Gov. Gregoire, Wash. state officials lobby Obama administration for speedy Hanson Dam fix

Wash. governor, officials lobby for speedy dam fix

SEATTLE — Gov. Chris Gregoire and a host of Washington state political and business leaders went to Washington, D.C., on Thursday to stress the need to make speedy repairs at Howard Hanson Dam on the upper Green River.

A reservoir wall at the flood control dam was severely weakened by heavy rains in January 2009, forcing the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to drastically limit the amount of water the dam can hold back. The breach has greatly increased the flood risk downstream in the heavily developed Green River Valley south of Seattle.

The governor and a dozen representatives of the state, King County, and valley cities and businesses met with Obama administration aides “to make sure the White House had a good understanding of what was at stake,” Gregoire said.

The sprawling valley holds the fifth-largest industrial park in the nation, and protecting homes and businesses with miles of sandbags last year cost millions. Boeing alone has spent $25 million to surround its Kent space center with a sandbag barrier, Gregoire said.

No flooding occurred, but authorities warn the flood risk will continue every winter until the abutment to the dam is fixed.

King County Executive Dow Constantine said corps officials assured them that plans to develop both a short-term repair and a permanent fix were on track.

Corps officials have said that because it’s late in the federal fiscal year that ends Sept. 30, money for the interim repair — injecting more grout into the reservoir wall to bolster what was put in last year — is not likely to be immediately approved.

Gregoire said the corps have promised that a plan for a permanent repair would be competed by June 21, in time to have it considered for the 2012 federal budget.

The governor also said that the congressional delegation still hopes to obtain an emergency appropriation of the $44 million needed, and corps leaders were asked to squeeze any possible money out of their current budget.

Lt. Col. James Rollins, the corps’ deputy district commander at the dam, said Thursday that once money is obtained for the short-term repair, and the final design is approved, it would take about 90 days to award a contract and four months to have the grout reinforcement substantially completed.

Operators have slowly raised the reservoir level this spring while conducting extensive tests and observations on the wall and its repair. Rollins said he was pleased with the results so far.

Officials have said a permanent repair, which could be a deep concrete wall running the length of the damaged abutment, would take at least three years to complete and could cost $500 million.

Gregoire and the others took part in a meeting organized by Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., with officials from the Army corps and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Joining them were Washington Sen. Maria Cantwell and Reps. Adam Smith, Norm Dicks, Dave Reichert and Jay Inslee.