Washington state officials are touting the Water Resources Development Act of 2020 (WRDA) becoming law, adding it included a provision for turning basin navigation construction in the Columbia River.
Officials hailed a provision authored by Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler (R-WA) authorizing the Army Corps of Engineers to conduct the feasibility study establishing a turning basin on the Lower Martin Bar near Kalama, as well as the improvement of two turning basins near Longview and Vancouver.
“The Columbia River supports millions of tons of cargo each year and thousands of local jobs, which is why it’s important to invest in and upgrade the river’s infrastructure,” Herrera Beutler said. “I was pleased to help champion the construction of the Kalama turning basin which is going to support those vital jobs, and I’m pleased this infrastructure bill I helped shape has now been signed into law.”
Authorities indicated the addition of the turning basin near the Lower Martin Bar and improvements of the two existing turning basins would increase cargo volume capacity and spur economic development in the region.
“The Port of Kalama appreciates the determined efforts by Congresswoman Herrera Beutler and our Senators to include the Columbia River Turning Basin language in the WRDA legislation,” Mark Wilson, executive director of the Port of Kalama, said.
The Columbia River is the largest wheat export gateway in the nation, second in the nation for soybeans, and the third-largest gateway in the world.