Fishhawk Lake set to upgrade infrastructure
May 23—BIRKENFELD — Fishhawk Lake Reserve and Community, which was fined by the state over the deaths of thousands of fish after its reservoir was drained, is looking to turn the page as it nears construction of a new spillway and fish ladder at its dam.
At a kickoff Friday to celebrate the $6 million project, residents of the private community invited stakeholders and other influential figures to mark the occasion, including Betsy Johnson, the former state senator who is campaigning for governor as an independent, and Clatsop County Commissioner Lianne Thompson.
"To all my neighbors and friends here at Fishhawk Lake, it has been a long journey to get here but we are a resilient bunch and as diverse as the nature that surrounds us," Jeanne Scilley, Fishhawk Lake's board president, told attendees. " ... I do believe that we are all environmental stewards in our heart and we will do what it's going to take to maintain and improve this place that we all know and love."
The 100-acre lake was formed in the 1960s by an earthen dam. The need for a new spillway and fish ladder traces back to 2007, Scilley said, when the lake flooded and nearly topped the dam. The community near Birkenfeld created a solutions committee at the time to prevent serious flooding from occurring again.
The new project, in partnership with the state Department of Fish and Wildlife, the state Department of Transportation, the Upper Nehalem Watershed Council and Weyerhaeuser, will seek to manage water levels and benefit upstream and downstream passage of coho salmon.
In August 2019, the community drained the reservoir, considered to be state waters, to fix a broken drain in the dam. State biologists estimated that the move allegedly killed more than 30,000 fish, including many endangered coho salmon.
The community disputed the claim that the drawdown of the lake led to a large loss of fish.
The state Department of Environmental Quality fined the homeowners association $439,200 for the fish deaths. The Department of Fish and Wildlife and several natural resource agencies came together to pursue a separate claim, eventually reaching a settlement with the community last year. The community agreed to pay $250,000, with the community's insurance carriers covering the remainder of the $3.7 million settlement.
"I joined the community in 2018 and it's been amazing to watch this community come together over the last couple of years from a community that was divided and unsure of its path forward," Scilley said. "They've now come together and united to do what we all know we need to do for this lake."
Scilley thanked Johnson and Thompson for their support, calling the aspiring governor, who worked with local, state and federal agencies to help negotiate and get the project off the ground, a "rock" for the community and the guiding force in the process.
"Today, in my view, is a triumph of common sense over some pretty formidable odds ... Here we are, the community wins, the environment wins, the homeowners win, the state wins — everybody wins. We're still not quite done though," Johnson said, adding that she will continue to work with state agencies to pursue additional funds.
Stellar J Corp., a company in Woodland, Washington, will handle construction, which will take place over the next two summers and is anticipated to finish by the end of 2023.
The old fish ladder and spillway will remain as backup options. A plan is also in place to monitor and mitigate any impact to aquatic species, the community said in a statement.
"This place is so special. The spirit of this community and the way it stayed true to itself is really an inspiration. They met the challenge as a community," Thompson said. " ... There was a failure here and rather than accept punishment for failure, with Sen. Johnson's help, it became an opportunity for community revitalization — for the people and the environment."
