Peninsula Daily News news sources
BRINNON — Dosewallis Road washed out in a storm six years ago — and ever since there has been intense controversy about rebuilding it.
After several years of gathering comments — and rejecting arguments that restoring the road for cars would harm the environment — Olympic National Forest officials last week released a draft environmental impact statement.
It proposes three alternatives for rebuilding the road from where it was washed out in a winter storm in 2002.
The new section of road, about 10 miles west of Brinnon, would restore vehicle access to Olympic National Park’s Dosewallips Campground along the Dosewallips River and Elkhorn Campground in the national forest.
Comments on the environmental impact statement will be taken for the next 60 days.
Before Dosewallips Road washed out, it was one of only two roads into the east side of Olympic National Park and one of the few roads into the park for passenger cars, RVs and vehicles pulling trailers.
Business owners in Brinnon and Quilcene, Jefferson County officials and the Brinnon-Quilcene Chamber of Commerce have argued that it is important to rebuild the road for recreation and tourism.
Environmentalists have suggested foot trails be put in place of the road — an idea rejected by national forest officials.
One environmental group worried that a new road would cut through old-growth trees and impact the habitat of northern spotted owl, marbled murrelet and chinook salmon.
