Tuesday March 12, 2024
The Seattle Times —
An additional $500 million could be on its way to help unlock almost half, or about 100 river and stream miles, of the Green River’s historical salmon spawning and rearing habitat behind Howard Hanson Dam.
President Joe Biden on Monday earmarked $500 million to create a path past the dam for juvenile fish heading downstream toward Seattle.
U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, a Democrat, has been among a bipartisan chorus of Washington lawmakers pressing the Army Corps of Engineers, which built and operates the earthen embankment dam, to make fish passage a priority. Murray helped secure $220 million for the Howard Hanson Dam Fish Passage Facility Project through funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law in 2022, and an additional $50 million to help the Army Corps continue design and award the construction contract.