Federal land management agencies need to fix as many as 5,500 culverts in Oregon and Washington to enhance passage of endangered fish and comply with the Endangered Species Act, Rep. Norm Dicks (D-Belfair) said recently.

“You’ve got culverts that are blocking them from going up and down rivers, “Dicks said after an Appropriations subcommittee hearing. “I would argue that is a violation. It certainly is, as we say in the law, a crime of omission.”

Last year, the General Accounting Office reported that the cost of fixing culverts in the two Northwest states could total as much as $375 million. GAO officials said that the estimate was provided by the U.S. Forest Service.

In an interview, Dicks said he hoped to earmark $25 million to $30 million this year to begin work, citing culvert improvements are a cost-effective method of restoring habitat.