Pacific Northwest 16, August 1, 2021

PACIFIC NORTHWEST EDITION

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August 1 2021 Vol. V • No. 16

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Your Pacific Northwest Connection – Patrick Kiel – 1-877-7CEGLTD – pkiel@cegltd.com

By Lori Tobias CEG CORRESPONDENT

After more than five months, a state highway in rural western Washington has reopened to traffic, but it is anyone’s guess how long the route will remain passable.

State Route 112 has a long history of landslides, but a series of slides last December dropped the road in six different locations. In one spot, the road fell nearly 13 ft.

Christina Werner, spokeswoman of the Washington State Department of Transpiration (WSDOT), described the storms that hit around winter solstice an “astronomical amount of heavy rains and snow and flooding.”

In one area the slide covers a quarter-mile stretch.

“Typically on that stretch, there are several areas prone to sliding,” said Project Engineer Dan McKernan. “They are usually not really major and our maintenance department has loaders and dump trucks to take care of the minor sloughing of the slope. We take care of it through the maintenance fund.

But this time we had storms come in and the ground got more saturated than typical. That’s why we put it out to the contractor, Scarsella Brothers.”

Scarsella crews mobilized company-owned equipment, including Cat D5s, a Cat 225 excavator, a Cat 140 grader and dump trucks.

“Rather than building back up to where it used to be, we lowered the profile,” said McKernan. “We didn’t want to put more weight on the slide area, so we changed the profile.

Something else we are doing, is we’re not putting asphalt back down. Instead, they put down ground up rock for the driving surface. In minor movements that will allow our maintenance forces to go in and dress it up and use gravel to smooth it out. That’s something we did up there rather than pave the driving surface.”

The area is sparsely populated but does have some homes and private land camping areas, as well as logging road access. During the closure, traffic was detoured along another highway.

“When the last big slide occurred, that required the contractor to go in and rebuild it,” McKernan said.

“Maintenance is in there every year cleaning up small debris see LANDSLIDE page 6

Page 2 • August 1, 2021 • www.constructionequipmentguide.com • Pacific Northwest Supplement • Construction Equipment Guide

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Page 4 • August 1, 2021 • www.constructionequipmentguide.com • Pacific Northwest Supplement • Construction Equipment Guide

Oregon Logging Conference Returns With In-Person Event The Oregon Logging Conference will return for an in-person gathering after the COVID-19 pandemic canceled last year’s live event.

The 2022 conference will take place on Feb. 24 to 26, 2022, at the Lane County Convention Center and Fairgrounds, in Eugene, Ore. This year’s theme is, “Family, Friends and Forestry 2.0,” and it will recognize and honor loggers, their families and the timber industry. If the theme sounds familiar, it should, as it is a sequel, if you will, of the 2021 OLC theme Family, Friends and Forestry.

OLC President Scott Melcher suggested the theme at the recent spring OLC board meeting, and it was met with unanimous acceptance and support for the other board members present.

“All three are tied together,” Melcher said. “My hope is to showcase the generations of families and friends that have been involved in logging and timber. We plan to focus on who we are, what we do and what we are planning to do.”

The theme calls attention to the many

companies that have multiple generations of the same family involved and the proud heritage that is carried on.

The importance of “Friends” cannot be overemphasized. At the OLC and other related association gatherings annually, old friends reconnect to catch up on what has transpired over the past 12 months. New friends are made easily because of a shared

bond, a shared lifestyle, a shared dedication to family, friends and forestry.

“I consider forestry to be generational,” Melcher said. “Learning from yesterday,

providing for today and investing in the future. It’s a long-term commitment One that I and so many others make on a daily basis.

I wouldn’t have it any other way,. ‘Family, friends and forestry’, are a very important part of our lives.”

Working On Details OLC officers, directors, staff and volunteers are working on program details to identify potential speakers and facilitate informative and thought-provoking seminars and panel discussion topics.

New Board Members The Oregon Logging Conference (OLC) has added two new members to its board of directors.

