Army Corps of Engineers response to the Colf Family

[Chief]

Here is a link (http://www.clarkblog.org/docs/NR_CRCIP.doc?s=&showtopic=4351&view=findpost&p=28980) to a Microsoft Word document that contains the Army Corps of Engineer's response to this issue, and it is dated 14 April 2008. That's the most current statement I can find from the Army Corp, and I would be interested in hearing some discussion of it.

[mojoesmom]

Chief, a little back ground:

The Corps of Engineers is in the middle of a shipping channel dredging project of 106 miles of the Columbia River from its mouth to the cities of Portland, Oregon and Vancouver Washington.

As part of the project, the Corps must mitigate damage to wetlands caused by the project. They have chosen to take 70% of what they need from one family, the Colf Family of Woodland, Washington.

The Colf farming family is actively led by 91-year-old Margaret Colf.
Nancy Colf, Margaret’s daughter, is head of the Family farming operation.

The Colf Family has been farming the area since 1870. They don’t want to sell. They are farmers. They want to keep the land in agriculture. The Colf family is not now and never has been a willing seller. They are now and have continued to talk to the Corps of Engineers to discuss various options and solutions because the Corps has placed a gun at their head by threatening eminent domain.

The Colf Family has been through nine years of hell dealing with the Corps of Engineers. The Corps is now threatening eminent domain using the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) to carry out their eminent domain threat on behalf of the Ports of Vancouver, Woodland, Longview and Kalama along the Columbia River. The Ports would eventually end up with ownership of the Colf Farm land.

The Corps has identified eight other sites along the Columbia that are appropriate for this wetlands mitigation. There are lots of willing sellers of land that can be used for wetlands mitigation along the 106 mile affected area of the Columbia River. That does not seem to matter to the Corps.
They have targeted the Colf Family and plan to take their land and destroy an active and historic family farm.

The Colf Family has repeatedly offered compromise and alternate solutions.
Often they have not been able to get the Corp or port officials to even talk to them.

It is ironic that the Ports have lots of land that could be used for mitigation purposes. Those lands don’t seem to count. They would rather destroy farmers.

Agriculture is important to America. Small farms are disappearing every year. It is easy to see that the Corps of Engineers is part of the reason for this loss. They have been heavy handed and threatening in the process.

It is important that every farmer and agriculture advocate stand up and fight for proud farm families like the Colf. It is only by farmers standing together and working in unison to protect farming and family agriculture operations is there a chance to save and protect productive family farms.

You are right, there are times eminent domain is necessary and that it is never easy, but there were other willing sellers that the corps did not even talk to because the easier route was to go to one family. It wasn't until Rep. Curtis went to the Governor and pleaded this case to her that the corps would even talk to the Colf family. There is always more to a story...let's take time to hear both sides instead of just assuming that government is right!

[Chief]

I understnad some of the background from the many e-mails that have circulated on this, and as I said, this is the latest, most recent public statement from the Army Corps. I am merely presenting both sides of this, and by my count there have been three e-mailed notices against one Army Corps Statement posted here at Clarkblog. Until today, besides WB and myself, there has been precious little discussion of this issue, so I remain somewhat uninformed about the entire issue, as do many here in Southwest Washington. Unless you live in the City of Woodland, you probably don't know very much about this at all.

If Imminent Domain is declared in this case by the Ports, is that not just the next step in the legal process that has to occur under existing Washington State Law? Does this process not then proceed to the Courts where the case can finally be heard by a Judge??

I'm not taking sides. Quite the contrary, I want to hear both sides before I decide who is right in this...

cewl

[mojoesmom]

no it is my understanding that once eminent domain takes affect it is a done deal. Look at the Kelo decision...eminent domain is final.

There hasn't been a lot of press on this issue, the Colf family has tried to work with the corps trying to resove the issue quietly, they don't like to be in the press. But they want to farm that land. The farm that Nancy Colf has produces a high yeild of corn, she has a successful business. The corps wants to take that land and do nothing with it, turn it into blackberry bushes. That is the part that has astounded me, I always thought that they needed the lasnd as a place to put the sand that they dredged. NO that has nothing to do with taking this land for mitigation, the purpose is to take the land and add it to a wetlands bank. (Which can be a very profitable business for the state or the corps). I have been trying to learn more about wetland mitigation, it came in with the Claen Water Act, I still haven't gotten my mind around it totally.

[Chief]

This is the downside of mitigation for the environment. Sometimes the end result is not as pleasant as was envisioned.

The Army Corps is a juggernaut. It moves very slow, but steadily. They work on projects nationwide, and have plenty of trouble seeing the trees because of the damned forest.

The Army Corps has done a lot of good over the years, and they really are caught in the middle. Congress mandates that the dredging go forth, and leaves the details of how to accomplish the mitigation to messes just like this.

I know the Port of Vancouver is getting some of that spoil from the dredging too, in order to finish filling Parcel 3. Of Course the Ports play a role in all of this, but you have the Revised Code of Washington vs the Army Corps and probably other Federal Agencies too, who only want to move the dredging forward.

It's a very complicated problem with no easy answers.