The Deschutes Estuary Restoration Project will enter its next phase thanks to the Thurston County Board of County Commissioners.
The county commissioners voted 3-1 to approve a 25-year interlocal agreement (ILA) with the Washington state Department of Enterprise Services (DES), among other jurisdictions, for the project during its Tuesday, Oct. 29, meeting.
Chair Tye Menser and commissioners Carolina Mejia and Emily Clouse voted in favor of the ILA, while Commissioner Gary Edwards voted to deny entering into the ILA while showing his support for the restoration project itself. Vice Chair Wayne Fournier was not present and therefore did not vote.
The board had previously voted to delay the potential approval of the ILA in order to gather legal information regarding the funding options to pay for the $7,673,000 sediment management costs through the life of the agreement. Thurston County joins the DES, Squaxin Island Tribe, City of Olympia, City of Tumwater, Port of Olympia and LOTT Clean Water Alliance in the agreement that runs through 2050.
Commissioners questioned whether the county could utilize stormwater funds to help cover the costs for its contributions to the project. County Manager Leonard Hernandez told commissioners during the Oct. 29 agenda-setting meeting that stormwater funds are accessible for the project, but using the funds may delay or cancel other capital projects for which they may have been allocated. The county has two stormwater funds, one for capital projects and one for operations and maintenance, and the former would likely be the more accessible fund from which to pull money.
“Just like every other dynamic in the county, costs are going up. A lot of those operation and maintenance costs are tied to staff and facilitation and overhead projects,” Hernandez said. “Right now, while there’s sufficient balance in the fund, when they look out five years, they start to show that that fund starts to deplete itself. They’re contemplating the public works team to discuss with the board the need to look at assessment of fees to discuss if it should raise the fees to keep up with inflation costs.
“If the capital side were to absorb the ILA, it could mean that some of the projects in the outer years would not be able to be addressed,” he continued. “They have not done the full analysis to determine which projects [would be affected], but because the payment balloons up into the outer years, it could have an impact on that fund’s health and viability.”
The payment of the county’s contributions to the ILA will increase by 4.5% each year once payments begin in 2027. Hernandez said utilizing the operations and maintenance funds would cause it to diminish the balance and push it “into the red” sooner.
The estuary restoration plan involves removal of the Fifth Avenue Dam, restoration of tidal flats and marsh habitat in the 260-acre basin, construction of physical assets such as a new Fifth Avenue Bridge, and long-term management of sediment naturally transported into navigational areas of Budd Inlet. Removal of the Fifth Avenue Dam will also restore natural sediment transport processes. This will result in increased sediment accumulation in navigational areas of West Bay compared to existing conditions, similar to sediment processes that existed prior to dam construction.
The dam’s removal will also reintroduce native habitat and benefit salmon populations and the species that depend on them. The earliest the dam could be removed is 2033.
Mejia said during the board meeting that she supports the ILA because it “benefits the full region” and that the county would achieve its goals of environmental restoration, water quality improvement and enhanced biodiversity. She also pointed to the importance of the culture and tribal significance of the Deschutes Estuary region and how the restoration would draw ecotourism, recreational fisheries, bird watchers and outdoor enthusiasts to the area and therefore boosting the economy of county businesses.
“By participating, Thurston County can help ensure a sustainable approach to land and water management, which aligns with the broader climate resilience goals that we have,” she said. “Most importantly, a formal interlocal agreement provides an opportunity for Thurston County to advocate for regional collaboration and equitable distribution of resources.”
Clouse acknowledged that the project is a decades-long effort on behalf of many regional partners, noting her support of the estuary project due to its profound cultural significance to the Squaxin Island Tribe.
“The project will help our tribal communities and is an important step to repairing historical harm and recognizing the importance of indigenous stewardship over these lands,” she said. “To me, that’s a big reason why I do support the project.”
Clouse also mentioned that there is a mechanism for pulling out of the ILA if necessary and that, since payments don’t begin until 2027, the county has time to evaluate its payment options.
“What really secured it was the fact that there is a mechanism for pulling out of the ILA if something were to happen that causes the county to feel like it’s in the best interest of the community to pull out,” she said. “Granted, that would be a process that we would want to avoid, but there is that protection in place.”
Menser supported the project and ILA because of its effort to solve a problem “that has plagued this community for more than a generation.” He added that the agreement is not only the most environmentally friendly option but is “by far the cheapest.”
“It was an absolute no-brainer for the community to jump at this opportunity,” Menser said. “I think this is a very carefully designed effort to bring money into this community to solve a problem at a fairly modest price tag. LOTT is the key to our ability to economically develop in this county. Without the ability to take more wastewater treatment and have the utility infrastructure for more development, this whole county suffers. If we don’t clean up Budd Inlet and get the water quality issues sorted out, there will be no economic development in this county.”
