Public Hearing on the Evening of October 28 in Olympia, Washington, on the Draft Environmental Review for the Deschutes Estuary Restoration
On the evening of October 28, 2026, in Olympia, Thurston County, Washington, the state Department of Ecology held a public hearing on the Deschutes Estuary Restoration Project at the Olympia Center, 222 Columbia Street NW, with an open house starting at 5:30 p.m., a meeting at 6 p.m. and the hearing at 6:30 p.m.
The hearing concerned the project's draft supplemental environmental impact statement, which assesses the possible environmental effects of design changes made since the final environmental review in 2022. These include replacing utilities and the pedestrian bridge at Marathon Park, building a new berm and elevated walkway at Heritage Park, building a new berm at the Tumwater historic brewery, protecting the BNSF railway bridge, and refining the designs for channel dredging and habitat, and for the Fifth Avenue bridge and roadway. The draft also evaluates a "no action" alternative.
The Deschutes Estuary Restoration Project plans to remove the dam and restore Capitol Lake to a natural estuary, reconnecting the Deschutes River with Puget Sound, restoring 260 acres of estuary and salt marsh habitat in south Puget Sound, improving water quality, suppressing invasive species and rebuilding habitat for juvenile salmon.
The departments of Ecology and Enterprise Services will compile public comments for the final report, expected to be completed next year. The supplemental review is not itself a decision document and neither approves nor rejects the project.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 华盛顿州议会大厦与国会湖（奥林匹亚）。图源：Wikimedia Commons，CC BY-SA 授权。 / Washington State Capitol across Capitol Lake in Olympia. Source: Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA.
