Events For The Week Of Monday, February 1

TUESDAY:

Endangered Plants Meeting

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service wants to designate thousands of acres in Jackson and Josephine counties as critical habitat for two rare plants only found in Southwest Oregon. The large-flowered woolly meadowfoam and Cook’s lomatium, also called Cook’s desert parsley, grow primarily in seasonal pools and wet meadows. FWS is proposing to designate 4,521 acres in Josephine County and 6,517 acres in Jackson County as critical habitat for the plants. An information session and public hearing is being held Tuesday night in Medford.

• 3:30pm – 5pm, information session
• 5:30pm – 7:30pm, public hearing
• Medford Library, Conference Room, 205 South Central Avenue, Medford

Bull Trout. Photo from U.S. Fish and Wildlife.

Bull Trout Critical Habitat

Fish and Wildlife also plans a major expansion of critical habitat for the bull trout across five western states, including Oregon. The proposal would increase critical habitat in streams by nearly 600% and in lakes by nearly 400%.

In Oregon, FWS is calling for a total of 3,100 stream miles and 29,139 acres of lakes or reservoirs to be designated critical habitat.

A series of public meetings and hearings across the region begins Tuesday night in Bend. Here’s the schedule for this week.

Tuesday
5:30pm – 7:30pm
Hollingshead Barn, 1235 NE Jones Road, Bend

Wednesday
6pm – 8pm
Chiloquin Community Center, 140 S.1st Street, Chiloquin

Thursday
5:30pm – 7:30pm
Blue Mountain Conference Center, 404 12th Street, La Grande

See: Feds Want To Expand Critical Habitat For Threatened Bull Trout

WEDNESDAY:

Columbia River Jetty Repair

The Army Corps of Engineers will discuss plans to repair the jetties at the mouth of the Columbia River. The Corps says the work is needed to prevent the jetties from eroding so badly that they won’t be able to protect the river channel. The public meeting will be held in Astoria.

• 5:30pm – 7pm
• Columbia River Maritime Museum, 1792 Marine Dr., Astoria

THURSDAY:

Central Oregon Contaminated Water

Oregon DEQ takes a stab at trying to resolve a long running conflict in Central Oregon, what to do about older septic tanks that are leaking nitrates into groundwater. A survey by the U.S. Geological Survey found unsafe levels of nitrates in the aquifer that supplies drinking water to wells in southern Deschutes County and northern Klamath County. Infants and pregnant or nursing women are especially vulnerable to increased nitrate levels. Increased nitrate in drinking water can interfere with the ability of the blood to carry oxygen throughout the body in an infant, and can lead to “blue-baby syndrome.”

Deschutes County tried to fix the problem with an ordinance requiring homeowners to fix their septic systems, and with stricter requirements for new septic systems. But the voters revolted and overturned the ordinance in a special election last March.

On Thursday, DEQ is holding a public meeting that will lay the ground work for finding another way to resolve the issue. The plan calls for creating a steering committee made up of citizens and government officials.

• 6pm
• La Pine Senior Activity Center, 16450 Victory Way, La Pine

FRIDAY:

An Evening with Franklin Burroughs

Franklin Burroughs, a writer whose essays about the natural world have captivated generations of readers, will speak at Oregon State University. He’s the author of three books and numerous personal essays on rural living and the intersections of human and natural history.

• 7:30pm
• Valley Library on the OSU campus, Corvallis