More than 140 local fish and flood projects have been completed across the Chehalis River Basin, coordinated and funded through the Office of Chehalis Basin (OCB).
The OCB board is composed of local officials as well as tribal and environmental representatives.
These projects are done in cooperation with the Chehalis River Basin Flood Authority, local governments, tribes and the Aquatic Species Restoration team. Together, these projects are part of the Chehalis Basin Strategy to restore aquatic species and to reduce flood damage for families and communities.
This article is part of an ongoing series highlighting projects that have been completed in the basin. The Chronicle has partnered with the Office of Chehalis Basin for this series. Read previous installments at chronline.com.
Project summary
In 2022, the Port of Grays Harbor engaged the Chehalis River Basin Flood Authority and the OCB to support an erosion management project along Haul Road, which contains critical industrial-scale water infrastructure that supports major facilities such as Grays Harbor Energy’s power plant at the Satsop Business Park.
While long-term planning was underway to address this erosion issue, near-record flooding significantly worsened erosion in 2022, nearly wiping away the buffer between the road and river.
An emergency management project was quickly funded and implemented by the flood authority through the Chehalis Basin Strategy in order to protect the critical infrastructure for the 2022–2023 flood season.
Then, the OCB and the flood authority worked in partnership with Lewis County, the City of Centralia and the City of Montesano to find funding for a more long-term solution.
Due to the critical nature of the infrastructure and utilities supported by Haul Road, each of these local governments reallocated funding from their already-committed 2023-2025 budgets toward this priority project.
Together, these local governments provided $570,000 toward protecting the Haul Road, and construction was completed this summer to protect Haul Road for several flood seasons to come.
The challenge
For years, erosion along Chehalis River has threatened the Port of Grays Harbor’s Haul Road, which contains critical industrial-scale water infrastructure that supports major facilities like Grays Harbor Energy’s power plant at the Satsop Business Park.
While long-term planning was underway to address the issue, near-record flooding significantly worsened the erosion in 2022, nearly wiping away the buffer between the road and the river.
Luckily, the port, the flood authority and OCB had already been working together and could address the imminent needs quickly.
The project
At the request of the port, the flood authority provided initial funding for the project through the Chehalis Basin Strategy, and the first leg of the project was quickly completed in time for the 2022–2023 flood season.
This first phase included log pilings and bundles of brush and sticks to pad the riverbank, and was an emergency project intended to last for one flood season. In the meantime, the port continued to design and permit a longer-term solution, and OCB and the flood authority worked with local governments to find funding.
The flood authority engaged various local governments to reallocate funding from their already-committed 2023-2025 budgets toward this priority project.
In total:
Together, these local governments provided $570,000 toward protecting the Haul Road, and now, they can all feel relief and celebrate the completion of the longer-term solution.
Thanks to this collaboration and funding, crews this summer implemented the longer-term project, placing log jacks along 500 feet of the riverbank in order to slow river flow, capture wood debris and sediment, and create new habitat for aquatic species.
Now, the critical infrastructure and utilities served by Haul Road will be more securely protected for the 2023–2024 flood season and beyond.
OCB and the Port held a public ribbon-cutting ceremony earlier this month to celebrate completion of the construction, and the Grays Harbor Conservation District will be monitoring the project in this next phase.
About the Chehalis Basin Strategy
The Chehalis Basin Strategy is a network of partners and projects dedicated to protecting communities from flood damage, restoring critical habitat for aquatic life, and ensuring the Chehalis Basin is safe and prosperous for people, fish, and wildlife for generations to come.
The strategy, through the Office of Chehalis Basin, has invested nearly $152 million in on-the-ground flood preparation, flood damage reduction, and aquatic species restoration, and has completed more than 140 projects, with dozens more underway.
The strategy is led by a group of representatives with diverse interests and perspectives called the Chehalis Basin Board and is administered and funded by the Washington Department of Ecology’s Office of Chehalis Basin. It depends on its many partners across the Chehalis Basin and the state, such as the Chehalis River Basin Flood Authority, to inform the path forward and take projects from ideas to reality.
