Mount Rainier and Spirit Lake are seen from the summit of Mount St. Helens.
The Gifford Pinchot National Forest is seeking comments by Jan. 16 on activities to enhance public safety and protection to communities downstream of Spirit Lake, the U.S. Forest Service announced.
The announcement noted two specific projects — one to replace an intake gate for the Spirit Lake Tunnel and one that will gather information on a landslide and sediment that has blocked the lake’s outflow since the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens.
The gate replacement was needed to maintain safe water levels at the lake, and damage was discovered last Summer which has since been repaired, emphasizing the need for a full replacement, the announcement stated. Research on the landslide would help in predicting safe water level conditions and the potential for other water level control systems in the future.
The Gifford Pinchot National Forest, in partnership with the U.S. Geological Survey and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, manage the outflow from Spirit Lake, the announcement noted. Without adequate outflow management of the lake it could release 314,000 acre-feet of water and 2.4 billion cubic yards of sediment, which the announcement compared to the devastating mudflows of the 1980 eruption.
To mitigate any impacts from a tunnel failure the U.S. Forest Service, working with Cowlitz County and other partners, has prepared an emergency response plan for monitoring, communicating and responding in such an event, the announcement noted. That plan’s development, along with investments into maintenance and repair, helps to reduce risk from hazards caused by the 1980 eruption.
“We need to ensure we provide for public safety,” Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument Monument Ranger Rebecca Hoffman stated in the release. “This is critical work that needs to be done as we look towards providing a long-term sustainable Spirit Lake outflow within this dynamic, volcanic landscape.”
Project details and how to submit comments are available online at fs.usda.gov/project/?project=57259. The comment period ends Jan. 16.
