News Release
| Release Number: | 99-017 |
| Dated: | 2/22/1999 |
| Contact: | Matt Rabe, 503-808-4510 |
Portland, Ore. -- Out of concern for the boating public’s safety, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, in coordination with a number of other agencies, will change the boating restricted zone (BRZ) on the Columbia River near Bonneville Lock and Dam, effective March 15, 1999.
The new zone will now begin on the Oregon side of the Columbia River at the westernmost tip of Robins Island, and extend across the river to a point immediately upstream of the Hamilton Island Boat Ramp on the Washington side.
This change will move the BRZ downstream of the site commonly known as Garrison Eddy near the outfalls for the new juvenile fish bypass system. Signs and painted lines on the shore eventually will mark the boundary of the new zone.
The Corps is nearing completion of a major portion of the $62 million bypass improvements project on the Columbia River at Bonneville Dam. The Bonneville Juvenile Fish Bypass System Improvements (JBSI) include physical modifications to juvenile fish passageways within the second powerhouse, a new juvenile transportation flume, a juvenile fish monitoring facility and two above-water release points, or outfall structures. The structures are about 2 miles downstream from the second powerhouse.
The improvements will release juvenile salmon into deeper, faster moving water where predators are less likely to congregate, thus increasing their survival rate. Numerous locations for the new outfalls were considered and modeled at the Corps’ Waterways Experiment Station at Vicksburg, Miss., in cooperation with the National Marine Fisheries Service and other regional resource agencies.
Safety concerns are related to the selected location of the outfall structures and the natural flow of the Columbia River near them. All the water passing through the spillway and the two powerhouses at Bonneville Dam is naturally funneled into the area where the new outfall structures are located. Any boat upstream of the structures that loses power would drift toward them and risk the dangers of inundation, capsizing or collision.
Due to the large tailwater fluctuations at Bonneville, there are two above-water release structures – a high and a low outfall. During certain times of the year, the low-level outfall structure will become submerged. This will generally occur during the months of December through June. About 30 cubic feet per second of water will be released directly from the outfalls; the water will be falling at a velocity of about 25 feet per second. River velocities in the outfalls area could range from about 4 feet per second to 15 feet per second, with water depths ranging from 50 feet to 80 feet. The outfalls extend about 350 feet to 400 feet from shore, but are outside the navigation channel.
- Since the safety of the boating public is a prime concern, the Corps requested input on this decision from the U.S. Coast Guard, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife specifically concerning the safety of smaller boats near and upstream of the outfalls structures. It was the consensus of all the agencies that the safest approach to this issue would be to relocate the boating restricted zone at Bonneville Dam to include the structures within the zone.
While the agencies realize that a popular fishing spot will no longer be accessible to boating anglers, they said they also understand that the safety of the public is paramount. Their boat fishing boundaries will coincide with the Corps’ BRZ. Bank fishing on the Oregon side will not be affected by this change, however, some modifications will be made to the Washington side of the river.
The area near the outfalls, known as Garrison’s Eddy, will be permanently closed; a new, replacement fishing site will be constructed near the Hamilton Island Boat Ramp. Also, the fishing area near the second powerhouse will remain open on a "walk in" basis only. The parking lot for this site will reopen in 2000, following completion of the current construction work.
The Corps also coordinated with the Columbia River Towboaters Association concerning the outfalls structures. The outfalls structures will not impact the commercial traffic on the river because the structures are outside of the navigation channel.
In 1996, an environmental assessment outlining the proposed actions and potential environmental effects of the outfalls project – to include information that angler access near the outfalls would be closed to fishing by excluding boats from the area – was prepared and available for a 30-day public comment period.
The Corps also is beginning the process to modify the Code of Federal Regulations (33 CFR, Part 207), which covers Navigation and Navigable Waters, in the very near future. A public comment period is part of this process; more information about this comment period will be provided after the change is posted in the Federal Register.