Centralia resident Jeff King has his own theories on how to blunt the impact of flooding in the Chehalis River Basin.

    In fact, he feels so strongly about it that he designed a T-shirt to proclaim his idea. He wore the green shirt with the acronym S.C.R.E.W.E.D — Serving County Rivers Ecosystems While Eagerly Dredging — to the third and final open house aimed at educating the public on current flood control projects Wednesday.

    Held in the Centralia Middle School Gymnasium, the event was attended by a dozen or so organizations including the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Chehalis River Basin Flood Authority, the U.S. Geologic Survey and the Federal Emergency Management Agency among others.

    Representatives from each organization answered questions from the public and displayed information and timelines on everything from the Army Corps’ Twin Cities Project, which calls for 11 miles of levees in and around Centralia and Chehalis, to two potential water retention projects in the upper reaches of the basin.

    King, one of about 160 people to sign in during the three-hour event, said he supports dredging, a term used to describe the removal of debris and sediment from the river to make it deeper and allow water to flow smoothly.

    While there is currently no plan on the table that includes dredging as an option, King said he would like to see something get done, noting that the Chehalis River Basin Flood Authority has already spent or encumbered the majority of its available funds.

    “That’s $2.4 million those guys just spent on people doing studies,” he said. “I want to see someone who actually does the work.”

    Lewis County Commissioner Ron Averill, chairman of the flood authority, said he doesn’t believe there is enough political will to dredge the river with opposition from various state agencies and other interests.

    He is convinced that water retention is a strong alternative. Preliminary results show that a Lewis County Public Utility District plan to build two dams on the south and north fork of the Chehalis River is geologically feasible. Studies contracted by the PUD have shown that two structures could lower peak flood levels several feet down river.

    Still, he said any successful flood control project will include several elements.

    “If it is going to be effective flood control it’s going to be a combination,” Averill said. “Are we there yet? No.”

    As consultants move forward on studying the potential of dams, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is continuing work on its two federally appropriated plans. The Twin Cities Project is nearing 35 percent design with construction slated to begin in 2013. Spokesperson Andrea Takash said a second general investigation into flood control and ecosystem restoration is just now under way and could take up to five years.

    That study could include a combination of recommendations, Takash said. A similar general investigation study resulted in the current Twin Cities Project plan which includes both levees and modifications to the Skookumchuck Dam. She said the final recommendation following the general investigation could result in a number of project features.

    “In that study, nothing is off the table,” she said. “We will look at every flood risk reduction potential in the basin.”

    Centralia City Councilman Bill Bates, also a member of the flood authority, said that any successful flood control effort will include portions of a number of projects. He said everything, including dredging, should be considered.

    “It still boils down to a multi-pronged effort,” he said “We can’t look to a single effort.”

    Eric Schwartz: (360) 807-8245