While no one is using the “D” word yet, officials at the state, federal and local levels are bracing for what could be the worst drought ever in the Klamath Basin.

Governor Kulongoski was in the region this morning for a meeting with area officials about what needs to be done now to prepare.

Senators Wyden and Merkley added to the urgency with a letter to federal officials warning of a “crisis of historic magnitude”, and asking the feds to take immediate action.

Read more »

In just a few months, a lone Rocky Mountain Goat has become one of the most popular celebrities in Central Oregon.

Often spotted along Hwy 20 east of Bend, the male goat was first seen last December. As far as anyone knows, he’s the only one of his kind in the area.

That’s enough for him to earn some special attention from Oregon Fish and Wildlife. Last week, ODFW captured and collared the goat so they can keep better tabs on him.

Read more »

Tomorrow, the Senate gets its first look at a compromise logging bill for Eastern Oregon.

Ideally, the bill is supposed to end years of timber wars. No more logging for the sake of logging. Instead, timber harvests happen as part of a greater effort to restore forests. Old growth trees are off limits. But Eastern Oregon lumber mills get a steady supply of smaller trees to help them stay in business.

The compromise came after 18-months of negotiations between Oregon environmental and timber groups. Senator Wyden, who helped organize the talks is sponsoring the bill and Senator Merkley has joined him.

Read more »

Klamath Water Shortages

Governor Kulongoski heads south Tuesday to Klamath Falls for a meeting about a potentially severe drought in the Klamath Basin. This year is looking a lot like 2001, when there wasn’t enough water in the system for both farmers and salmon. He’ll meet with federal, state and local officials, as well as representatives for farmers and tribes. The Governor could declare a drought emergency, which would provide financial aid to farmers who may not have enough water to irrigate their crops this year.

When: 11:15 am
Where: Klamath County Commission Hearing Room 219, 305 Main Street, Klamath Falls

Read more »

Fishing and conservation groups want the Washington Department of Ecology to loosen up some regulations and allow more water to be spilled over dams on the Columbia and Snake rivers.

If the timing is done right, spilling more water over dams helps young salmon migrate down river to the ocean. Conservationists compare it to the ride salmon used to get when they went over free flowing waterfalls. It speeds them along during a crucial phase of life, increases their survivability, and is a heckuva lot safer that being flushed through turbines.

Read more »

Starting tomorrow, the Oregon League of Conservation Voters is going to tell us which candidates its endorsing this year.

The names will be released Tuesday and Wednesday on the OLCV home page.

The endorsements cover about 20 state House and Senate races, county commission races for Clackamas, Jackson, Lane, Marion, Multnomah and Washington counties, city council races in Beaverton, Eugene and Portland, plus a race for the Portland area Metro Council.

But, we’re going to have to wait a little while longer for an endorsement in the Governor’s race. There’s a debate on environmental issues among the three top candidates for Governor on March 30th. OLCV is one of the groups sponsoring the debate and will hold off on making an endorsement until afterwards.

Read more »

Faced with a difficult decision about protecting – or not protecting – the Greater sage-grouse, Interior says it’s going to split the difference.

Secretary Ken Salazar announced Friday morning that the sage-grouse deserves to be listed by the Endangered Species Act, but that’s not going to happen anytime soon. The official label is that listing is “warranted, but precluded.”

So it becomes a candidate species. The bird’s status will be reviewed yearly. But Interior says it can’t protect every species that deserves it, and it has to set priorities. The sage-grouse falls into the bottom third of the candidate list.

Read more »

I wasn’t able to make it to the DEQ meeting on Bradwood Landing LNG in Astoria this week.

Too bad, because it sounds like it was an interesting event.

So I’ll point you to two stories about what happened. Both say the room was packed, mostly with anti-LNG people. They were supportive of DEQ’s decision not to rush the permitting process. Gary Coppedge with NorthernStar, the company developing Bradwood also spoke for about ten minutes.

Daily Astorian: Knappa LNG meeting heats up

Oregon Sierra Club: Activists Pack Hearing to Tell the DEQ: No Permit for Bradwood Landing LNG