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Monday October 21, 2024

The Columbian

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced Friday that it has awarded a $657 million contract to build fish-passage facilities at a flood-control dam on the Green River in the watershed used for Tacoma’s drinking water.

The Howard A. Hanson Dam Additional Water Storage Fish Passage Facility Project contract went to Flatiron-Aecon Joint Venture, the Army Corps said.

“We are excited to support salmon and Orca recovery with our tribal partners, federal and state agencies, and our non-federal sponsor Tacoma Public Utilities to ensure completion of this downstream fish passage facility and support the regional water supply,” Army Corps Seattle District Commander Col. Kathryn Sanborn said in a statement.

Hanson Dam was built in 1962 primarily to control downstream flooding of the Green River. It sits a few miles upstream from Tacoma Public Utilities’ diversion dam, which channels water through pipes to Tacoma and several other municipalities.

Tacoma Public Utilities has already built a fish ladder and other fish-passage facilities at the diversion dam, but they largely go unused because fish can’t get past Hanson Dam.

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