Breese-Iverson, colleague vote against cap and trade bill
Rep. Vikki Breese-Iverson, R-Prineville, and GOP colleague voted no Wednesday as a House subcommittee in a party-line vote advanced the controversial cap and trade proposal.
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Helt only Oregon House GOP member to appear for night session
Most Republican lawmakers refused to attend a Tuesday night session of the Oregon House of Representatives amid a slowdown over anger at a sweeping bill on climate change. But Bend Rep. Cheri Helt did attend.
Continue ReadingBuehler blasts Brown’s ‘radical’ call to breach 4 Snake River dams
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown says she is in favor of removing four hydroelectric dams on the Snake River in Washington state, a position blasted as “radical” Saturday by former state representative and congressional candidate Knute Buehler of Bend.
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‘Take Care Out There’: New state campaign urges responsible recreation
The Oregon Outdoor Recreation Network on Friday launched a new campaign, “Take Care Out There,” to encourage responsible outdoor recreation by Oregonians and visitors.
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Merkley, Wyden want to take Oregon’s Bottle Bill national
Sens. Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden, D-Ore., announced Wednesday the introduction of a pair of bills that offer multiple pathways to tackling America’s growing plastic pollution crisis, including a national version of Oregon’s groundbreaking “bottle bill.”
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Oregon timber companies, environmentalists sign ‘historic’ pact
Environmental groups and timber companies in Oregon, which have clashed for decades, on Monday unveiled a road map for overhauling forest practice regulations, a step which Gov. Kate Brown called “historic.”
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BPRD may close some user-created river access spots
The Bend Park and Recreation District said Monday it is planning for recreational access and riparian habitat restoration at parks along the Deschutes River, focusing in part on dozens of unofficial access spots that could be closed or consolidated.
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Wyden: More than 15,000 nominations for wild, scenic rivers
Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., announced Monday he has received more than 15,000 nominations for more than 4,000 miles of rivers and streams in Oregon that enthusiasts believe deserve to be added to the national Wild and Scenic Rivers designation list.
Continue Reading Salem hearing on climate bill draws big crowd
So many people flocked to the Oregon Capitol to testify Saturday at a public hearing on a climate change bill that the allotted time for each to speak was reduced to 90 seconds.
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Large trucker convoy rolls into Salem for cap-and-trade protest rally
Hundreds of protesters, backed by a large convoy of empathetic truckers, converged at the Oregon Capitol Thursday morning to stage a rally and protest a “cap and trade” climate change bill proposed by Democrats.
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USFS drops proposed C.O. wilderness permit fees
Citing a too-tight timeline, a plan to impose fees as part of a limited entry system for some heavily used wilderness areas in the Oregon Cascades has been delayed until next year, a Forest Service official said. The limited entry system is still set to go into effect this summer.
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Oregon whale license plate sales raise $300K for OSU research
Nearly 10,000 Oregonians have purchased gray whale license plates since they went on sale a year ago, providing critical support for Oregon State University researchers studying gray whales that frequent Oregon’s waters.
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Scientists: Photos of ‘king tides’ globally show risks of climate change
Amateur scientists worldwide are documenting what will happen to Earth as climate change melts the polar ice caps and sea levels rise.
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Some Oregon ag voices back ‘cap and invest’ bill
With tensions high in Salem as lawmakers begin work on a cap-and-invest bill, one organization is reminding legislators that voices in agriculture are not a monolith on this issue.
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C.O. truckers convoy set to protest new cap and trade bill
A convoy of truck drivers, farmers and others from Central Oregon opposed to the revised, still-controversial “cap and trade” climate change legislation are heading back to the state Capitol early Thursday to join a major statewide protest rally.
Continue Reading Environmental debate likely to dominate Oregon Legislature
The Oregon Legislature convened its 2020 session Monday, with majority Democrats saying their top priority is legislation aimed at stemming global warming.
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New Oregon data, map show areas at high risk for radon
New Oregon radon data show that many regions of the state are at moderate risk of having high radon levels.
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Oregon DEQ fines La Pine councilor Shields $18K for illegal disposal site
La Pine City Councilor Mike Shields has appealed an $18,000 fine by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality for having an unpermitted solid waste disposal site at his Russell Road property, where wood waste burned for several months last year.
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Energy co. withdraws permit application for Oregon pipeline
SALEM, Ore. (AP) — A Canadian energy company has withdrawn its application for a permit from state authorities in Oregon for a controversial natural gas pipeline and an export terminal on the coast. A spokesman for the Jordan Cove Project indicated the firm is not dropping the plan, and instead is awaiting possible federal approval.
Continue ReadingWalden praises EPA’s new waterways definition
Rep. Greg Walden, R-Ore., on Thursday applauded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for its new definition of “Waters of the United States.”
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