Work Starts Monday To Address Erosion At Parks On Columbia River

Work starts Monday to shore up the shoreline of a couple of area parks owned by Chelan County PUD. 

Crews will be stabilizing and rehabilitating about 1,100 feet of riverbank at Confluence State Park and about 120 feet of riverbank at Entiat Park. 

Chelan PUD spokesperson Rachel Hansen says they'll be doing specific works to improve shoreline conditions along the Columbia River. 

"What they're going to be doing is, they're going to be installing some big boulders and river rock and native plants," said Hansen. "It's to protect the shoreline from erosion. 

Erosion occurs as the changing flows of the Columbia River and impact from the waves slowly wash away the land. 

The PUD does an annual survey of all the shoreline of parks it owns and determines where erosion needs to be mitigated. 

Hansen says there'll be some minor disruption to the public while the work is being done.

The project will lead to diversion of paved trails close to the shore onto grass to avoid heavy machinery and work activity taking place.  

"For some short sections of paved trails at Confluence and Entiat, we're going to detour folks along the grass, so they can walk around the work area, but stay at a safe distance," Hansen said. 

Camping, picnic shelters, boat launches and other park amenities will remain open. 

One of the paved trails at Confluence State Park will be detoured along the grass from the swimming beach to the camping area. The shoreline work spans from where the Wenatchee River feeds into the Columbia River to the northeast parking lot at Confluence State Park.  

The walking trail at Entiat Park will be detoured along the grass from approximately Lakeshore Drive near Entiat Museum to the playground.  

The work and detour for both projects are expected to be finished by November. 

The Chelan PUD owns Confluence State Park and Entiat Park as part of its license to operate its dams on the Columbia River. Licensing is done through the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. 

Confluence State Park is managed by the state parks system and Entiat Park is managed by the city of Entiat.