Portland, OR – Oregon’s Senator Jeff Merkley announced today that key legislative language was included in the Energy and Water Appropriations committee bill that would dramatically help Scoggins Dam get the needed safety repairs and increased water storage that stakeholders in Washington County have been working on for years.
“Washington County has been working to make necessary upgrades and repairs to Scoggins Dam for years and today we took a huge step forward in getting this project done,” Merkley said. “Funding caps set by bureaucrats in Washington, D.C. should not stand in the way of repairs and improvements that could save lives in the event of an earthquake.”
Scoggins Dam has been classified as one of the most seismically at-risk dams that the Bureau of Reclamation manages. This classification means that failure of the dam due to a large earthquake could result in significant damages or even loss of life to communities if they are not upgraded.
The funding that would provide necessary upgrades to Scoggins Dam has a funding cap and the language that Senator Merkley added to the appropriations committee bill would increase this funding cap. Additionally, the legislative language provides flexibility to allow projects like Scoggins Dam to create added water storage.
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