Date:  Friday, June 12, 2009

Contact: Jeff Adamson, North Central Region Communications Manager, Wenatchee, (509) 667-2815, (509) 669-8778 Cell. E-mail: adamsoj@wsdot.wa.gov
Project Engineer, Mitch Reister, (509) 667-3038 E-mail: reistem@wsdot.wa.gov

WENATCHEE – A project meant to protect drivers from valuable mule deer and bighorn sheep herds will get going in a few weeks thanks to a coalition of support.

The US 97A Wildlife Fence project will install eight miles of 8-foot-tall fencing along the highway between Wenatchee and Chelan in north central Washington.

“After the years that the community, sportsmen, (Washington Department of) Fish and Wildlife and WSDOT have put into this, it’s hard to believe, it’s finally going to happen,” said Mitch Reister, a WSDOT project engineer who has invested many hours over the past several years guiding this complicated project from concept to reality.

“Getting the funding has been a huge challenge and it wouldn’t have happened without the seed money contributed by nearly a dozen organizations, sportsmen, and businesses. It demonstrated their commitment to the agencies and legislators and despite the tight budget, this project was recognized as a priority,” said Reister.

THG Construction, LLC will build the nearly $845,000 stage 1, which is the first 4.5 miles of fencing, projected to take a little over two months to complete. Stage 2, funded in WSDOT’s 2009-11 budget finishes the eight miles of 8-foot-tall wildlife fence on the west side of US 97A between Rocky Reach Dam and Spencer Canyon (MP 203 to MP 212).

The US 97A corridor between Wenatchee and Chelan has one of the highest mule deer mortality rates in Washington. As many as 160 deer are reported killed along the highway during a severe winter between Wenatchee and Chelan. By installing fence along this high deer kill section below the Swakane Wildlife Area, it is anticipated that a 50 percent reduction in the total vehicle-wildlife collisions for the entire corridor can be achieved. Other benefits include increased safety for the 6,000 motorists who drive the corridor each day, and protection of the valuable deer and bighorn sheep herds that live above the highway.

Both stages of the project will use an all-steel, 8-foot-tall fence – the first major steel post wildlife fence project of its kind in Washington. The selection was based on the longer lifespan, ease of construction, and wildfire survivability of steel posts versus wooden ones. The steel costs more, but installation is cheaper, so the total costs stay the same. The fence design includes double-panel gates and cattle guards for access roads.

In addition to funding from the WDFWL, the following private contributors helped fund the project:
• Wenatchee Sportman's Association.
• Seattle Sportsmen Conservation Foundation.
• Washington State, Foundation for North American Wild Sheep.
• State Farm Insurance.
• Mt. Vernon Mule Deer Foundation.
• Central Washington Mule Deer Foundation.
• Woodinville Mule Deer Foundation.
• Washington State Bowhunters.

For more details, visit the project web page: www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/US97A/WildlifeFence/

A ground breaking event is being planned for later this month. 

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