The Office of Chehalis Basin (OCB) will recommend an $80 million biennial budget appropriation from the Washington state Legislature to “aggressively pursue the Chehalis Basin Strategy,” according to budget documents provided during a recent legislative site tour.
“This request reflects the Board’s priorities for reducing flood damage and restoring aquatic species habitat in the Basin,” the document says. “This funding would leverage previous state investments, expand on substantial on-the-ground progress, and support efforts to complete the long-term strategy in 2026 that will steer basin-wide flood preparedness and aquatic species restoration for decades to come.”
Established in 2016 within the Department of Ecology, the OCB directs flood control and aquatic restoration work within the basin and receives funding through two-year budget appropriations from legislators. During recent budget cycles, lawmakers have appropriated approximately $70 million for the OCB.
The request, which would fund the OCB through 2027, comes weeks after the Chehalis River Basin Flood Control Zone District unveiled an updated design for a proposed flow-through dam on the Chehalis River outside Pe Ell. The project is currently under review in the Department of Ecology, with an updated Environmental Impact Statement expected to be released next fall.
During an informational session in early September, Matt Dillin, project manager for the Flood District, said cost estimates for the project are still “being refined.” However, the redesign will cost more than initial estimates.
When activated, which would only occur when flooding is forecasted, the proposed facility’s reservoir could hold approximately 62,000 acre-feet of water.
A tour Friday included stops to visit some of the other flood reduction and restoration efforts the OCB continues to work on, including home-proofing in Centralia and Bucoda and a visit to the Skookumchuck Dam.
According to the OCB’s budget priorities, the additional funding would allow the office to continue “key on-the-ground” investments including:
• Completing the next phase of projects in the Aquatic Species Restoration Plan
• Installing a variety of flood reduction measures in place to protect homes, businesses, agriculture and infrastructure
• Completing the review of the proposed flow-through dam near Pe Ell
• Investing in “multibenefit projects that advance both ‘flood and fish’ outcomes”
• Maintaining core functions of the OCB
According to the OCB, previous investments have funded more than 140 habitat restoration projects, protected 200 homes and businesses, elevated eight homes, protected nearly 300 acres of habitat, helped install 14 high-water alerts and helped secure more than $61 million in additional federal funding.
A visit to the Skookumchuck Dam
Built in 1970, the Skookumchuck Dam sits about 10 miles northeast of Centralia on the Skookumchuck River and provides power to a coal burner TransAlta plans to shutter in 2025 through a longtime deal with the state.
As the initial purpose of the dam becomes obsolete, questions have arisen in recent years about whether the structure should be removed or renovated.
According to the OCB, its priorities through 2027 include designing a “future for the dam that supports water users, fish and downstream communities.”
The future of the structure, however, is unknown after the Quinault Indian Nation petitioned the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) to order the removal of the dam, which the tribe claims blocks roughly 21 miles of salmon spawning habitat.
Asked about the petition during the tour Friday, Principal Planner for the OCB Nat Kale said “that is true, and that lawsuit is ongoing.”
“We can’t really speak on that,” Kale said.
In a petition, the Quinault Tribe asked the WDFW to declare the structure an impediment to fish and order its removal immediately “upon closure of the Centralia Steam Generation Plant, but no later than the end of 2025.”
In a December 2022 report, the OCB estimated that a full dam removal could cost between $25 to $35 million. The report noted that at the time, TransAlta did not support either full or partial removal “because it would be incompatible with their newly established water bank.”
Established in 2021, TransAlta’s water bank allows the company rights to 28,000 acre-feet of water per year from the Skookumchuck River, the largest year-round bank in the state.
“If the dam were altered in a way that reduces water storage, there could be a reduction of water in the water bank for TransAlta to sell. Other water rights users downstream, such as municipal water suppliers or farms relying on surface water irrigation, may also see their water availability impacted,” a document from Friday reads. “If that happens, TransAlta and other water users may have to be compensated for the lost water rights.”
The OCB has previously estimated the compensation for the lost water rights could total $80 million and is currently studying ways the dam could be “modified” to reduce flood damage or aid fish passage.
“Studies will investigate whether changing discharges from the dam or improving upstream and/or downstream fish passage facilities will benefit fish in the river,” a document provided Friday reads. “Dam removal is also being evaluated.”
In the complaint, the Quinault Tribe claimed the dam blocks access to historic spawning salmon habitat and alters the flow of the river.
Larry Lestelle, a consulting fish biologist with the Quinault Indian Nation, told The Chronicle the largest and best spawning habitat was destroyed by the dam and currently lies under the dam’s reservoir.
According to the OCB, while the dam was not designed to reduce flooding, the structure has some benefit in high precipitation events, including the 2007 flood. The flood occurred at a time when the reservoir was “unusually low,” which allowed for additional water to be held behind the structure.
“If the Board decides it is interested in moving forward with a preferred option, any project will require an agreement with TransAlta, additional design, environmental review, and permits ahead of construction,” a document distributed Friday states.
