Business coalition challenges Oregon’s new climate program
A coalition of businesses wants a court to block Oregon’s plan to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
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Cascades, Mt. Bachelor snowpack well below average; summer water issues loom again
As rain fell at Mt. Bachelor Monday, the effects of another mild winter are looming.
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New High Desert Museum exhibit marvels at region’s dark skies, explores conservation efforts
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — The High Desert boasts some of the darkest night skies in the continental United States. But with the region’s population growth, dark skies are a natural resource being lost. Increasing light pollution emanating from developed areas threatens the health and populations of species that depend on the dark including insects, migrating birds and
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ODFW bans harvest of sea stars, boosts harvest limit of non-native European green crabs
The Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission voted Friday to change shellfish regulations to prohibit the harvest of sea stars and increase the daily bag limit for non-native European green crabs to 35, changes that take effect immediately.
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Worthy Garden Club gives $65,000 to OSU professor for research on ‘rewilding’ the West
The Worthy Garden Club announced Friday that it has granted $65,000 to Dr. Bill Ripple, Distinguished Professor of Ecology and the Director of the Trophic Cascades Program at Oregon State University, to complete urgent research in biodiversity and habitat quality across 11 Western states.
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COCC focuses on climate solutions as part of global ‘teach-in’ education event
Addressing topics of climate change and climate justice, faculty and staff at Central Oregon Community College will participate in a global education event of an estimated 1,000 colleges, universities and schools on Wednesday, March 30, with COCC’s programming taking place from 3-5:30 p.m. at the Coats Campus Center on the Bend campus.
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Warm Springs among 14 communities chosen to build cutting-edge energy storage capacity
Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., announced this week that Warm Springs, Talent and Pendleton have been selected by federal officials to participate in a cutting-edge energy storage program to increase energy resilience in the face of increasingly dangerous weather events and a changing climate.
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Oregon looks to build more public EV charging stations in Central Oregon, across state
State officials met with Bend’s transportation planners Tuesday to present them with the state’s report on electric charging infrastructure.
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OSU research finds huge forest fires don’t cause living trees to release much carbon
Research on the ground following two large wildfires in California’s Sierra Nevada mountain range showed the vast majority of carbon stored in trees before the blazes was still there after the fires.
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Deschutes County commissioners set to declare drought emergency, seek state declaration
Deschutes County commissioners will be asked next Wednesday to adopt a resolution declaring a state of emergency due to severe drought conditions and ask the governor to declare a drought emergency, much as Klamath County received this week and others will be requesting.
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Study of Hawaiian corals suggests reasons for optimism amid warming seas, ocean acidification
The longest experimental study on corals to date, a 22-month project that replicated current and future ocean conditions, suggests Hawaiian corals can remain resilient as climate change makes seawater warmer and more acidic.
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Heart of Oregon Corps’ new crew will hit the trails on Ochoco Natl. Forest, Crooked River Grassland
Heart of Oregon Corps’ AmeriCorps program announced Thursday a new, specialized conservation crew to work on trail maintenance on the Ochoco National Forest and Crooked River National Grassland.
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Oregon Wild, Sierra Club withdraw from Ochoco Forest Restoration Collaborative
Expressing frustration with its practices, two Bend-based environmental groups, Oregon Wild and the Juniper Group of the Sierra Club, announced Tuesday they have withdrawn from the Ochoco Forest Restoration Collaborative.
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OSU researchers create tool to help protect native fish from hybridizing with non-natives
Oregon State University researchers have created a tool to assess the risk of hybridization among native and non-native fish, a development that could aid natural resource managers trying to protect threatened or endangered freshwater fish species.
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Pacific Power electric mobility grants include electric mower for Bend Park and Rec District
Select nonprofits, local governments and hospitals served by Pacific Power in Oregon will receive $800,000 in grants for clean transportation projects, including the Bend Park and Recreation District for an electric mower.
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‘Old growth’ or not? Oregon Wild, Forest Service face off over logging plans near Phil’s Trail
The environmental group Oregon Wild has sounded the alarm and started a petition, claiming the Forest Service is pushing ahead with what’s become a controversial plan to log some of the last remaining old-growth trees in the popular Phil’s trail area west of Bend
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Climatologists: Drought to worsen in Oregon, Idaho this year
Climate scientists in the U.S. Pacific Northwest warned Thursday that much of Oregon and parts of Idaho can expect even tougher drought conditions this summer than in the previous two years, which already featured dwindling reservoirs, explosive wildfires and deep cuts to agricultural irrigation.
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Tiny tire particles inhibit growth of organisms in freshwater, coastal estuaries, OSU studies find
CORVALLIS, Ore. (KTVZ) – Small particles from tires inhibited the growth and caused adverse behavioral changes in organisms found in freshwater and coastal estuary ecosystems, two new Oregon State University studies found. The findings are part of a continued effort by scientists to unravel the impacts of microplastics and nanoplastics on aquatic ecosystems and aquatic
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Climate change-driven migration a focus of new IPCC report co-authored by OSU researcher
CORVALLIS, Ore. (KTVZ) – An Oregon State University researcher is a lead author of an international report released Monday that explores the impact of climate change-driven human migration.
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Spring whale watching kicks off in March; trained volunteers not on site this year
SALEM, Ore. (KTVZ) — The spring whale migration begins in March, and the best whale watching sites are open at your favorite coastal parks, although trained volunteers won’t be on site. The Spring Whale Week hosted by Oregon Parks and Recreation Department and volunteers is canceled for 2022. Although the Whale Watch Center in Depoe
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