Lower Columbia River plan on display

The U.S. Army Corps planners and Columbia River sponsor ports will host five virtual information sessions April 26-28 to update the public on their 20-year plan for managing dredged material from the Lower Columbia River.

USACE policy requires all federally maintained navigation projects demonstrate there is sufficient dredged material placement capacity for a minimum of 20 years.

The Corps and sponsor ports are preparing a joint Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the plan, known as the Lower Columbia River Channel Maintenance Plan (LCR CMP) Dredged Material Maintenance Plan (DMMP).

USACE and its sponsor ports (Longview, Kalama, Woodland, Vancouver, and Portland) began the public comment period for the EIS in 2017 and are ready to update the public on their current plans.

“The Lower Columbia River is a very important channel, annually moving over 50 million tons of cargo worth $24 billion, internationally,” said Sarah Knowles, project manager. “The Columbia River is ranked number one in the U.S. for wheat exports and is the third largest exporter of grain in the world.”

Knowles added that the plan will allow the Corps to continue to maintain the Federal Navigation Channel until 2044.

“The Port of Portland, along with other Columbia River ports, depends on maintenance dredging to support our trade gateway,” said Curtis Robinhold, Port of Portland executive director. “Maintaining the river channel at its authorized depth and width is essential to sustaining the billions of dollars of commerce that flow through the Columbia River.”

Visit the Corps website for more info on the times and dates.