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Archive: 2026
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  • July

    Four people stand and pose for a photo

    Strengthening water partnerships: USACE water manager partners with Northwest River Forecast Center

    For the past four years, Kyle Comanor has managed water flows at dams near and within the greater Seattle area. In his role as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ (USACE) Seattle District’s senior water manager for western Washington, communicating with other agencies, especially those who forecast, is critical in making water management decisions that positively impact recreational water use, flood risk reduction and public safety.

  • June

    Corps of Engineers and Air Force officials pose for groundbreaking photo

    USACE, U.S. Air Force partners fortify Malmstrom national defense with ‘Gateway to Sentinel’ groundbreaking

    U.S. Air Force and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers leaders celebrated a project groundbreaking May 28, 2026 at Malmstrom Air Force Base, Montana. The project will serve as the “gateway” for future modernization efforts to the installation’s Minuteman III ICBM arsenal. The Commercial Entrance Control Facility has a simple but strategic purpose: enable easier and direct access for contractors and heavy construction machinery to Sentinel-related construction sites around the installation.
  • Biologist poses with crab.

    Beyond the desk: A week aboard a USACE dredging vessel to protect an ancient, elusive fish

    For Jacqui Bergner, a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers aquatic biologist, the rumble of a dredging vessel's engine wasn't just noise—it was the sound of her office. For one week, she called the massive hopper dredge Essayons home, working 12-hour shifts sifting through thousands of pounds of sand and mud. Her mission: to monitor for the accidental “take” of threatened green sturgeon.

  • May

    Aerial photo of a dam with 11 spillway gates, a hydropower generating unit, and a lake in front of it.

    Albeni Falls Dam: Cutting Red Tape to Rebuild Infrastructure

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' $20,395,700 contract award for the 11-gate replacement project at Albeni Falls Dam, in Oldtown, Idaho, signals a shift in how federal infrastructure projects are delivered: prioritizing efficiency and community transparency over bureaucratic hurdles, working as a regional team to efficiently deliver the design, hosting Industry Day events to incorporate input from industry experts and delivering a 'Hybrid contract,' a unique type of contract.
  • A screenshot of the Regulatory Request system homepage. The top center says, "Welcome to the Regulatory Request System" and then says "Apply Online. Learn about the Regulatory Program. Track Req

    New USACE Regulatory Request System improves permit process nationwide

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ (USACE) Seattle District Regulatory Division reviews thousands of permit applications each year. From infrastructure improvements to shoreline work, USACE regulators play an important role in protecting the nation’s aquatic resources and navigation capacity, while enabling reasonable development through fair and balanced decisions.
  • A woman standing in the Treaty Towers above Libby Dam, in Libby Montana.

    Libby Dam Volunteer Spotlight: Barbara Grant

    U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Libby Dam spotlight Volunteer Barbara Grant, as part of National Volunteer Week (April 19-25, 2026). In 2025, Libby Dam ranked No. 60 of 322 USACE-managed projects in the nation for volunteer contributions; the cadre of 28 volunteers contributed 3,741 hours of service.

  • April

    Constructed screenhouses and greenhouses.

    Building science: USACE delivers high-tech greenhouses for crop research capabilities

    In Oregon’s fertile Willamette Valley, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) is sowing the seeds of innovative crop and plant conservation with help from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). Through interagency work between ARS and USACE Seattle District, new greenhouses with climate control systems and screenhouse facilities are now complete at ARS’ National Clonal Germplasm Repository (NCGR) in Corvallis, Ore.

  • March

    Chief Joseph Dam

    Building Infrastructure: Inside the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Hydropower Mission

    Hydropower remains one of the most reliable and cost-effective energy sources in the U.S., and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) continues to lead the nation in its production. As the country’s largest operator of hydropower, USACE manages 75 facilities with a combined installed capacity of more than 20,000 megawatts (MW), generating nearly 100 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) annually, almost one-third of the nation’s total hydropower output. That energy supports approximately 10 million households each year while strengthening grid reliability and reducing dependence on fossil fuels.

  • February

    Photo of Montana State Fish, Wildlife and Parks Bear Biologist Garrett Tovey teaching a group of elementary school-aged students how to track and identify other animal signs, one of the various activity stations students rotated through during the Friends of Scotchman Peak’s 12th annual “Winter Tracks” event, Jan. 23, 2026 and Jan 29, 2026. Libby Dam, a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' operating project in Libby, Montana, hosted this year's event.

    Libby Dam engineers the next generation of conservationists during Scotchman Peak’s annual “Winter Tracks”

    U. S. Army Corps of Engineers partnered with Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness to host the 12th annual "Winter Tracks" event, providing 200 students with hands-on environmental education at Libby Dam. The program highlights the District's commitment to stewardship by demonstrating how vital infrastructure and native wildlife coexist within the Kootenai’s snowy landscape.
  • Seattle District employee Tessa Rough stans alongside Seattle District Deputy Commander Major O'Donnell in Joint Base Lewis-McChord Emergency Operations Center.

    The human switchboard: how USACE liaisons manage information during flood fight events

    Two weeks of relentless atmospheric rivers inundated western Washington in December 2025. Rivers swelled to historic levels, threatened homes, industrial areas and stressed communities in floodplains. When the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Seattle District, ramped up its emergency operations, a small, specialized group of individuals stepped into one of the most critical and least understood roles in disaster response: the liaison.

  • January

    A U.S. Army Corps of Engineers-owned barge is stacked with large woody debris, recovered by Seattle District's Motor Vessel (MV) Puget.

    Second Life: Turning Debris into Critical River and Coastal Habitats

    Since 2006, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Seattle District, and the Port of Seattle have repurposed salvaged large, woody debris to restore vital aquatic ecosystems. This collaborative effort transforms navigational hazards into fish and wildlife habitat, that support shoreline resilience. The collaboration began small ... and has grown over the years.
  • Group photo

    Rooted in strength: JBLM barracks tap into Pacific Northwest’s timber legacy for new military construction era

    U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Seattle District, JBLM Army Garrison, and 1st Special Forces Group leadership joined together to celebrate the Department of War's largest-to-date construction project using mass timber structural materials during a groundbreaking ceremony, Dec. 12, 2025. The pilot program will evaluate the use of mass timber as the primary construction material in military construction projects and its effect on environmental sustainability, infrastructure resilience, cost-effectiveness, and construction timeliness of similar projects.
  • Photo of rivers that swelled in Northwest Washington, due to recent flood events in December 2025.

    USACE Managed Record Flood Response Operations Amid Severe Weather

    A series of powerful atmospheric river events struck western Washington in early December 2025, bringing over 10 inches of rainfall in some areas, leading to catastrophic flooding, landslides and widespread infrastructure damage. Whatcom, Skagit, Snohomish and King counties, where major rivers like the Skagit, Green and White overflowed, were hardest-hit, triggering extensive evacuations. The widespread flooding, compounded by saturated soils and unusually warm Pacific moisture that further intensified the impacts of the storm series, led to a state of emergency and 24-hour operations by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Seattle District.