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Oregon on tap for billions of dollars for roads, transportation, disasters
Two landmark spending packages from Congress and the Biden administration are set to deliver billions of dollars for roads, public transportation, disaster preparedness and more to Oregon. That funding will pay for a long list of infrastructure and clean energy projects, from shoring up aging highway bridges to building new solar and wind power plants […]
OSU professor to head $1.4 million study of climate, fish and conflict
Climate change is forcing fish to move to cooler waters to survive, which means big changes for Oregon’s coastal communities and for international politics. A team led by Oregon State University professor James Watson just won a $1.4 million grant from the U.S. Department of Defense to study the migrations to map out what they […]
Malheur County gold mine moves closer to approval
A proposed gold mine in Malheur County moved closer to breaking ground at a public meeting on Thursday with state and federal regulatory agencies. The Grassy Mountain mine, located about 20 miles south of Vale in eastern Oregon, would be the first chemical-process gold mine in the state. Gold in sites like Grassy Mountain is […]
Advocates urge more funding for Oregon fish and wildlife programs
In her proposed budget to the Legislature, Gov. Tina Kotek called for nearly $500 million in funding for the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. That sum would mark a 2.5% increase in the department’s budget – but it falls short of the more than $550 million the department requested. Without that extra money, advocates […]
Oregon could tighten climate regulations for data centers, cryptocurrency farms
Lawmakers are trying to close a loophole for data centers and force some of Oregon’s biggest carbon emitters to move to cleaner sources of power. House Bill 2816, scheduled for a committee vote on March 27, would require every carbon emitter to follow the same rules as major utilities. A 2021 law set ambitious timelines […]
Senate proposal stirs up a longtime controversy over canola in the Willamette Valley
The Oregon Legislature is addressing a 30-year controversy over a ban on Willamette Valley canola farming. On Wednesday, farmers and advocates argued for and against Senate Bill 789 during a public hearing of the state Senate Natural Resources Committee. The proposal would make permanent a near-complete ban on canola farms in the valley. Both sides […]
Advocates urge Biden to protect beavers, Oregon’s state animal
A group of scientists, nonprofit organizations and advocates from Oregon and around the country have asked President Joe Biden to issue an executive order protecting beavers on federal public lands. Their letter was sent to the White House on Monday, signed by over 200 scientists, wildlife experts and activists. It says beavers are important for […]