National Park Service
Camping Fees
Starting January 1, 2025, the National Park Service (NPS) at Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area increased camping and boat launch fees. A new dump station/water fill fee was also introduced. Click here for fee and related information.
Seven Bays Marina Improvements
A “Finding of No Significant Impacts (FONSI)” was approved for the project to Replace Docks and Fuel Systems, and Rehabilitate Parking Areas at Seven Bays Marina. Said NPS, “As one of the busiest concessions operated marinas and boat launches for transient boaters on the lake, these improvements are critical and will address deferred maintenance in the park.” Construction is expected to begin in the summer of 2025.
Bureau of Reclamation
Salmon Reintroduction Plan Public Comment
In November, The Bureau of Reclamation, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and Bonneville Power Administration opened a 30-day comment period for the public to review and provide feedback on a draft programmatic environmental assessment of the Phase 2 Implementation Plan (P2IP) to test the feasibility of salmon reintroduction upstream of Chief Joseph and Grand Coulee dams. The draft assessment outlines federal support of the P2IP, which was developed and is being implemented by the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, Spokane Tribe of Indians, Coeur d’Alene Tribe, and Upper Columbia United Tribes.
Click here to learn more, including signing up for the project mailing list, reading Frequently Asked Questions and responses, or posing additional questions.
Supplementing the 2020 Columbia River System Operation Environmental Impact Statement
The 2020 Columbia River System Operation (CRSO) Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) analyzed the coordinated operation and maintenance of fourteen Federal multi-purpose dams and related facilities located throughout the Columbia River Basin. This includes Grand Coulee Dam. In December, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Bureau of Reclamation, or co-lead agencies, announced their intention to supplement the CSRO. The purpose is to address new information and circumstances since it was published in 2020.
To support this effort, the co-lead agencies are inviting the public to submit scoping comments relevant to the supplemental National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process no later than March 20, 2025. The co-lead agencies will also hold at least three virtual public meetings the week of February 10, 2025.
Click here to learn more and provide public comments.
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife
Chronic Wasting Disease Rules
In August 2024, the first case of chronic wasting disease (CWD) in Washington was confirmed in north Spokane County. Four additional cases have been confirmed in Spokane County since then and one in Pend Oreille County. CWD is a fatal, neurological illness affecting members of the deer family, including white-tailed deer, mule deer, elk, and moose.
Click here to learn important information about the disease, preventing its spread, new rules for hunters, and other information. Rule changes cover WDFW Region 1, which includes Stevens, Ferry, Lincoln, Spokane, Pend Oreille, Walla Walla, Whitman, Asotin, Columbia, and Garfield counties.
Lincoln County
Miles Creston Road Work
Miles Creston from Highway 2 to Copenhaver Road is open to traffic as a gravel roadway but will be hard surfaced in late spring 2025. Miles Creston is a main thoroughfare to Lincoln Mill, Hawk Creek, and Seven Bays.
Broadband Installation
Lincoln County continues to build direct fiber networks to provide municipalities and unincorporated communities significantly faster, more reliable, and more secure internet access. Multiple state grants totaling $24 million have allowed Lincoln County to build these projects.
The county is currently in the design phases for the Deer Meadows/Seven Bays Project. They are also in the process of applying for dollars to start the BEAD Project Area in the Northwest part of the County. This will take in communities along Lake Roosevelt like Spring Canyon, Keller Ferry, Hanson Harbor and Lincoln along with other rural areas. “We are ‘Lighting Up’ Lincoln County,” said Commissioner Scott Hutsell.