OLC welcomes Ed Fallon and Jacob Steensen, both life-long supporters of the logging industry.

Fallon has more than 40 years of experience in the logging industry. He began his

career setting chokers behind a dozer and quickly worked his way up through the ranks learning all parts of the business from setting chokers on the ground side to cable logging and building roads. By the mid1980s, he had worked his way up to woods boss.

From 1990 to 2008, Fallon was out on his own doing mechanical ground logging. In 2008, he sold the business to Jeld-Wenn in Klamath Falls, and went to work for them as logging and chopping manager. In 2014, when the business was sold to Green Diamond Resource Company, Fallon stayed on managing all woods operations. Fallon left Green Diamond Resource Company in 2019 and since then has been logging and roads operations manager for the Murphy Company in White City.

Jacob Steensen, a third-generation timber industry worker, was born into a logging family. His great uncle cut the right of way for the Valsetz mainline. His grandfather and father were both loggers, and Steensen started setting chokers behind a Cat when he was 13.

He started for Georgia Pacific from 2008 to 2016, and now works as resource manager for Southport Lumber out of North Bend, Ore. 

Oregon Adopts Rules to Protect Construction Workers SALEM, Ore. (AP) Oregon recently adopted an emergency rule that strengthens requirements for employers to safeguard workers from extreme heat, including expanding access to shade and cool water in what advocates called the nation’s most protective heat rules following deadly recordhigh temperatures in the Pacific Northwest.

“With these new rules, Oregon has a chance to lead the country in ensuring workplaces are safe from high heat, especially for those doing the most demanding and dangerous jobs like farming and construction,” said Kate Suisman, an attorney with the Northwest Workers' Justice Project.

The emergency rule adopted by the Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Division, or Oregon OSHA, also mandates regular cooldown breaks and communication between employees and supervisors so workers can report concerns.

Among the more than 100 people in Oregon who died during the extreme heat wave in late June was an immigrant from Guatemala who was working outside, the state medical examiner said. He was part of a crew at a plant nursery that was moving irrigation lines. Oregon OSHA is investigating both the nursery and the labor contractor.

“Oregon OSHA is taking an important

step forward in leading the nation tures in some places reaching on standards for outdoors workabove 115 F. ers,'' said Reyna Lopez, execuOregon has recorded 116 tive director of the Oregon farmdeaths from the heat wave, while workers' union, known by its Washington state said that its toll Spanish acronym as PCUN. “It's had risen to 78 as of early July. crucial that we continue to take Authorities say hundreds of steps toward long-term policy deaths may ultimately be attribshifts in our state that take cliuted to the heat throughout the mate change and workers safety region. seriously.”

Amid a historic drought, temOregon OSHA said the temperatures are spiking in parts of porary rule is effective immedithe U.S. West again but are less ately and stays in place for 180 intense than the earlier heat days. wave.

“In the face of an unprecedentUnder Oregon's new rules for ed heat wave in the Pacific workers, when the heat index is Northwest — and tragic conseat or above 80 F employers are quences — it is absolutely criti- The emergency rule adopted by the Oregon Occupational required to provide access to sufcal that we continue to build up Safety and Health Division, or Oregon OSHA, mandates regu- ficient shade and an adequate our defenses against the effects lar cooldown breaks and communication between employees supply of drinking water. of climate change, including and supervisors so workers can report concerns. Advocates When the heat index rises extreme heat events,'' said are calling it the nation’s most protective heat rules following above 90 F employers also must Andrew Stolfi, director of the deadly record-high temperatures in the Pacific Northwest. ensure effective communication state agency that includes between workers and supervisors caused climate change, which is making so workers can report concerns, ensure that Oregon OSHA. The heat wave was caused by what mete- such extreme weather events more likely employees are observed for alertness and orologists described as a dome of high pres- and more intense. signs of heat illness, and provide a coolSeattle, Portland and many other cities down rest period in the shade of 10 minutes sure over the Northwest and British Columbia that was worsened by human- broke all-time heat records, with tempera- for every two hours of work. 

