Port Continues Rebuilding Rivergate Wetlands

PORTLAND-The Port of Portland is entering Phase 2 of its $7-million effort to correct damage to an environmentally-sensitive area in the northwest quadrant of the Rivergate industrial that was filled with sand dredged from the Columbia River en route to development.

In January 2001, the Port entered into a consent decree that settled a citizen claim regarding the dredge fills along the Leadbetter Peninsula, near the Columbia Slough, in Rivergate. Since then, approximately 360,000 cubic yards of sand fill has been removed from the area.

The Port of Portland Commission on Wednesday voted to hire Rain Country Construction Inc., of Eagle Creek, Ore., to remove an additional 260,000 cubic yards of sand fill from the area. The firm will also perform adjacent wetlands excavation work, re-vegetate existing wildlife habitat areas and, after permits are granted, build a new segment of the city’s “40-mile loop trail.”