Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Hulen Meadows pond saga far from over

Dredging of pond for Castle Rock Fire effort temporary, official says


By JASON KAUFFMAN
Express Staff Writer

Despite rumors to the contrary, the issue of what should be done to reverse the inevitable decline of Hulen Meadows pond is still alive and well.

At a community meeting at Ketchum's Hemingway Elementary School last week, the incident commander on the Castle Rock Fire, Jeanne Pincha-Tulley, expressed surprise about the community's enthusiastic response to her request that Blaine County dredge the large pond located west of the Big Wood River just north of Ketchum.

The artificial catch basin, which has been steadily filling up with sediment in recent years, was partially dredged by county road and bridge crews on Aug. 22, Blaine County Commissioner Sarah Michael said Monday.

In a letter to the County Commission, Pincha-Tulley said deepening the pond would give helicopters a more reliable and safe source of water to fill their buckets from.

"Due to depth issues we are currently drawing directly from the Big Wood River in the vicinity of Hulen Meadows," Pincha-Tulley said in her letter to commissioners.

The commissioners agreed to Pincha-Tulley's request and immediately instructed county crews to complete the work, Michael said.

A close inspection of the pond indicates that county road and bridge crews scoured portions of the pond next to the large gravel bar that is cutting the pond off from the Big Wood River and deposited the sand and gravel on the shore. The large gravel bar—the issue of endless public debate in recent months—is a left over reminder of the record-setting flooding on the Big Wood River in May and June of 2006.

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Since it was built in the 1990s, high springtime flows have been filling the Hulen Meadows pond with increasing levels of gravel and silt, just as its designers intended it to do.

The process has been ongoing since the Idaho Transportation Department built the pond on U.S. Bureau of Land Management property. Following the spring 2006 floods, the large gravel bar began to eliminate much of the fresh water flows that keep the pond clear and vibrant.

Michael said because last week's dredging only removed material from the pond itself and not from the gravel bar, the work hasn't addressed the larger issue of allowing fresh water to flow into the body of water.

"The purpose was to make it functional for the fire crews," she said.

Michael said the emergency work didn't require the same level of official scrutiny as will the prospect of dredging it for recreational and scenic issues.

"It's not the same review," she said. "You have to be able to respond in an emergency."

Michael said that once the Castle Rock Fire is contained, the U.S. Forest Service will conduct rehabilitation work on the Hulen Meadows pond to bring it back to its pre-fire condition. She said the work will take place as part of the agency's larger post fire rehabilitation work.

As for the future of the pond itself, Michael said whether it will be completely restored to its pre-2006 flooding condition will be considered during future public meetings, which haven't been scheduled.




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