Construction Equipment Guide • Pacific Northwest Supplement • www.constructionequipmentguide.com • August 1, 2021 • Page 5

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Page 6 • August 1, 2021 • www.constructionequipmentguide.com • Pacific Northwest Supplement • Construction Equipment Guide

Crews Utilize Cat D5 Dozer, 225 Excavator, 140 Grader On Job

The storms that hit around winter solstice were described as an “astronomical amount of heavy rains and snow and flooding.”

LANDSLIDE from page 1

slides that come off the hillside and across the road.”

At the time of the most recent slides, engineering geologists surveyed the locations using lidar imagery and collected pavement samples to make recommendations for reopening the highway. Conceptual design plans were finalized and engineers obtained the necessary environmental permits prior to construction.

Examples of the repairs necessary to reopen SR 112 included: • slope reinforcement; • filling portions with gravel; • installing guardrail; • rebuilding drainage facilities; • leveling a surface roadway with gravel.

The current effort in coping with the landslides is a kind of “Band-Aid” approach, Werner said.

“We do not have funding for a solution, which would include realignment. What we’re doing now is maintenance repairs as resources allow. There may be a time, if conditions continue to worsen, that there is always the possibility of closing a route because of insufficient preservation fundings.

This contract was $1.4 million and it ends up being a sub-

Crews will be required to execute slope reinforcement; filling portions with gravel; installing guardrail; rebuilding drainage facilities; and leveling a surface roadway with gravel.

stantial amount of money year over year to dump resources into a highway that is continuing to move toward the ocean.

It is complex … It poses a lot of concerns for maintenance crews.”

The scenic route from Port Angeles to Neah Bay is a favorite with locals and visitors for its views along the Strait of Juan de Fuca.

“Statewide, our current maintenance and preservation backlog is approximately $925 million per year and is only expected to grow as funding fails to keep up with needs,” Werner said. “She noted that given the current backlogs, it would cost $1.8 billion each year to meet all WSDOT’s maintenance and preservation needs, but the agency receives less than half those funds.

“Requests for the total realignment of SR 112 have proven see LANDSLIDE page 10

With limited funding for the project, the current effort in coping with the landslides is a “Band-Aid” approach.

Scarsella Brothers is tasked with repairing a landslide that saw a portion of the highway drop the road in six different locations.

The scenic route from Port Angeles to Neah Bay is a favorite with locals and visitors for its views along the Strait of Juan de Fuca.

Construction Equipment Guide • Pacific Northwest Supplement • www.constructionequipmentguide.com • August 1, 2021 • Page 7

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Page 8 • August 1, 2021 • www.constructionequipmentguide.com • Pacific Northwest Supplement • Construction Equipment Guide

New Landslide Database Gives Tools for Site Development The Idaho Geological Survey (IGS) is helping the Idaho Transportation Department (ITD) learn more from landslides in the Gem State. A new statewide inventory database of landslide and rock fall hazards released by IGS in late June will assist ITD, emergency managers and planners with forecasting and hazard mitigation by identifying problematic hot spots.

The project was sponsored by ITD’s Division of Highways — Construction and Materials team and funded through ITD’s Research Program.

The inventory contains more than 2,400 landslide entries spanning from prehistoric to active events. It’s posted on the IGS website and can be accessed through an interactive webmap service.

The information also was added to ITD’s IPLAN online ArcGIS platform. The database includes attributes to maintain MSE retaining wall locations and risk factors to evaluate the condition of the wall, as well as attributes for rock fall risk, so ITD districts can assess the problematic areas that could cause road closures.

Data were compiled from historic archives, information provided by ITD geotechnical staff and district geologists, unpublished IGS field observations, analysis of

The project was sponsored by ITD’s Division of Highways — Construction and Materials team and funded through ITD’s Research Program.

LiDAR imagery, remote sensing, satellite images and newly mapped landslides.

“The study represents a live catalog of mass movements across the state with a particular focus on transportation corridors and urban areas,” said State Geologist and IGS Director Claudio Berti. “The database is a tool for documenting and assessing slope stability hazards. It is not intended to predict future events, but to document known events

and show broad patterns of occurrence.”

