Pacific Northwest Waterways Association
Pacific Northwest Waterways Association is a regional membership and advocacy organization supporting navigation, trade, infrastructure, energy, and economic development in the Pacific Northwest.
Last updated August 26, 2026
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Overview
Pacific Northwest Waterways Association, commonly known as PNWA, is a regional collaboration of ports, businesses, public agencies, and individuals whose interests depend on navigable waterways and related transportation infrastructure. Its work centers on the Columbia and Snake river systems and the wider Pacific Northwest, where river navigation connects inland agricultural and industrial communities with coastal ports and international trade routes. The organization was established in 1934 in Walla Walla, Washington, by the local Chamber of Commerce under the name Inland Empire Waterways Association. Herbert G. West was the principal founder and advocate. He promoted a navigable waterway extending from Astoria, Oregon, to Lewiston, Idaho, and worked to assemble both a membership base and political support among regional and national lawmakers. West also developed relationships with the United States Army Corps of Engineers, the federal agency responsible for maintaining much of the region's navigation infrastructure, and served on several public resource and planning bodies associated with the Roosevelt administration and the Northwest regional planning process. The association's early campaign focused on obtaining federal support for navigation infrastructure at Bonneville Dam. It subsequently helped advocate for congressional authorization and funding for the remaining locks and dams that created the Columbia–Snake inland navigation system. Major facilities associated with this development were completed over several decades, including Grand Coulee Dam in 1941, McNary Dam in 1953, The Dalles Dam in 1957, Ice Harbor Dam in 1961, John Day Dam in 1968, Lower Monumental Dam in 1969, Lower Granite Dam in 1975, and Little Goose Dam in 1978. In 1971, the Inland Empire Waterways Association merged with a coastal and Puget Sound ports and harbors association. The combined organization adopted the name Pacific Northwest Waterways Association, reflecting a broader regional mandate that linked inland navigation with coastal ports and maritime commerce. Its membership later expanded beyond ports to include tug and barge companies, steamship operators, grain elevator operators, agricultural producers, forest-products manufacturers, electric utilities, irrigation districts, other businesses, public agencies, and individuals. PNWA is not primarily a consumer-facing product brand. It functions as a convening, policy, and advocacy platform. Its activities address infrastructure development and maintenance, navigation reliability, environmental and public-policy questions, federal appropriations, transportation, trade, energy, and regional economic development. The association's influence comes from combining the economic and political interests of members across multiple states and industry sectors. Publicly available reference material identifies its continuing regional advocacy role but does not provide sufficient information here about its current officers, budget, membership totals, or formal program portfolio.
History
PNWA began in 1934 as the Inland Empire Waterways Association, established by the Walla Walla Chamber of Commerce in Washington. Herbert G. West led the founding effort and advanced a plan to improve navigation along the Columbia and Snake Rivers between Astoria and Lewiston. The association's initial purpose was to build a durable coalition of inland communities, commercial interests, and public officials capable of securing federal investment in river transportation. Its first major initiative was a petition to President Franklin D. Roosevelt and the United States Congress seeking funding for a navigation lock at Bonneville Dam. The organization then supported the congressional authorization and financing required to complete additional locks and dams in the Columbia–Snake system. The infrastructure program unfolded over much of the twentieth century. Key completion dates included Grand Coulee Dam in 1941, McNary Dam in 1953, The Dalles Dam in 1957, Ice Harbor Dam in 1961, John Day Dam in 1968, Lower Monumental Dam in 1969, Lower Granite Dam in 1975, and Little Goose Dam in 1978. West also cultivated institutional relationships with the United States Army Corps of Engineers, the federal body responsible for navigation maintenance, and participated in wider public resource and regional planning work. These relationships helped connect the association's local and commercial goals with national water-resource policy. A major organizational change occurred in 1971, when the Inland Empire Waterways Association merged with an association representing coastal and Puget Sound ports and harbors. The resulting organization became the Pacific Northwest Waterways Association, giving it a more comprehensive geographic and policy identity. Rather than representing only inland river interests, PNWA could speak for the connected system of inland waterways, coastal ports, maritime operators, and related industries. Over time, membership broadened to include public ports, tug and barge companies, steamship operators, grain elevator operators, agricultural producers, forest-products manufacturers, electric utilities, irrigation districts, public agencies, and individuals in Alaska, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Northern California. Its continuing role is regional advocacy on navigation, transportation infrastructure, trade, energy, environmental issues, public policy, and federal appropriations. The supplied reference material does not establish a complete chronology of later leadership, campaigns, financial activity, or organizational restructuring.
- 1978
Completion of Little Goose Dam
[1]Little Goose Dam was completed, marking the final dated dam-construction milestone identified in the supplied reference.
- 1975
Completion of Lower Granite Dam
[1]Lower Granite Dam was completed on the lower Snake River.
- 1971
Merger and renaming as PNWA
[1]The Inland Empire Waterways Association merged with a coastal and Puget Sound ports and harbors association and adopted the PNWA name.
- 1969
Completion of Lower Monumental Dam
[1]Lower Monumental Dam was completed on the Snake River.
- 1968
Completion of John Day Dam
[1]John Day Dam was completed as part of the expanding navigable river system.
- 1961
Completion of Ice Harbor Dam
[1]Ice Harbor Dam was completed on the lower Snake River system.
- 1957
Completion of The Dalles Dam
[1]The Dalles Dam was completed as the federal river-infrastructure program progressed.
- 1953
Completion of McNary Dam
[1]McNary Dam was completed during the development of the Columbia–Snake navigation system.
- 1941
Completion of Grand Coulee Dam
[1]Grand Coulee Dam was completed as part of the wider regional water and infrastructure system supported by the association's navigation advocacy.
- 1934
Founding as Inland Empire Waterways Association
[1]The Walla Walla Chamber of Commerce established the Inland Empire Waterways Association to promote navigation on the Columbia and Snake Rivers.
Products and positioning
A regional waterways and infrastructure advocacy association that unites public and private stakeholders behind navigation, trade, transportation, energy, and economic-development priorities.
Marketing campaigns
- 1934Columbia–Snake navigation development
Washington · Oregon · Idaho
PNWA's predecessor organized regional and federal advocacy for a navigable waterway from Astoria to Lewiston, beginning with the campaign for navigation facilities at Bonneville Dam and continuing through support for the broader lock-and-dam system.
Outcome. The campaign contributed to congressional authorization and funding for the remaining locks and dams in the Columbia–Snake navigation system.
Sources1 sources
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