W. T. Wooten Wildlife Area Floodplain Management Plan

POMEROY—The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) is implementing a $20 million Floodplain Management Plan for the W.T. Wooten Wildlife Area that complements ongoing habitat restoration efforts to recover spring Chinook salmon and other Endangered Species Act-listed fish species within the Tucannon River Basin.

Construction on Rainbow Lake was completed in the fall of 2018, with some minor finish-work completed in 2019. Rainbow Lake was reopened to the public and stocked with fish in 2019 and 2020.

During the 2020 February flood event, the Tucannon River floodwaters flowed into Deer Lake and caused significant damage to the dam around the north end of the lake. Deer Lake has now been moved to the top of the list of projects identified in the Floodplain Management Plan, said Kari Dingman, WDFW Assistant Wildlife Area Manager.

One million dollars has been allocated from the state legislature in the 2019-21 Biennium for Capital Projects. Funds will be used for the environmental consulting company, GeoEngineers, to design the Deer Lake project. Construction is expected to take place in the summer of 2022.

The capital project funds will also go to GeoEngineers to conduct the geotechnical engineering for the Beaver Lake, Watson Lake, and Spring Lake projects.

Full plan implementation is expected to take ten or more years using current and projected funding allocations, according to Dingman.

Dingman said WDFW staff are available to provide progress updates about implementation actions to service groups, clubs, and other organizations.

Contact her by phone at (509) 843-1530 or by email at kari.dingman@dfw.wa.gov