Peggy Entzel

Employed at Cascadia
from 1986-2020

Can you think of a project or program that feels like it changed the history, or future, of Chelan County?

During a water quality project DOE and NRCS discovered the soil survey were not working for farmers as expected in Chelan Basin.  We worked with NRCS to re map the soils in the basin, which improved the way producers were able to manage their crops, water, and nutrients well into the future.  One example is all the pumice in the soils from Glacier Peak volcanic deposits made for very unique water holding capacity in different areas in the basin.  Remapping the soils helped individual farmers better conserve water, and better understand where crops should be located in the basin.

Once we finalized the Entiat plan implementation started and it set in motion 30+ years of conservation implementation.

The best part was watching how interested the landowners in the Entiat Valley were in getting the work done in the plan.  It wasn’t just to check a box, people wanted to get the work done so that the resources were improved.  People really wanted to make sure farming remined sustainable in the valley, to bring fishing and healthy salmon populations back, etc. 

Full interview HERE

Larry Cordes

Board of Supervisors member for 10 years

What was the district like when you started? Main focus of projects/programs/resource concerns, etc?

Primarily an administrator of state funded programs.  Watershed planning and fish habitat restoration work was just getting started.

What is one of the most impactful projects you remember during your time with the CD?  

The start of watershed planning.

Full Interview HERE

Kurt Hosman

District employee for 13 years, Board of Supervisors member for over 2 years

What has been one of the most impactful projects you remember during your time with the CD?

The Tyee Ranch side channel project was certainly the largest in scope.  Re-connected about 1200 feet of side channel habitat for juvenile salmon and installed several rock & LWD habitat complexity structures in the mainstem and other existing side channels.

Can you think of a story from your time at the CD you would love to tell folks?

A cautionary tale of field safety, and what NOT to do.  In my very early days at CCD, I was doing some very late-season scouting, alone, for a site to install a bank-operated cableway at the WDOE Entiat Falls gage.  I had no radio and had hiked a couple miles in, there was snow on the ground and ice in the river, and I managed to fall through the ice with both legs.  Luckily, it was shallow and my feet were on the bottom, but it still took some gymnastics to get myself free.  And needless to say, the hike back out wasn’t so pleasant.  I was fortunate, and it’s something to laugh about now, but it really illustrates the point of how easy it is for someone, especially working alone in the field, to get into trouble.

Full Interview HERE