Editorial, The Chronicle , 1/27/1998
At first glance, $40 million to $80 million appears to be an astronomical cost to reduce flooding from the Chehalis River system in the Twin Cities to manageable levels.
Actually, when one looks at flood repairs from a cost-benefit ratio perspective, the structural flood abatement projects recommended by an engineering firm hired by Lewis County look like a bargain much too good to pass up.
The firm, Pacific International Engineering, is proposing a three-part remedy that entails installation of an inflatable rubber weir atop the Skookumchuck Dam spillway and adding larger out-flow structures at the dam, excavating the Chehalis River in the vicinity of the bridge and excavation at other points along the river above and below the bridge.
Note that theses are "three doable items" that would "virtually eliminate flooding" in the Chehalis basin, according to Harry Hose, project manager for the firm, whose recommendations may be considered (by?) the Lewis County Flood Control citizen advisory committee. The county commission would make the final decision, pending securing of needed funding.
The benefit of the proposed projects, which Hosey said would reduce Chehalis flood crests at the Mellen Street bridge in Centralia by up to 7 feet, could be measure in terms of the economic toll from the devastating Chehalis/Skookumchuck floods of January 1990 and February 1996. In the latter flood, the cost of the freeway closure between Centralia and Chehalis was an estimate $50 million per day, according to Hosey. Not only the Twin Cities and Lewis County, but the entire region was adversely affected by the closure.
Local loses alone from the 1996 flooding were an estimated $9 million, said Lewis County Economic Development Council director Bill Lotto.
The cost of a flood event like that in 1996, then, with the freeway closed for, say, two days, would be about $109 million, which alone is significantly more than the cost of the proposed projects. And costs of this magnitude would be recurring if there were more major floods.
Also consider the cost of elevating the freeway through the flood-prone area as part of a much-needed widening project to ease traffic congestion. The estimated bill for that is from $60 million to $80 million, excluding mitigation costs that would be very expensive.
Providing reasonable assurance the freeway wouldn't flood, through projects such as those proposed by Pacific International Engineering, would free up money that would otherwise be spend on the elevation. This is money that could be used to speed much-needed widening of the freeway in our area, with associated much-needed new interchanges.
More good news, in addition to the obvious benefit of deterring major flooding in the Twin Cities, is that because this flooding has a regional impact (freeway closure, etc.), more state and federal money may be available to assist with the structural flood control projects, reducing the local cost burden.
We've been lucky so far this winter there's been no major flooding, even though we had a heavy snowfall and well-above-normal rains this month. The longer we wait to act, the greater the likelihood we'll be victim of another major flood.
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