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Don't celebrate yet on Columbia River's salmon runs
Oregonian
02/07/2010
Record numbers of coho have returned to the Columbia River in recent years, and this year forecasters predict the same for spring chinook. But it's not time to pop the champagne corks and declare victory in the nation's most expensive wildlife restoration venture.
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Blind to bats' plight?
Yakima Herald-Republic
02/05/2010
At Boulder Cave, curiosity has all but killed the bat. In the cave chambers once used for winter hibernation by more than 2,000 bats, there are now mere dozens.
And with a deadly fungus wiping out entire bat populations in the eastern United States, the idea of the Pacific Northwest's bats dying off and leaving a gaping void in the ecosystem has become a very real possibility.
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Light-rail 'vision' elevated track would run along I-405
Seattle Times
02/08/2010
Rookie Bellevue City Councilman Kevin Wallace is proposing an elevated light-rail track along Interstate 405 rather than a tunnel or surface track into downtown Bellevue.
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Work begins on two of Kitsap County's stimulus projects
Kitsap Sun
02/05/2010
Two of the largest economic-stimulus projects in Kitsap County moved into the construction phase on Friday.
They are the $7.5-million sewer project to serve the community of Gorst and the $6-million water-treatment plant to serve Bremerton water customers.
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Columbia River spill a sign that better regulation needed
Oregonian
02/05/2010
Earlier this week, globs of black, powdery pollution spread across the Columbia River near Longview.
The mile-long spill, first spotted Tuesday morning, turned out to be floating petroleum coke, an estimated 25-pounds worth, according to the US Coast Guard.
While the relatively small dump of industrial material likely didn't directly harm fish or wildlife, it's probable source is a company that has a long record of running afoul of rules protecting clean air and water.
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Maria Cantwell and the politics of global warming
The Economist
02/08/2010
On January 28th, America formally pledged to the UN that it would reduce its greenhouse-gas emissions by 17% (from what they were in 2005) by 2020. But there was a planet-sized catch. Meeting the target will depend on getting a climate bill through Congress, and that will be horribly hard.
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Urban farmers fight to sow green biz
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
02/05/2010
Urban farmers are challenging city halls across the US to rewrite ordinances that govern residential gardens. They believe feeding their fellow urbanites homegrown tomatoes, fresh eggs, and sweet corn will change the world one backyard at a time.
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Protection list not place for pikas
Seattle Times
02/04/2010
Pikas, the iconic squeakers of the high country, will not be listed for protection as a threatened or endangered species, the US Fish and Wildlife Service decided after a yearlong population-status review.
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Fuel-efficient cars squeeze Washington gas tax
Seattle Times
02/04/2010
To the list of woes facing a cash-strapped state government, now add fuel efficiency. Washington's gas tax pays for state highways and many county road projects as well. Here's the problem: Motorists require much less gas than they used to.
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Bus riders rail against transit cuts
Everett Herald
02/04/2010
Joe Meyer struggled to regain his independence after a motorcycle accident five years ago. Paralyzed from the chest down, Meyer found some relief on the bus. Budget-saving cuts to Snohomish County's Community Transit would change that to some degree.
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Why can't I protect my baby from toxics?
Seattle Post Globe
02/05/2010
Molly Gray, a mom from Seattle, testified before a US Senate subcommittee in a hearing to examine the current science on public exposures to toxic chemicals. While pregnant, Gray participated in a study that measured troubling levels of toxics in her body.
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Views: People returning to the cities
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
02/05/2010
Desolate inner cities, surrounded by burgeoning suburban growth, were a feature of late 20th Century America. US housing leaders sees a reversal in that trend, says columnist Joel Connelly. People are beginning to vote with their feet and come back to the central cities.
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Oregon business wary of BPA ban in baby bottles
Oregonian
02/04/2010
The Oregon Legislature is looking to follow in the footsteps of Walmart and other retailers who are backing away from baby bottles and sippy cups with the potential endocrine-disrupting chemical bisphenol A.
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Views: 'Youth magnets' belong in the urban conversation
Seattle Times
02/04/2010
Conversations that pit "elite" cities like Boston against "boom" cities like Houston leave out the "youth magnets," the liberal cities that draw armies of educated young people by virtue -- not in spite -- of their protected environments and urban cool. We speak of places like Seattle and Portland.
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Plan would put wood waste to work
Olympian
02/05/2010
An energy company hopes to break ground by late this year on a power plant in the town of Shelton, near Olympia, that would convert wood waste from logging operations into electricity. The company needs 600,000 tons of wood debris yearly to fuel its $250 million biomass plant.
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Obama budget partially restores salmon fund
KPLU
02/05/2010
West coast fishermen are relieved the Obama administration's budget proposal for next year would restore some money for salmon recovery. On its way out the door, the Bush administration cut that fund from $120 million to zero.
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Sound getting sicker; Obama cuts budget to heal it
Seattle Post Globe
02/04/2010
There's a slippage in the health of Puget Sound, a waterway that sustains orcas, salmon, and people, according to the first report by the Puget Sound Partnership. Meanwhile, President Obama's proposed budget slashes money for cleaning it from $50 million to just $20 million.
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Gregoire gives green light to wind farm
Yakima Herald-Republic
02/03/2010
Gov. Chris Gregoire has approved the Desert Claim wind project in Kittitas County, eight miles north of Ellensburg. Desert Claim, which becomes the fourth wind farm approved in the county, will have a capacity of 95 turbines across 5,200 acres.
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Bill Gates digs deep for geoengineering
New Scientist
02/03/2010
Bill Gates has committed $4.5 million of his own money to funding a number of climate scientists interested in geoengineering.
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"State of the Sound" report falls short of expectations
Kitsap Sun
02/03/2010
The first "State of the Sound" report issued by the Puget Sound Partnership was announced with practically no fanfare. The report, which concluded that Puget Sound was improving in some areas and declining in others, was criticized by advocates as failing to truly assess the health of the Sound.
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Wash. gov says nuclear energy must be considered
Seattle Times
02/03/2010
Gov. Chris Gregoire is applauding President Barack Obama's recent push for nuclear power -- a stance that could cause political headaches in her state. Gregoire met with Obama and 10 other governors Wednesday to talk abut energy.
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Would new 520 plan kill carpooling on the bridge?
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
02/04/2010
Part of a new 520 bridge should be dedicated exclusively to buses and light-rail trains from the get-go and the size of the span should be cut back, transit advocates say.
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Oregon envy: Can a Seattleite wish for more green?
Crosscut
02/03/2010
Much as I hate to admit it, Portland and Oregonians come closer to the Northwest ideal than we do.
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Green retrofits for Seattle's distressed homes
KUOW
02/02/2010
It's not so easy to make money in real estate these days. Seattle home prices are down more than 20 percent from their peak in 2007, and they continued to decline in 2009. But one group of investors thinks they can make money even in this market. Their plan is to buy up distressed properties and make them certifiably green.
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WWU audits its waste
Bellingham Herald
02/03/2010
How much of what ends up in waste bins at Western Washington University's dorms is actually garbage?
That's what some environmentally minded students are trying to answer.
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