Geezer Beach driving concern expressed by Colville Tribes

Federal and tribal officials said last week that the question of whether fishermen should continue to be able to drive on the sand along Geezer Beach behind the Grand Coulee Dam stemmed from tribal concerns.

The Bureau of Reclamation has been collecting comments on the issue as they do an environmental assessment on whether to continue allowing people to drive on the beach.

USBR Public Affairs Specialist Lynne Brougher said the idea of banning cars from the beach started when the bureau received a request to address the issue from the Colville Tribes.

“This is a concern for both protection of cultural resources, and protection of water quality,” said Colville Tribes’ Natural Resources Director Cody Desautel in an email to The Star. “Driving on the drawdown is restricted everywhere on Lake Roosevelt, and for some reason it hasn’t been enforced on Geezer Beach. This is a highly visible bad example that sets bad precedent, and causes enforcement issues in areas other than Geezer Beach. As I’m sure you have heard from the public ‘it’s been ok there, so why is it a problem now?’ The public tends to use that same logic to drive on the drawdown in other places along lake Roosevelt.”

Desautel said that people who work for the National Park Service share the same concerns.

One local man, Greg Behrens, weighed in on the topic in a letter to the Bureau, which he also shared with The Star.

Behrens states that his 30-year employment working on the Grand Coulee Dam project included doing geological investigations and geographic mapping studies along the shoreline of Lake Roosevelt.

“These studies included monitoring shoreline processes, reservoir drawdown effects, landslide investigations, and natural and cultural resource studies,” Behrens writes. “These studies were often done with the National Park Service, the Colville Tribe and the Spokane Tribe of Indians.

“This beach area has all been reworked and completely modified throughout the construction of the Dam’s history,” Behren continued. “During the construction of the third powerhouse this area was used as a staging area for equipment and materials down to elevation 1160 (feet above sea level). This area was extensively excavated, filled, graded, compacted and reworked to allow proper construction staging and access. The current federal restrictions will never allow the reservoir to be dropped below elevation 1208.

“If the concern for the allowed vehicle access is based on ‘cultural resource preservation’ then the prior construction activities within the area have made this a non-issue. This includes the nearshore environment well below the accessible areas today.”

Behrens also details how the water quality wouldn’t be any more affected by cars driving on the beach than by the many other activities the lake hosts.

He also doesn’t believe that driving on Geezer Beach sets a bad precedent for driving on other areas. “Never have I heard during any of my contacts with landowners along the lake, or people recreating on the beach, say that ‘it must be ok to drive on the drawdown area because they allow it on Geezer Beach,’” he wrote. “I’m not saying people don’t drive on the drawdown in other areas, but it is not because they are extending the allowance of vehicles here to other areas. People just know that driving on the beach is NOT ALLOWED! If they do drive on the beach it’s out of ignorance or disrespect.”

There are heavy fines issued to those caught driving in restricted areas.

“I’m not being culturally or environmentally insensitive to this issue,” Behrens continued. “I have the deepest respect for our local heritage and environment and I want to keep those things we enjoy in our area if there is not valid reason to discontinue them.”

Hank Wiebe, another local man, who distributed petitions opposing any change said Monday those had gathered more than 300 signatures.

What do you think? The Bureau is still collecting comments until Dec. 31.

Comments and concerns about the issue can be mailed to Natural Resource Specialist Lon Ottosen, Bureau of Reclamation, Grand Coulee Power Office, P.O. Box 620, Grand Coulee, WA 99133, or emailed to lottosen@usbr.gov.