This new database replaces the last inventory published in 1991, a static map no longer suitable for modern digital analyses.

The 2021 version will be kept up to date as new events occur or new information becomes available.

Landslide problem areas in Idaho include: Bonners Ferry, Clearwater River Basin, Horseshoe Bend, Boise Foothills,

The database includes attributes to maintain MSE retaining wall locations and risk factors to evaluate the condition of the wall, as well as attributes for rock fall risk, so ITD districts can assess the problematic areas that could cause road closures.

Hagerman, U.S. 95 between Pollock and Lucile, and U.S. 26 between Swan Valley and the Wyoming border. Geologic characteristics of the bedrock, fractures, systems, precipitation, regional hydrogeology, vegetation, wildfires and steepness of hill slopes are all contributing factors in landslide initiation and development.

For more information, visit https://apps.itd.idaho.gov/apps/research/Co mpleted/RP278.pdf 

Company Drops Massive $2B Methanol Plant Construction SEATTLE (AP) A company backed by the Chinese government recently ended its seven-year effort to build one of the world’s largest methanol plants along the Columbia River in southwestern Washington, following a series of regulatory setbacks and a long debate over its environmental footprint.

Northwest Innovation Works proposed a $2.3 billion project to take fracked natural gas from Canada and convert it into methanol, which it would then ship to China to make ingredients for plastics used in everything from iPhones to clothing to medical devices.

The state Department of Ecology denied a key permit for the project in January, saying it would create too much pollution and have negative effects on the shoreline. And recently, the company notified the Port of Kalama it was terminating its lease, saying the regulatory environment had become “unclear and unpredictable.”

Economic development officials in southwest Washington blasted the state for dooming the project, saying that the company’s methods of making methanol from natural

gas would have been cleaner than making it from coal, as is done elsewhere. That would have benefitted the environment while creating 1,400 construction jobs and 200 familywage permanent positions, they argued.

“NWIW did everything right, and their understandable decision to pull out of this project is a real loss for families trying to make ends meet, the future of economic development in our state, and our environment,” Port of Kalama Commissioner Troy Stariha said in a written statement.

A review required by the state found that the plant would boost the amount of green-

house gases released into the atmosphere, but not as much as if the methanol were made elsewhere.

Environmental groups, including Columbia Riverkeeper and the Washington Environmental Council, as well as tribal activists, vehemently opposed it. They celebrated the lease termination as the latest in a string of victories that helped block more than a dozen fossil-fuel developments in the Pacific Northwest, including fracked gas pipelines, liquefied natural gas terminals, coal export terminals and oil-by-rail developments.

“Projects like this simply cannot go forward as we fight to save our climate,”' Kristen Boyles, an attorney with the environmental law firm Earthjustice, said in a news release. “The climate-killing emissions from this project would have overwhelmed Washington, and we must keep drawing the line and saying no.”

The proposal had a roller-coaster history, with Democratic Gov. Jay Inslee initially supporting it and going so far as to visit Kalama to promote it. But in 2019, amid his climate-activist campaign for president,

Inslee reversed himself, saying he could no longer in good conscience support massive fossil-fuel infrastructure projects.

Northwest Innovation Works suffered another setback that year when the state Department of Ecology demanded further environmental review, saying that five years in, its backers had failed to provide enough information about its greenhouse gas emissions and how they would be offset.

Last fall, a federal judge invalidated permits issued by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for construction of an export facility on the river, agreeing with conservation and public health groups that further environmental review was necessary.

And then in January, following the additional environmental study, Ecology officials refused to issue a key permit. The company and the port appealed, but that appeared to be rendered moot by the recent news.

In a written statement, Northwest Innovation Works thanked the port and local government and labor unions for their support.

“We remain committed to addressing the global climate challenge, creating jobs and economic growth, and are moving forward in developing other innovative net zero projects,” the company said. 

