Northwest Environmental Advocates--Channel Deepening

Columbia and Willamette Channel Deepening Project

Read The Oregonian's Special Report on Channel Deepening

THE PROBLEM: Deepening the Columbia and Willamette Rivers will Destroy Habitat, Pollute Water, and Threaten Species

Big shipping companies and local ports want to excavate a deeper channel in the Columbia and Willamette Rivers that will enable them to accommodate larger ships and take on more cargo. In response, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is planning to dredge both rivers three feet deeper than they are now, to a depth of 43 feet. Construction of the deeper channel will take two and a half years and cost $196 million dollars. The project will generate millions of cubic yards of dredged sediments that will be dumped into river, ocean, wetland, and upland disposal sites, destroying habitat and food sources for fish and wildlife. Sediments contaminated with toxic chemicals will be disturbed, making their way up the food chain. Dredging will also harass and kill fish, as well as change flow patterns of the river that may indirectly harm many species, including threatened and endangered salmon. Communities in the estuary oppose the project because their economies depend on the natural resources that would be devastated by the dredging and disposal activities. More on What's Wrong With Channel Deepening…

Index of Channel Deepening Documents

THE SOLUTION: Common Sense and the Nation's Laws Should Prevent Channel Deepening

The channel deepening project is subject to numerous government permitting and approval processes at the federal, state, and local level. Two federal agencies consulted with the Corps to assess how the project will impact endangered species such as salmon, bald eagles, and peregrine falcons. Three state agencies are reviewing the project for compliance with water quality and shoreline management laws. Estuary county governments also play a regulatory role by reviewing construction activities that impact shoreline areas. Congress has authorized the project and must appropriate funds to support it; state legislatures also must appropriate funds for the project to go forward. Although the project is not likely to meet the requirements of environmental laws, the project is likely to obtain all the necessary approvals because of the political powers behind it. More on Regulatory Process for Channel Deepening…

NWEA's Action: Advocacy and Litigation to Stop Channel Deepening

NWEA advocates for the use of science and good public policy in the decisions made by government regulators and legislative bodies. This involves encouraging agencies to exert their regulatory authorities over the project through written comments, providing state and federal legislators with information they don't get from ports and other vested interests, educating the public, and filing lawsuits where necessary. For example, NWEA prepared comments on both the Draft and Final Environmental Impact Statements, on Oregon's water quality certitifcation, and both states' Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA) concurrence decisions. NWEA has requested a new economic analysis from the Secretary of the Army. NWEA has filed a lawsuit against the National Marine Fisheries Service challenging their approval of the channel deepening project pursuant to the Endangered Species Act. More on NWEA's Channel Deepening Advocacy…

Send an e-mail to your representative about the project.

133 SW 2^nd Ave., Portland, OR 97204-3526 (503) 295-0490 FAX 295-6634