Our Organic Northwest

Cool Spring Impacts Northwest Farmers

ELTOPIA, Wash. – Across the Northwest farmers markets are starting up for the season. But produce pickings have been Spartan. Farmers say a cool spring has delayed growth and even killed some crops. [Correspondent Anna King reports from a farm in Eltopia [ell-TOE-pia] in southcentral Washington.]

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USDA Visits Eugene for Farm to School Programs

Eugene, Ore.- Representatives from the US Department of Agriculture will visit two Eugene, Oregon school districts next week. Bethel and 4J were chosen along with a dozen other districts across the nation as models for their farm to school programs. [KLCC's Rachael McDonald reports.]

Oregon Ranchers On Edge After Wolf Kills Calf

(Photo of wolf collared  in Oregon from Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife) 

Oregon ranchers are keeping a close eye on their herds. They learned this week that a wolf killed a cow calf in the northeastern corner of the state. It's the first wolf attack on livestock in that area. [Inland Northwest Correspondent Doug Nadvornick says] Ranchers fear it won't be the last.

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God in the Garden from Edible Idaho

BOISE - Religions frequently struggle to find a balance between the spiritual and material world. To some people Heaven and Earth often seem at odds. Today, though, many faith-based organizations are finding that balance...in the garden. In this installment of Edible Idaho, correspondent Guy Hand looks at Northwest churches that believe good soil can nurture the human soul. [5:20 to soc out; ambient sound to 6:35; fade at will]

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Sick Workers Say They Hope Others Will Be Saved From Beryllium Disease

RICHLAND, Wash. – An investigative branch of the U.S. Department of Energy told a group of citizen advisors [today] Tuesday that it's launching an inspection into beryllium [BER-ill-ee-um] exposure at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation. It's a metal that can be inhaled into people's lungs. One of the people in the audience in Richland was Tom Peterson. He got sick in 1993 from beryllium. Now, Peterson wears an oxygen tank where ever he goes. He says he's skeptical of the federal investigation but hopes it could lead to help for his friends.

At REI is 'Carbon Neutral' a Smokescreen?

 
(REI Headquarters in Kent)

What do Nike, R-E-I, the Vancouver Olympics, and the Washington State government have in common?  They've all promised to eliminate their impact on the climate by going 'carbon-neutral'.
R-E-I aims to have zero output of greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide by the year 2020.  But since REI set the zero-impact goal, its emissions have been heading rapidly in the opposite direction.  KUOW's John Ryan reports.

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Nation’s Nuclear Future To Be Decided By Commission

RICHLAND, Wash. – U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu named a blue ribbon panel [today] Friday to find a final resting spot for the nation's nuclear waste and spent fuel. It has just two years to come up with an alternative to Nevada's Yucca Mountain. As Richland Correspondent Anna King reports, the commission's findings have big implications for how the Hanford Nuclear Reservation deals with its high-level radioactive sludge.

WA Outlaws Cigarette Company

OLYMPIA,Wash. -- Wrangler cigars, Bronco cigarettes and other products by the firm General Tobacco, will be prohibited in Washington state beginning in February. The company owes the state millions in late payments.

In 1998, Washington signed on to a national tobacco settlement agreement. One of the outcomes: tobacco companies compensate states for money spent on patients with tobacco-related illnesses.

Washington state attorney, David Hankins says General Tobacco hasn't paid up since July of 2009.

David Hankins: “They're probably out for good because to get us to this step is a pretty draconian step because you know they can no longer sell their product so for a business that's the death knell.”

Washington is one of 17 states to outlaw General Tobacco Products. The company owes a total of $285 million dollars to states through the Master Tobacco Settlement, including $7 million to Washington state.

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Copyright 2010 Northwest News Network

Food Scientist Dr. Stephanie Clark on Dairy Processing

(Dr. Stephanie Clark) 

Intro:

Recently, Northwest Public Radio aired a profile about a family dairy as part of a series on the Northwest economy.  It resulted in a flurry of comments from representatives of the dairy industry, and it spurred questions about the practices of pasteurization and homogenization. Mary Hawkins took the opportunity to speak with leading dairy expert, Stephanie Clark.  Formerly with Washington State University, Dr. Clark is now an associate professor at Iowa State University, specializing in food science with a focus on dairy foods. She shared her views on common perceptions and misperceptions about the dairy industry and the processing of milk.

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Cold Weather Good for Some Wineries

BENTON CITY, WA – This week’s low temperatures can be risky for wine grape growers but for some vinters the weather is appreciated. Scott Williams figures he lost about 15 tons of grapes to wind and birds while he was waiting on the cold. It has to get pretty darn frigid to bring in his crop for ice wine – at least into the low teens.

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Wheat Growers Plan Ahead for Columbia Closure

Northwest wheat growers opened their annual meeting today facing a tough economic market. But at the Oregon-Idaho Grains Conference, the real worry is about a year from now when the Columbia locks system will close for maintenance.

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