Construction Equipment Guide • Pacific Northwest Supplement • www.constructionequipmentguide.com • August 1, 2021 • Page 9

PACIFIC NORTHWESTERN PUBLISHING 2021 Issue# 18 20 22 24 26

Closing

Publishing

Aug 18 Sep 15 Oct 13 Nov 10 Dec 08

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Page 10 • August 1, 2021 • www.constructionequipmentguide.com • Pacific Northwest Supplement • Construction Equipment Guide

Crews Correct Troublesome SR 112 After Road Drops 13 Ft.

At the time of the most recent slides, engineering geologists surveyed the locations using lidar imagery and collected pavement samples to make recommendations for reopening the highway.

LANDSLIDE from page 6

The highway sits on an active slide zone, with significant slide activity documented every 10 to 20 years, which started in 1954.

unsuccessful due to low travel volumes and exceedingly difficult funding selections,” Werner said. “You saw that we reopened portions of the road as a gravel surface to reduce expenses. We will continue to face choices like this going forward as conditions worsen statewide on similar routes.”

SR 112 is an important east-west highway that connects communities from Neah Bay to Port Angeles, according to the WSDOT

Instead of putting asphalt back down on the road, crews put down ground up rock for the driving surface.

project page. The highway also sits on an active slide zone, with significant slide activity documented every 10 to 20 years, beginning in 1954 after the highway was reappropriated from Clallam County to WSDOT in the 1930s. The last major slide event was in 2009.

To view the February 2020 video of landslide work, visit www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXdNP8QUT 6Y  CEG

SR 112 is an important east-west highway that connects communities from Neah Bay to Port Angeles.

Construction Equipment Guide • Pacific Northwest Supplement • www.constructionequipmentguide.com • August 1, 2021 • Page 11

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Residents Call On Admin. to Remove Snake River Dams SEATTLE (AP) A coalition of Northwest tribal leaders calling on President Joe Biden and Congress to remove four massive dams on the Snake River to help restore salmon runs.

In a letter to the administration and to members of Congress from Idaho, Oregon and Washington, the members of the Northwest Tribal Salmon Alliance called the potential extinction of the salmon a “moral failure of the highest order.”

Northwest Republicans generally oppose removing the dams, saying they are economic engines for the region and that it makes little sense to abandon a source of hydroelectric power in an age of climate change.

Furthermore, they argue, there's no guarantee removing them would save the fish.

But last month Idaho Republican Rep. Mike Simpson called for spending $33 billion to breach them and to replace the transportation, irrigation and power generation the dams provide.

The letter was signed by members of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR), Lummi Nation, Makah Tribe, Swinomish Indian Tribal Community, The Tulalip Tribes and Yakama The plan calls for the removal of the Lower Granite Dam near Colfax in 2030, with Nation. removal of three other dams — Ice Harbor, Little Goose and Lower Monumental “Salmon are inseparable from who we — in 2031.

are,” they wrote. “Even as our ancestors’ lives and homelands were threatened, they made sure to protect within the treaties our ancestral salmon lifeway. Those treaties were promises made by the United States government. Those promises must be kept.”

Conservationists said that since construction on the dams was completed in the 1970s, wild Snake River salmon populations have plummeted by more than 90 percent.

In the past two decades, $17 billion in improvements to the dams have done little to help fish, which are largely cut off from thousands of miles of spawning habitat upstream.

The dams slow the water, causing it to heat up to levels that can kill the fish and forcing juvenile salmon to swim harder and to become more exposed to predators on their journey to the ocean.

The plan calls for the removal of the Lower Granite Dam near Colfax in 2030, with removal of three other dams — Ice Harbor, Little Goose and Lower Monumental — in 2031.

The dams were built in the 1950s and 1960s to provide power and irrigation and to make navigable a portion of the Snake River from Lewiston, Idaho, to the Tri-Cities of Richland, Kennewick and Pasco in Washington, and downriver to Pacific Ocean ports. 

Page 12 • August 1, 2021 • www.constructionequipmentguide.com • Pacific Northwest Supplement • Construction Equipment Guide

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