The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Walla Walla District and Washington State have entered into agreements to study recreation- and transportation-related services that could be needed if, in the future, Congress were to authorize the breach of the four lower Snake River dams.

The studies are part of USACE’s broader commitments under the December 2023 Resilient Columbia Basin Agreement, which secured a long-term stay in litigation while supporting the restoration of healthy and abundant wild salmon, steelhead, and other native fish to the Columbia River Basin.

Recreation Replacement Study

This study is occurring in partnership with the Washington State Recreation and Conservation Office (RCO). The study is estimated to cost $1.2 million and is expected to be complete by 2026.

This recreation study will seek to identify potential changes under a dam breach scenario, including the potential loss of existing recreation opportunities associated with the draw down of reservoirs on the lower Snake River as well as necessary investments to accommodate potential future recreation opportunities.

Specifically, the study will accomplish the following tasks:

• Establish and update the baseline of recreation conditions within the study area.
• Summarize and describe the future potential natural resources and geographical conditions of the river and adjacent lands
• Conduct Tribal, Stakeholder, and Public Engagement
• Summarize the facilities infrastructure and investments that would be necessary to develop future facilities that support the desired experiences and opportunities identified through public and stakeholder engagement.
• Conduct an economic analysis of the potential changes in benefits and provide cost estimation for potential future facilities and Snake River corridor restoration/maintenance.
• Describe applicable processes for disposition and disposal of Federal Lands, future compliance and consultation, and cultural resource mitigation that may be required.

Transportation Replacement Study

This study is occurring in partnership with the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT).

The transportation study will add $750,000 to an existing $4,000,000 Washington State study and expand the limits of the study into Idaho and Oregon. The study is expected to be complete in late 2026. The transportation study is analyzing future transportation needs, volume estimates of goods to be transported, and changes in infrastructure that would be necessary to shift away from river-based transportation methods under a dam breach scenario.

The study will accomplish the following tasks:

• Conduct an analysis of highway, road and freight rail transportation needs, options, and impacts from shifting the movement of freight and goods that currently move by barge through the lower Snake River dams to highways, other roads and rail.
• Generate volume estimates and evaluate scenarios for changes in infrastructure and operations that would be necessary to address those additional volumes.

USACE will assist by providing federal information, such as data on barging and data from previous studies, and providing a comparable analysis for Idaho and Oregon to be incorporated into the study.