PORT ANGELES — The monumental Elwha River restoration effort attracted on Thursday a roomful of contractors considering bidding for the $40 million to $60 million contract to remove the two dams that have blocked fish passage for nearly a century.
About 180 people, representing companies from as far away as South Carolina, attended a conference for potential contractors and subcontractors put on by the National Park Service at the Red Lion Hotel in Port Angeles.
Afterward, the contractors were given tours of both the Elwha and Glines Canyon dams.
‘Lot of opportunity’
The $350 million project to remove the structures and restore the Elwha River ecosystem is the largest dam removal project to date in the United States and the second largest restoration project currently under way.
“The size of it kind of lends itself to a lot of opportunity,” commented Ian Slater, development manger of Northwest Construction Inc.
The Bellevue-based company is interested in subcontracting for excavation work, he said.
Monica Norval, dam removal project manager for the Park Service, summed up the turnout Thursday in one word: “fantastic.”
Norval said she was expecting as many as 100 people to attend.
“This is more than twice the number involved in the roundtable,” she said.
The “round table” meeting was held in February between the park service and representatives of industries that will be involved in the project.
Olympic National Park spokeswoman Barb Maynes, the park service’s local media contact for the project, called the turnout promising.
“Certainly, judging by the turnout, we’re happy with the progress thus far,” she said.
The contract for removal for the dams is expected to be awarded in August.
Draining the lakes
The actual demolition work, expected to take between 2.5 and three years, will begin in late summer or early fall 2011.
Draining of the dams’ reservoirs will begin shortly before then.
While draining occurs, the river will be kept below flood stage, Maynes said.
The absence of the dams is not expected to contribute to flooding because they have never been used for flood control, she said.
What they have been used for is to generate power.
The dams, which together have a capacity of 25.1 megawatts, will be disconnected from the electrical grid Feb. 3.
Before 2000, the dams were used to provide roughly half of the power consumed by Nippon Paper Industries’ mill on Ediz Hook.
Since the federal government acquired them 10 years ago, the dmas have fed power into the grid operated by the Bonneville Power Administration.
During demolition, access to the park near the Glines Canyon Dam will be affected.
Olympic Hot Springs Road past the Altair Campground will be closed. Maynes said the park is anticipating that the campground will remain open.
She said the park is also hoping to keep Whiskey Bend Road, which connects with Olympic Hot Springs Road, open as well.
A turnout on Whiskey Bend Road may be used as a viewpoint for removal of the Glines Canyon Dam, built in 1927.
“We’re exploring bus and shuttle service to that site,” Maynes said, “so that people can get up there and see dam removal.”
The Elwha dam, located downstream and outside of the park, was built in 1913.
Both structures were built without fish passages, leading to the decimation of the Elwha River salmon population.
Restoration of the salmon runs is estimated to take between 25 and 30 years, Maynes said.
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Reporter Tom Callis can be reached at 360-417-3532 or at tom.callis@peninsuladailynews.com.
