ve done this, Brown answered, “The idea is that there are no negative impacts, so addressing what the concerns are and where people’s risk thresholds are… we do everything to make sure that won’t happen and having within the agreement that if something happens… it’s within the agreement that it would be righted.” Repairs or any adverse outcomes would likely be covered financially through the project agreement, but the timeline for those fixes depends on the repair scale. However, Brown assured that project would be “covered in perpetuity.”

Skamokawa resident Kay Chamberlain asked, “This [culvert] is for the fish… why can’t the fisheries pay to fix it?” With this particular funding coming from BPA, the project would have to meet certain criteria, meaning the benefit the project would have on the fish must make sense in comparison to the amount of money being spent on the project, or “fish credits.” Brown explained that replacing the culvert wouldn’t have enough “fish credits” in comparison to the cost. When asked how many “fish credits” the project in question on Migliore’s property would have and what the projected cost would be, Brown said, “I am not sure. This is the first, very conceptual meeting.”

Questions were asked for nearly 90 minutes. Some residents expressed serious concern about the forming trend of large organizations coming in and offering agreements such as the setback levee to land owners who have no other options.

Not everyone in attendance was apprehensive about the prospect. One attendee suggested the group was “overlooking the benefits,” referring to the young, juvenile fish and to downstream landowners. With emotions in the room ranging from frustrated and dismissive to curious and apprehensive, the representatives of WDFW were given a lot to consider. No date has been set for when Brown and colleagues will return to further discuss the potential setback levee on Herman Milgliore’s property. The landowners of the area and the Skamokawa diking district are now faced with having to decide what their risk tolerance will be for this project, and are finding alternative solutions to fix the collapsed culvert and failed tide gate should they choose to reject the proposal.