Washington Business Winter 2019 | Washington Business | Page 44

business backgrounder | industry
“The Columbia-Snake river dam system transformed
Washington state’s economy, opening new
opportunities for our agriculture community to
access markets around the world, but to also support
a sustainable future and strong economy.”
— AWB President Kris Johnson
The river system from Lewiston, Idaho, to Astoria, Ore., runs 465 miles, has eight lock systems and supports
1,500 ships, said Rob Rich, vice president of marine services for the barging company Shaver Transportation and
current president of the Pacific Waterways Association.
“We don’t get to see all those ships, but we get to see the benefits of them, which is the export of agriculture
from this area,” Rich said in his testimony. “It’s kind of a silent service moving an incredible amount of cargo down
the river.”
balancing a healthy
environment, robust
economy
The Columbia-Snake River System
supports the movement of more
than 42 million tons of commercial
cargo, valued at over $20 billion,
every year and is the nation’s top
wheat export gateway, boasting the
movement of nearly 10 percent of
all U.S. wheat exports through the
lower Snake River dams, according
to Benton PUD.
“As a former Tri-Citian, I know
how important the dams are, not only
to this community but they really
serve as the lifeblood of this region,”
Johnson said. “As the president of
AWB, Washington’s oldest and largest
business association, I can tell you that these dams not only play a
critical role for the Mid-Columbia region of the state, but for the
entire Pacific Northwest.”
The dams’ infrastructure and energy production, he said,
“fundamentally transformed our state’s economy, opening new
opportunities not only to agriculture but also for manufacturing
and high tech.”
44 association of washington business
“In successive generations, the value of
the river has been expressed in ways that
met the challenges of the times.”
— Dan James, deputy administrator, Bonneville Power
Administration