In this aerial file photo taken on Oct. 9, 2009, a planned site for a potential dam outside of Pe Ell is seen.
The Pe Ell Town Council voted Tuesday to support a flood mitigation alternative that includes a dam and water retention facility near the town. The option, known as Alternative One, is one of four alternatives presented in a Department of Ecology environmental impact statement designed to tackle flood reduction and aquatic species enhancement in the Chehalis River Basin.
Pe Ell Mayor Lonnie Willey said the council was presented with a resolution from the Chehalis River Basin Flood Authority, comprised of municipalities in Lewis, Thurston and Grays Harbor counties, which they approved and signed, lending support to Alternative One as the widely preferred option in Lewis County.
“The council approved Alternative One with one stipulation — that we would like to see a reservoir,” Willey said.
There are two options for the proposed dam within the alternative, one that would hold water back all year in a permanent reservoir and another that would only retain water during storms and heavy rain.
The dam and reservoir would provide the town with an influx of revenue during construction as workers purchase goods and services from local merchants and restaurants, Willey said.
As for a variation of the dam option that would not create a permanent water retention facility and only hold water during a flood, Willey said it would not generate continuing income for the town.
With water retention, however, Willey said recreation opportunities such as fishing, camping and boating could draw income and tourists from outside the town and possibly provide a water boost to the river system during drier summer months.
“If you had a reservoir behind it, two things, you could release water in the summertime, which would be better flow for the fish, and you could have recreation,” he said.
He said some residents have expressed concerns over a water retention facility, but Willey said he has confidence in the state and federal engineers to design a dam which could withstand major natural disasters like an earthquake.
Other options include building levees around Interstate 5 and doing nothing on the state level and letting local municipalities tackle individual projects on their own. Another option, which would see the state attempting to buy some 21,000 acres along the Chehalis River, would relocate the residents and restore the natural floodplain. A fifth unofficial option is to do nothing, which would see flood damage to the area reach into the billions of dollars over the course of the next 100 years, according to Ecology.
Most upper basin governments — including county commissioners, the Flood Authority and the Centralia and Chehalis city councils — have also voiced support for a dam.
Ultimately, the final proposal will be in the hands of the Governor’s Work Group, a group of basin leaders and representatives of governments, tribes and citizens through the basin. Then, the Legislature would have to deliver the necessary funding.
A representative of the Chehalis Tribe recently spoke out against the dam.
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The Chronicle will be providing follow-up coverage with input from Pe Ell residents in Saturday’s edition.
