About One Voice
One Voice is a volunteer citizens group formed after the 2007 flood comprised of hundreds of families, local officials, community leaders, and flood victims. Our goal is: action for projects that will reduce the threat of catastrophic flooding basin-wide from Pe Ell to Hoquiam.
History:
Our first work was to stop the Federal government plan to build levees through the Chehalis-Centralia area to protect I-5. Those levees would have caused more flood water to be held upstream and more pushed downstream. Eventually that plan was dropped and now a unique water retention flood-only project is being evaluated through both state and federal EIS processes.
Project Overview:
This project is sponsored by the Lewis County Flood Zone District and it alone will protect more than 1400 structures including homes, schools and businesses across the Chehalis basin.
This project is unique in design allowing for fish passage year round without a permanent reservoir. Fish can pass through the gates at the bottom all year round and it will only close and create a temporary reservoir during catastrophic flooding. Hydrologists show that it will reduce the flood peak by two feet in Centralia, a foot and a half downstream to Montesano in a 2007 type flood and even reduce the Chehalis River flood level by ½ a foot at Cosmopolis near the mouth of Grays Harbor in a 100 year flood.
Mission Statement:
Our mission is to push for action to protect families and communities basin wide from the worst of catastrophic flood damage.
Our vision is for a basin with a fishery being restored and families safer from devastating flooding – which includes keeping the freeway and major state highways from extended closure.
We fully support the Aquatic Species Restoration Plan to turn around the rapid decline in the Chehalis River fishery. We know that this work can go hand and hand with flood protection. There will be no long-term funding for a fish only plan, or a flood-only plan. Both of these goals of fishery enhancement and flood projection must go forward together.
Board Members:
Dr John Henricksen - Postumus
Dan Maughn
Kyle Markstrom
Tony Ketchum
Isabel Vander Stoep
