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RV park tenants face eviction from affordable housing
Oregonian
11/19/2009
A pastoral campground on the banks of the Columbia River has for decades provided about 60 low-income residents with a clean, cheap, and safe place to live in an Oregon county with a dearth of decent affordable housing. But regulators say it's operating illegally and the long-term tenants must go.
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Low-income housing reimagined
Real Change
11/19/2009
The Seattle Housing Authority unveiled a plan last week to remake Yesler Terrace's 561 units of public housing into a mixed-use area of office, housing, and retail with buildings up to 22 stories high.
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Senate to put off climate bill until spring
Wall Street Journal
11/17/2009
Senate Democratic leaders said Tuesday they would put off debate on a big climate-change bill until spring, in a sign of weakening political will to tackle a long-term environmental issue at a time of high unemployment and economic uncertainty.
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OR governor orders review of energy tax credits
Oregonian
11/17/2009
Gov. Ted Kulongoski ordered a hurry-up review Tuesday of Oregon's incentives for renewable energy companies in the face of ongoing criticism of the tax breaks, asking whether the increasingly expensive Business Energy Tax Credit is necessary for continued expansion of renewable and wind energy.
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Record number of Montanans seek food aid
Missoulian
11/17/2009
In the past year, record numbers of western Montana residents have turned to local food pantries and shelters for help. Agencies at the forefront of this unwelcome trend believe more people can't find work in this tight labor market and can't afford regular meals.
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Official: Canada climate change laws years away
CBC BC
11/17/2009
The federal environment minister says it may be a few years before Canada tables regulations to cut greenhouse gas emissions. Jim Prentice said the world has to first negotiate a new climate change treaty and Canada and the United States must finish their continental agreement on the same issue.
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Views: We need another carbon tariff
Toronto Globe and Mail
11/18/2009
A carbon tariff is an indispensable component of any economically viable carbon policy that Western economies must ultimately adopt. A carbon tariff is an indispensable component of any economically viable carbon policy that Western economies must ultimately adopt.
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Oregon's unemployed giving up looking for work
Oregonian
11/17/2009
It's tempting to present the flattening of Oregon's unemployment rate - at 11.3 percent in October - as good news. But economists, dismal scientists to the core, paint a negative picture.
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Hunger a growing problem in America
Washington Post
11/17/2009
The nation's economic crisis has catapulted the number of Americans who lack enough food to the highest level since the government has been keeping track, according to a new federal report, which shows that nearly 50 million people -- including almost one child in four -- struggled last year to get enough to eat.
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To serve (food) and protect (the soil)
Missoulian
11/15/2009
The call for local food is loud and growing. At the same time in Missoula, some of the land that produces those vegetables, that meat, is more valuable once it's been developed. Now three local forces are at work on that problem that's led to the incremental loss of agricultural lands.
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Portland project forages for urban edibles
Oregonian
11/15/2009
For many Portlanders, and increasingly others across the nation, fruit picking parties are a way to incorporate the bounty of our city into their diets. The idea behind this type of urban foraging is to use food that's all around us but often overlooked.
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WA's safety net fraying, say those on front lines
KPLU
11/15/2009
There have been recent signs the economy may be turning around. But the people who hold our social safety net together - and who help those hurt by the recession - say the painful times are here for awhile, and demand for their services is only increasing.
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Views: Political will needed for climate fix
New York Times
11/15/2009
Putting a price on carbon in the face of powerful opposing forces - from consumers who will always want their fuel, electricity, food and clothing to be cheaper than it is, to corporations driven by the bottom line - will ultimately be a matter of sheer political will.
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In downturn's wake, women hold half of US jobs
Wall Street Journal
11/11/2009
Thanks to steep layoffs and soaring unemployment among men, more women are returning to the work force.
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Oregon one of 10 states in 'greatest fiscal peril'
Oregonian
11/11/2009
A report issued this morning by the Pew Center on the States names Oregon as one of 10 US states at greatest peril of following California over a state budgetary cliff.
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Three kids, three months, one car
Portland Tribune
11/12/2009
Play-Doh works. For a while. When you're a family of five living in a car, just about anything can help to break up the monotony.
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Poll: Vancouver is Canada's most liveable city
Vancouver Sun
11/11/2009
A new poll ranked Vancouver as Canada's most liveable city, with sixty-five per cent of residents agreeing that their city is on the path toward long-term livability. But the poll did not address housing affordability or property taxes, and 69 percent of Vancouverites said transportation is a major challenge facing the region.
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Coal dust an ugly problem in scenic AK
Anchorage Daily News
11/10/2009
When the north wind blows in Seward, dust flies off a large pile of coal and covers the town's scenic boat harbor in black grit. Now three conservation groups are alleging that Alaska Railroad Corp. and Aurora Energy Services are discharging coal without a permit into Resurrection Bay - a popular destination with summer tourists.
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Building bikes and self-esteem
Yakima Herald-Republic
11/11/2009
Don't give George Villalobos a hacksaw. The 13-year-old bike mechanic-in-training might try to use it to remove a crusty tire from the rim of a road bike. He is pitching in at Lucky 7 Bikes, a volunteer-run shop in Sunnyside, WA that functions as a recycling, youth outreach and apprenticeship center and a is a product of gang prevention efforts.
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Seattle Steam gas turbine to generate jobs
Seattle Times
11/11/2009
Seattle Steam stopped producing electricity in 1925. Now it plans to start again, installing an advanced gas turbine that generates heat and power in its historic Post Street plant, one of the oldest working buildings in downtown Seattle.
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Report: Ignoring climate change will be costly
Los Angeles Times
11/11/2009
Governments must act now to ward off catastrophic climate change or face additional costs of $500 billion per year of delay, according to a new report by the International Energy Agency.
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Health care sector is a fairly green giant
Seattle Times
11/10/2009
Health care, a giant in the US economy, may be a gentle giant when it comes to greenhouse gases. According to the first estimate of the sector's carbon footprint, the health care industry emits less than its share of the gases that promote global warming, compared to its size in the economy.
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Gore pushes for renewable energy
San Francisco Chronicle
11/10/2009
Al Gore and his crusade against global warming landed in the Bay Area this week with a call to arms and a message for those who still think the former vice president is tilting at windmills.
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First microbreweries, now micro-canneries flourish
Oregon Public Broadcasting
11/10/2009
You've heard of micro-breweries. How about "micro-canneries?" They specialize in locally-caught, hand-packed albacore and salmon. A growing number of commercial fishing families are choosing to can their catch themselves.
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Views: Inaction on climate change comes at a price
BC Local News
11/10/2009
Canada's gross domestic product would continue to grow even if we adopted the stronger measures that environmental organizations are calling for rather than the weak measures the federal government has proposed. Still, many people aren't willing to make tough decisions for the sake of our collective future.
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