News Release Archive

Final EA for Prineville Reservoir Powder House Cove Expansion Project Released

Media Contact: John Redding, (208) 378-5212, 10/24/2006 19:32
Tanya Sommer, tsommer@pn.usbr.gov

For Release: October 24, 2006

The Bureau of Reclamation is releasing a Finding of No Significant Impact and Final Environmental Assessment for the Prineville Reservoir Powder House Cove Expansion project located on the south side of Prineville Reservoir, about 20 miles south of Prineville, Ore.

Powder House Cove a popular recreation site is identified in the Prineville Resource Management Plan as a location where increasing vehicle and pedestrian traffic is resulting in serious public safety concerns.

Reclamation owns the land around Powder House Cove and the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department manages the site through lease agreement with the federal government.

The primary issue at Power House Cove raised by the Crook County Sheriff's office was the lack of adequate parking at the site. Overflow parking occurs because there are only 20 official parking spaces, resulting in people parking vehicles on the shoulder of State Highway 27. In July 2005, approximately 2,500 vehicles visited Powder House Cove and on a peak summer day, over 80 vehicles are parked on the highway shoulder, causing a potentially dangerous situation.

Construction is scheduled to begin this winter to improve the site, making it ready for the 2007 summer season. Reclamation and OPRD are funding the project improvements which also include, upgrading public toilet facilities, boat ramp access, and protection of nearby shoreline and vegetation.

A copy of the Final EA can be obtained by contacting Tanya Sommer, Bureau of Reclamation, Lower Columbia Area Office, 1201 NE Lloyd Blvd, Portland OR 97232 or on the web at www.usbr.gov/pn.

Prineville Reservoir is impounded behind Arthur R. Bowman Dam, which is located on the Crooked River. The dam was constructed by Reclamation from 1958 to 1961 and provides irrigation water in the Deschutes and Crooked River basin.

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The Bureau of Reclamation is a federal agency under the U.S. Department of the Interior and is the nation's largest wholesale water supplier and second largest producer of hydroelectric power. Our facilities also provide substantial flood control, recreation opportunities, and environmental benefits. Visit our website at https://www.usbr.gov and follow us on Twitter @USBR; Facebook @bureau.of.reclamation; LinkedIn @Bureau of Reclamation; Instagram @bureau_of_reclamation; and YouTube @reclamation.

Relevant Link:

http://www.usbr.gov/pn/programs/ea/oregon/powderhouse/index.html