The Willamette Falls on August 6, 2018. Photo: Chas Hundley The Oregon House of Representatives passed a bill with a 54-3 vote creating the Willamette Falls Locks Authority, a public corporation establishing ownership, management, and oversight so the waterfall’s locks could someday reopen for the first time since 2011. House[Read More…]
Environment
Grant funding sought to resume Balm Grove Dam removal project
The Balm Grove Dam on May 1, 2019. Photo: Chas Hundley The stalled Balm Grove Dam removal project may see movement again after the Tualatin River Watershed Council submitted an application in late April for a grant to partially fund the removal of the decades-old structure in Gales Creek and[Read More…]
After 2020 wildfires, seedling challenges remain
Burned trees at the Powerline Fire near Hagg Lake. Photo: FGF&R The Oregon Department of Forestry says demand is unprecedented for forest tree seedlings following the 2020 Oregon wildfires, creating difficulties for reforestation with as many as 140 million seedlings needed to replace what the fires consumed. Kyle Abraham, chief[Read More…]
Legislature looking to the future of fueling vehicles
The Oregon Capitol building in Salem. Photo: Chas Hundley A bill that appears to be fast-tracked by a recommendation from the Senate Committee on Energy and Environment would allow public utilities such to charge consumers for the cost of supplying new electric vehicle charging stations with power and allow public[Read More…]
ODF urges landowners to prevent beetle infestation in storm-downed Douglas Fir
ODF offices in Forest Grove. Photo: Chas Hundley The Oregon Department of Forestry says the 2021 ice storm, which brought down many large-diameter Douglas-firs across the state created the potential for an outbreak of the native Douglas-fir beetle. Christine Buhl, a Department of Forestry entomologist, said tree stands with pre-existing[Read More…]
Letter to the Editor: In response to Oregon Hunters Association migratory habitat letter
Don Backman is a resident of Bay City. I read with interest the article which you published (“Letter to the Editor: Oregon Hunters Association, Nov. 11″) from Jim Akenson, Senior Conservation Director, Oregon Hunters Association, and Lori McKinnon, President, Coastal Farm & Ranch. They raise a very important point. While[Read More…]
Letter to the Editor: Oregon Hunters Association
Jim Akenson, Senior Conservation Director, OHA, and Lori McKinnon, President, Coastal Farm & Ranch Oregon Hunters Association (OHA), a group of conservation-minded sportsmen, urges Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) to develop and implement a policy to enhance and conserve migratory habitat for big game, and all wildlife that[Read More…]
Stagnant air expected through Monday, NWS says
Smoke hovers above Gales Peak on Wednesday, September 9, 2020. Photo: Chas Hundley Stagnant air — a soup of haze, smoke and fog — is settling in for the weekend and beyond as a strong inversion traps pollutants in the air, with the potential to cause breathing issues for those[Read More…]
Tualatin Soil and Water Conservation District election features three-way race
Gales Creek, as seen from Roderick Road. Photo: Chas Hundley The 2020 election season is like no other in recent memory, or arguably in living memory, at all levels of contest — federal, state, and local. This election season is ripe with intriguing contests for contested seats in the Oregon[Read More…]
Balm Grove dam removal project stalls in Gales Creek
The Balm Grove Dam. Photo: Chas Hundley BALM GROVE – A project to remove a near century-old dam spanning Gales Creek at Balm Grove is on hold after funding for the project never materialized. The Balm Grove dam removal project was once envisioned as a way to mitigate negative impacts[Read More…]
