Our Northwest Water

Underwater Loggers Sunk By Law Enforcement

 

KELSO, Wash. – During timber's heyday, it was common to see tugboats pulling huge rafts of logs to area mills. In the process, many valuable old-growth trees sank to the bottom of Northwest rivers and lakes. That's given rise to different breed of logger. A few enterprising souls have sought to take advantage of the underwater hidden forest. But Washington State has moved decisively to shut down underwater timber salvage operations. That's effectively sunk the business in Oregon too. 

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Salmon Migration Study Back On Track

Scientists hope to gain new information about salmon migration patterns now that an in-depth study is back on track. Researchers at Oregon State University had to put their efforts on hold for the past two years. That's because most salmon fishing was restricted along the west coast. The goal of the research is to more accurately pinpoint where salmon from specific rivers spend their time in the ocean. OSU marine researcher Gil Sylvia says that could eventually mean fewer wide scale shutdowns of the salmon industry to protect endangered fish.

Gil Sylvia: “The tendency right now is just to close large areas of the ocean. And that then froze the entire fleet off the water. So our goal here is to keep these guys on the water fishing but at the same time, protect and conserve weak stocks.”

Fishing crews off the coasts of Oregon, California and Washington are collecting tissue samples of the chinook salmon they catch. Sylvia says those samples allow researchers to determine within 90 percent accuracy which river the salmon came from.

On the Web:

Fish tracking website:
http://www.pacificfishtrax.org/

Salmon Migration Study Back On Track

Scientists hope to gain new information about salmon migration patterns now that an in-depth study is back on track. Researchers at Oregon State University had to put their efforts on hold for the past two years. That's because most salmon fishing was restricted along the west coast. The goal of the research is to more accurately pinpoint where salmon from specific rivers spend their time in the ocean. OSU marine researcher Gil Sylvia says that could eventually mean fewer wide scale shutdowns of the salmon industry to protect endangered fish.

Gil Sylvia: “The tendency right now is just to close large areas of the ocean. And that then froze the entire fleet off the water. So our goal here is to keep these guys on the water fishing but at the same time, protect and conserve weak stocks.”

Fishing crews off the coasts of Oregon, California and Washington are collecting tissue samples of the chinook salmon they catch. Sylvia says those samples allow researchers to determine within 90 percent accuracy which river the salmon came from.

On the Web:

Fish tracking website:
http://www.pacificfishtrax.org/

April Storms Offer Little Relief For Hydro Operators, Irrigators

The Northwest Power and Conservation Council had analysts update them on the latest spring runoff forecast and its implications for power supply. River operations manager Jim Ruff told the panel the current snowpack for the entire Columbia Basin above The Dalles Dam stands at 73% of average.

041410TB_Runoff

Milestone Toward Elwha Dam Removal

 

Photo of Elwha Dam By Tom Banse

 The National Park Service, community leaders, and a Northwest Washington Indian tribe marked a major milestone [today]Friday toward removing two dams on the Elwha River. They're on the north Olympic Peninsula.

Elwha Dam

Franklin County Feedlot Given Go Ahead By Court

RICHLAND, Wash. – A massive feedlot north of Pasco, Washington can draw as much water as it needs from a deep well according to a decision by a Franklin County Superior judge [today] Friday. Dryland wheat farmers who have been fighting the 35-thousand cow feedlot were stunned and worried after the ruling.

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Court To Settle Water Fight Between Dryland Wheat Farmers And Cattle Feedlot

Small farmers in Eastern Washington are going to court against an industrial feedlot with 30,000 cows. The source of the conflict is water. The two sides will argue the case [tomorrow] Friday in Franklin County Superior Court. As Correspondent Anna King reports, the case could change how wells are granted in Washington State.

Scott Collin is a dryland wheat rancher north of Pasco, Washington. His farm is near Easterday Ranches, which is currently building a feedlot operation. Collin is worried that it's so big it will suck his well dry. Collin says his wheat ranch usually only gets about 7 to 9 inches of rain a year, so he's worried that the underground aquifer doesn't replenish quickly.

Scott Collin: “Our concern is that just in a real casual estimate, Easterdays will use in one year what 20 of us farmers out there will use in 200 years.”

The case goes before the Franklin County Superior Court. Several Native American tribes from Washington State and the environmental group Earth Justice are on the same side of the case as the dryland farmers. On the other side are cattle ranchers and dairies who worry the case could lead to limitations in their access to water.

[I'm Anna King in Richland.]

Copyright 2010 Northwest Public Radio

Ocean Shippers Face Tighter Air Pollution Rules

Air pollution from oceangoing ships will be dramatically reduced under new rules agreed to by shipping companies, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and international regulators. The pollution rules affect container ships, cruise lines and oil tankers calling on West Coast ports.

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Extreme Kayakers Tour Northwest For Movie Premier

One of tallest and most spectacular waterfalls in the Northwest is Palouse Falls near Pullman, Washington. Last spring a extreme paddler went over the nearly 200-foot drop in a kayak. Now, you can see that wild and risky ride in a new documentary.

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New Water Project To Help Odessa Farmers

Water managers near the Moses Lake area are excited about a new project to get water to growers in a region where groundwater has been disappearing at an incredible rate.


The Columbia Basin Irrigation Project began back when Grand Coulee dam was built and allowed farmers to grow crops in the dry desert areas of Eastern Washington. The project was designed to be built gradually, and take as long as 70 years to be completed. One region that was supposed to eventually be served by the project was east of Moses Lake.

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Regional Landfill To Convert Garbage To Mileage

Starting next year, some of the trash you toss out may end up in gas tanks instead of buried at a large regional landfill in eastern Oregon. Correspondent Tom Banse explains.

This project is a joint venture between landfill operator Waste Management Inc. and a small engineering company based in Bend called InEnTec. The partners announced they'll build their first waste-to-energy plant at the big landfill near Arlington, Oregon. The planned facility will vaporize trash in a very high temperature melter. Spokeswoman Jackie Lang says the resulting superheated gases can then be recombined to make synthetic fuel.

Lang: “We are really excited about the option of producing clean transportation fuels. Could be diesel. Could be ethanol, methanol. We're not focusing right now on that end product as much as we're focusing on the installation of the plant itself.”

Lang says electricity generation by burning the fuel is another option. Construction is set to begin this summer. If all goes well, the waste-to-energy plant could start up at the end of the year. I'm Tom Banse reporting.

Copyright 2010 Northwest News Network

Web extras:

S4 Energy Solutions (joint venture between Waste Management and Bend-based InEnTec):
www.S4energysolutions.com