Reichert Applauds Energy and Water Conference Report

U. S. Rep. Dave Reichert today issued the following statement in response to House passage of the Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act Conference Report for FY06. The bill passed by a strong bipartisan majority of 399-17.

“Living in the Northwest is a privilege, because we enjoy such beautiful surroundings,” said Reichert. “We worked hard to have this bill include projects critical to Washington state, and I’m pleased to see the conference agreement pass today. The bill contains funding for projects that are both critical to environmental health and important to the economy of the Puget Sound region. It is a success for the eighth district to receive this funding, to help preserve the pristine surroundings we enjoy.”

Reichert obtained the following in the Energy and Water Appropriations Conference Report:

$600,000 for White River diversion dam reconstruction
This project commissions a replacement dam for the passage of the endangered Puget Sound Chinook on the White River. The river necessitates a diversion dam because the Mud Mountain flood damn is too steep to for the Chinook to pass safely through. Presently, the diversion dam is almost 100 years old and needs to be updated to modern standards. For the past five years the Army Corps of Engineers has been researching and designing a new diversion dam to meet fish passage needs, and this allocation will provide for completion of design.

$903,000 for White River fish trap and diversion facility operations
This funding provides for operations and management of the facilities that provide safe river passage for the White River Chinook. Without the ongoing operation of the White River fish trap and diversion facility, fish passage for salmon and other anadramous species will become impossible, due to the barrier created by the Mud Mountain Dam.

$2.5M for Ramgen engine development
One of the main goals of the Department of Energy’s Office of Fossil Energy is to develop technologies that reduce air pollution and strengthen domestic energy security. Ramgen technologies utilize fifty years of well-established ramjet flight performance data and experience and have enormous implications for energy efficiency in the areas of power and distributed generation. This funding provides for Ramgen to design, build, test and commercialize stationary engines. that

$1,875,000 for the Duwamish and Green River Basin
This appropriation provides for habitat restoration from the headwaters in the Cascades to Puget Sound for fish that use the passage facility at Howard Hanson Dam.

$1,500,000 for Puget Sound and Adjacent Waters
This money will fund habitat restoration throughout the Puget Sound, including large-scale restoration work on mainstream rivers, estuaries and marine waters.

$750,000 for Puget Sound Nearshore Ecosystem Restoration
This project will identify the most cost-effective habitat restoration projects in the Nearshore, estuary and marine areas of Puget Sound. This project is critical to the environmental health and economy of the Puget Sound region, as the Nearshore provides habitat for several endangered salmon species.

$235,000 for the Lake Washington watershed and Ship Canal
This project commissions a study that will result in a prioritized list of habitat restoration needs in the Lake Washington watershed and the Ship Canal. The report will complete feasibility work for 45 critical, early action projects in Lake Washington Basin and continue fish passage studies at the Hiram Chittenden Locks. Lake Washington and the Ship Canal are home to several ESA listed salmon species.