Calif. Power Woes Affect Wash. Ferry

Tuesday, February 13, 2001

By NICHOLAS K. GERANIOS Associated Press Writer

INCHELIUM, Wash. (AP) - Tom Berg lives in a home above Lake Roosevelt in a remote part of northeastern Washington. But thanks to the California electricity crisis, the pharmacist is about to get a dose of life Los Angeles style.

Berg's 10-minute commute to work by ferry is going to turn into a 60-mile one-way trip because pressure to run the hydroelectric turbines at Grand Coulee Dam day and night to provide power to California is draining the manmade lake. It is the same story for many people in and around Inchelium, a town of 1,100 people who are used to traveling to Spokane for banking, shopping and medical care. Perhaps more than those of any other community, the residents of this town on the Colville Indian reservation are sacrificing to keep the lights on in places like Silicon Valley.

``They failed over the years to build their own power plants,'' Berg complained. ``Now we're paying for it.'' As early as Friday, the water level will be too low for the Columbian Princess to make its short journey across the lake, which is the portion of the Columbia River behind Grand Coulee. California-bashing is big in Inchelium right now. ``When you weigh 1,100 people versus some town in Northern California with a million people, we probably aren't being considered too much,'' said Chris Shaffer, who works for the school district. ``It's their own fault,'' said Pat Stafford, whose weekly trips to a bingo parlor in Chewelah will take much longer. The town is not completely cut off. Residents can take a narrow, two-lane road up to Kettle Falls and cross a bridge over the Columbia. But that adds more than an hour to a trip to Chewelah or Spokane.

A similar car ferry near Keller, about 60 miles downriver, is not affected because it can operate in much shallower water. Ferry service to and from Inchelium is knocked out for about two weeks each April for maintenance. But this outage could last for two to four months, because a low snowpack in the mountains means the reservoir is refilling far more slowly than usual.

The reservoir is being drained at the rate of about 1 foot per day to keep the turbines turning, said Wayne Kensler, who oversees ferry operations for the Colville tribe. Lake Roosevelt is considered full when the water level is at elevation 1,290. It was down to about 1,240 feet in early February, and is considered too shallow for ferry operations at about 1,225.

The ferry transports more than 11,000 vehicles in a typical February, and that jumps to more than 14,000 by April. It can hold up to 16 vehicles. The crossing is free and takes only about four minutes. The blue and yellow ferry makes a round trip every half-hour during the day and into the night. Last week, tree stumps poked out of the water along both shores, and gravel bars were exposed. Berg lives in the town of Gifford and takes the ferry across the lake to Inchelium, where he dispenses prescription drugs at a tribal clinic. When the ferry shuts down, he will have to take the detour over the bridge in his pickup truck. ``My four-mile commute to work is about to turn into 60,'' Berg said. ``I'll be getting home an hour to an hour and a half later each night.'' Also about to get a longer commute are the clinic's doctor and dentist, 11 teachers and six substitute teachers and numerous students. Many students at Inchelium High, including athletes and those in other extracurricular activities, will also be running up the miles. More ominous is the effect on ambulance service, with emergency cases having to ride longer to a hospital, said Becki Shaffer, a paramedic.

Also, many people get their water from wells that could run dry if lake levels remain low. ``I'm sure none of the Californians will be thinking that we need water and be turning their lights off,'' Berg said. Tourism at the area's many campgrounds and marinas could also be hurt if beaches and docks remain high and dry by Memorial Day. Republican Rep. George Nethercutt is trying to find a way to slow the draining of Lake Roosevelt, said Cathy LeBret, an aide. But LeBret said a long-term solution probably won't involve the ferry.

``We are going to fund a study to look at building a bridge where the ferry is,'' LeBret said. In the meantime, Berg is trying to find a bright spot. ``I can watch the bald eagles as I drive along the shore,'' he said. ``But it will get old.''

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-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), February 13, 2001