Boats will be able to fuel up at Crescent Bar

EPHRATA — There will be a fuel station to pump gas for boats at Crescent Bar when recreation improvements to the island and riverbank are completed. Grant County PUD commissioners discussed the district’s possible liability if a tank was installed at their last meeting.

The work to remodel and improve recreation opportunities at Crescent Bar started earlier this fall. (It follows settlement of a lawsuit between the PUD and lessees on the island in 2015.) The extensive remodeling plan includes campgrounds, picnic areas, walking trails, a swimming beach and room for boats.

In answer to a question from commissioner Larry Schaapman, hydro director Kevin Marshall said the work is on schedule.

Crescent Bar was developed in the 1960s, and boaters have been able to get fuel on-site. The existing tank was removed as part of the recreation improvements. The existing tank was subject to a spill at some time; Marshall said it was difficult to determine when that spill occurred.

The spill cost $600,000 to clean up.

Marshall said a gas tank at Crescent Bar is part of the recreation plan approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in October. Whether or not it’s a requirement is still being researched. General manager Kevin Nordt said he would recommend going forward as if it is.

The PUD will hire a contractor to operate the facility, and the contract will require anybody working there to have training in using it. Boaters will not be able to pump fuel themselves.

Commissioner Bob Bernd said there had been the spill in the past, and he was concerned about risk to the district in the case of a spill in the future. Marshall said the PUD wasn’t involved in the operation of anything at Crescent Bar until a few years ago, and the requirements now will be considerably different than requirements were then.

Commissioner Tom Flint said he was concerned about the expectations, for fuel among other things. The existing arrangements predate the PUD’s assuming control of the property. “It’s pretty easy for the PUD to get tangled up in all this stuff.” In his opinion the PUD should be “the last source” for property management, he said.

Cheryl Schweizer can be reached via email at education@columbiabasinherald.com.