Shoring Up The Shore Gravel Dumped Along Lake Pend Oreille To Prevent Further Erosion Caused By The Expansion Of A Marina
Gravel was dumped along the shore of Garfield Bay on Monday to prevent further erosion from a Lake Pend Oreille marina project.
The erosion started when too much protective gravel was bulldozed earlier this year to make the area more accessible to boats, environmental officials say.
State biologists worry that fish spawning beds could be smothered with silt.
“There were some high spots out in the lakebed that we were authorized to knock down,” said Frank Thayer, owner of the Garfield Bay Resort. “At one point we came too close to the shoreline and caused some erosion.”
Thayer and his wife, Rita, are expanding the resort south of Sandpoint to include a 119-slip private marina. They hope to open it next spring.
They have two neighbors who aren’t pleased about the marina coming. Retired engineering contractor Cliff Dove said the project is poorly designed. He and his son, Steve, have doggedly watched the excavation.
The Doves have written letters to newspaper editors, taken pictures of the bay muddied after a storm, and keep a file of correspondence and permits relating to the marina. They asked Rayner, environmental resource specialist for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and other officials to take another look at the project.
“I’ve been pounding on them for quite awhile now,” said Cliff Dove, a fisherman who says he wants to protect trout.
The Thayers said they’ve had to get restraining orders to keep the Doves off their property.
“They are the only opposition to this project,” Frank Thayer said. “This has all been blessed and approved by Fish and Game, the Corps, DEQ (Division of Environmental Quality) …”
The waves and winds of summer storms usually take a bite out of the shoreline, environmental officials say.
But DEQ’s Mike Hartz said he has been concerned about the excavation since he and an official from the state Department of Lands saw “extreme” erosion at the site.
In-lake construction requires a permit from the corps. The Thayers were cited for violating their permit when too much gravel was bulldozed too close to shore.
Rayner was at Garfield Bay on Monday, supervising the creation of a gravel berm that will slow down waves before they hit the shore.
When the lake level drops this fall, gravel where fish lay their eggs will be exposed, and biologists can look to see if it’s being covered with silt. If so, fresh gravel may need to be put in those areas.
, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo