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<< Back E-mail Update – June 10, 2004 – Volume 4, Number 9 House Energy & Water Subcommittee Allots $3 Million: The U.S. House Energy & Water Appropriations Subcommittee met yesterday and agreed to appropriate $3 million for the Columbia River Channel Improvement Project. Even though this is less than the $15 million needed to deepen the navigation channel in FY 2005, this is more than the House committee has ever appropriated for the project and more than the President's budget request. In fact, Congressman Mike Simpson (ID), the only House subcommittee member from the Northwest, commented that the panel set an important precedent by earmarking the first federal money appropriated exclusively for actual project dredging. This appropriation also serves as a stepping stone to the upcoming Senate Energy & Water Appropriations Subcommittee mark-up. That subcommittee includes both Senators Patty Murray (WA) and Larry Craig (ID) and has typically appropriated much higher amounts for the Channel project. We remain optimistic that the Senate committee will appropriate the needed $15 million. Once the Senate approves an energy and water appropriations level, that bill must then be reconciled with the House version, which may not occur for several months. Now that the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works has approved the project, the White House Office of Management & Budget (OMB) must complete their project review and recommend a funding amount to Congress. Congressman Walden Re-Affirms Support For Channel: On Monday, May 24, several members of the Channel Coalition met in Hood River, Oregon, with U.S. Congressmen Greg Walden to discuss the importance of maritime commerce on the Columbia River system and how the channel deepening project will sustain trade and job opportunities in Oregon and our entire region. Congressman Walden re-affirmed his support for the project and committed to being actively involved in securing additional federal appropriations to keep this economically and environmentally beneficial project moving forward. 2004 Columbia Dredging Season Begins: The Mouth of the Columbia River (MCR) dredging season began with an information-sharing meeting in Ilwaco, Washington, yesterday to discuss dredging activities for 2004. The dredge ship Sugar Island, owned by Great Lakes Dredge and Dock Company, will begin their dredging work on or about June 11th. Annual maintenance dredging at the Mouth and in the lower Columbia River is vitally important for protecting access to the current 40-foot deep navigation channel for local businesses and farmers. This work is performed each year by Dredge Essayons operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, by the Dredge Oregon operated by the Port of Portland, and by private contract dredges like the Sugar Island. We must maintain the navigational draft depth we have today, even as we work aggressively to deepen the channel to expand our competitiveness tomorrow. Coalition Keeps Expanding: We welcome the following organizations who officially joined the Coalition during the past two weeks:
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