I’m Harvey Morrison and I live and work here in Spokane, Washington for the firm of Roen Associates.
I manage projects like the renovation of the historic Fox Theatre, our city pools, parks and other facilities that help make this city a great place to live.
But there are many things that go into making a community a wonderful place to live including healthy forests, rivers and mountains. Beautiful rivers are part of our heritage and they make Spokane a place I want to retire and my grandchildren want to come back to.
To the south lies the Snake River. When I was young this river ran freely to the Columbia. It was a great place to fish for steelhead and hunt quail along its banks. Today, because of four federal dams and their reservoirs, it’s hard to access and isolated. Its banks are lifeless as piles of rock, riprap have replaced thickets of willows. The riverbanks no longer teem with game nor do rapids swirl along the islands and river bars. At the end of the day, the four reservoirs aren’t much to shout about when looking for fishing and hunting opportunities.
The Snake River could be of great value for folks in Spokane if we approached it differently. A living example lies just upriver. Annually thousands of anglers flood the Grande Ronde River, a tributary of the Snake, to fish for steelhead. Many of us spend our weekends in the canyon, eating and fueling up in Clarkston, WA. The lower Snake River could work the same way. It could be a 140-mile economic engine for our residents if we had leadership to help us start a conversation about the way we manage the river. The Snake River, will only be more important in a 21st where people are demanding healthy places to live and work.
Working Snake River for Washington is a big step in the right direction. The project envisions a river that brings real value to folks in Spokane and all of Eastern Washington.
Just as providing parks and beautiful buildings keeps a community livable, restoring and safe-guarding the Snake River is an important part of creating a Washington State that encourages folks to live and work here. It means jobs, recreation and a livable future.
I am asking you to get involved with the Working Snake River For Washington Project, contact Senator Murray and Senator Cantwell and let them know there are solutions to the current problems posed by the four lower Snake River dams. We simply need their leadership.
Please add your voice. Contact us and join the dialogue for Snake River solutions.
