News

Creative Solutions to Deal with Abandoned Mines
Abandoned mines release pollutants into streams and are also draining the wallets of U.S. taxpayers. This summer, the Environmental Protection Agency celebrates a few creative solutions to get new owners to clean up and redevelop old mine sites. Correspondent Tom Banse reports. More >

Singing to Northwest Cherries
Anna King has this audio postcard of singing cherry pickers from one of the largest fruit orchards in the United States. More >

Idaho’s Rural Migration Slows
New U.S. census figures show fewer people are leaving rural Idaho for the cities. More >

Washington Museums Struggle with Budget Cuts
Washington’s state-funded museums are experiencing the same budget cuts that are hitting other state agencies. Spokane’s Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture recently laid off staff. More >

Secretary of Transportation Promotes Streetcars in Portland Visit
Federal Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood visited Oregon today, to promote Portland's streetcar project as a model for new industry and transportation. More >

Day One for the University of Idaho's New President
New University of Idaho President Duane Nellis says he’ll be reaching out to the university’s key stakeholders around the state. He first day on the job was today. More >

Northwest Cities Continue To Grow Amidst Recession
The size of Northwest cities continue to grow amidst the recession, but at a modest pace. Correspondent Tom Banse reports. More >

EPA gives states OK for tougher tailpipe exhaust rules
West Coast states can forge ahead with tougher tailpipe emissions rules. The federal government has granted trendsetter California a long-awaited Okay. But the Obama Administration’s plans to increase gas mileage standards on a national basis mean West Coast states will not go it alone. More >

A Wet June Helps Idaho Fish Down the River
Most of the Northwest has had normal or drier than usual weather this spring. But some of the traditionally driest areas have experienced one of their wettest Junes in years. More >

Oregon Governor Cites Legislative Victories, Frustrations
Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski calls the just completed 2009 Legislative session one of the most challenging and rewarding of his career. More >

Stimulus Projects Planned for Northwest Coasts
Leading federal officials have announced close to 24 million dollars in coastal restoration projects. The plan is to improve habitat and provide jobs in Oregon and Washington. More >

Tax Battle Looms As Oregon Session Winds Down
The 2009 Oregon legislative session appears to be in its final hours. But even as lawmakers put the finishing touches on a rapidly dwindling list of bills, a new fight is emerging over a pair of major tax increases passed earlier this month. More >

New Park Opens At Mining Ghost Town
The Northwest’s newest state park shows off a century-old mining ghost town. The Idaho State Park is now open to the public after a ribbon cutting ceremony this weekend. More >

Oregon Lawmakers Approve Field Burning Rampdown
Oregon lawmakers narrowly gave final approval on Monday to a bill that would end most field burning in the state over the next two years. More >

Final Gavels Falls on Oregon Legislature
The final gavel has dropped. The 2009 Oregon Legislature wrapped up business at 9:45 Monday night. Lawmakers beat their self-imposed deadline to adjourn by one day. But the debate over their accomplishments is not ending. Two possible referenda on tax increases are in the works. Lawmakers plan to return to the capitol next February, perhaps to deal with the aftermath of what voters decide. Chris Lehman reports. More >

Bible Club Lawsuit Heads Back to Lower Court
A lawsuit pitting the Kent, Washington school district against a Christian student group is now heading back to a federal district court in western Washington. The U-S Supreme Court announced Monday it will not hear the suit. The case began in 2001 when two high school students in Kent asked to be officially chartered as a group called the Truth Bible Club. More >

NW Refugees Find Jobs in Oregon Dairy
Entry-level jobs have historically been a good fit for refugees. But those have been in short supply. Now, some refugees in the Northwest are finding work in an unlikely place - an industrial dairy in Boardman, Oregon. Sadie Babits reports. More >

Eyman Close to Getting Property Tax Reduction Measure on WA Ballot
Washington anti-tax activist Tim Eyman appears close to getting his 12th initiative on the ballot in as many years. This year it’s a property-tax reduction measure that voters would decide this November. Correspondent Austin Jenkins has details. More >

Oregon Lawmakers Push Toward Tuesday Adjournment
The Oregon Legislature is expected to wrap up business soon. Lawmakers met over the weekend to make sure they beat tomorrow’s self-imposed deadline to adjourn. Correspondent Chris Lehman reports. More >

Oregon Runner Galen Rupp Snags National Title In Men’s 10,000 Meter Race
Hometown favorite Galen Rupp took the national title in the men's 10,000 meter race at Hayward Field Thursday night More >

Measure 57 Delay Passes Oregon House
The Oregon House voted today to put a voter-approved criminal sentencing measure on hold. Lawmakers say it’s part of a plan to preserve other public safety programs. More >

Stimulus Pays for Idaho Summer Jobs
High unemployment rates in the Northwest have made it hard for many teenagers to find summer jobs. But this summer, at least, federal stimulus money is putting hundreds of young people in Idaho to work. More >

This Year’s Northwest Cherry Harvest Could Set Records
Cherry farmers across the Northwest are probably going to churn out a record crop this summer. That’s as long as it doesn’t rain as Richland Correspondent Anna King explains. More >

One Year Later, WA Cell Phone While Driving Ban Not Very Effective Say Troopers
Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski will soon sign into law a requirement that drivers use a hands-free device when talking on a cell phone. Meanwhile Washington state is marking the one year anniversary (July 1) of a similar, but weaker law. More >

How to Clean One Radioactive Waste Tank
President Obama’s federal stimulus package includes $2 billion to speed up the cleanup at Hanford. But getting rid of nuclear waste is incredibly complicated. Correspondent Anna King uses a series of food analogies to explain the process. More >

Oregon Senate Approves Phase-out of Field Burning
Field burning would be severely curtailed under a bill narrowly approved Thursday by the Oregon Senate. The measure would end most burning over the Willamette Valley in the next two years. More >

Oregon Investigating Springfield Mayor
The Oregon Secretary of State’s office is investigating Springfield Mayor Sid Leiken on allegations he benefited financially from campaign donations. Correspondent Rachael McDonald reports. More >

Concerns Over Economy Impact Oregon's Environmental Agenda
Environmentalists in Oregon called the 2007 legislative session a “landmark”. They’re not singing the same tune in 2009. More >

Watchdog Group Praises Hanford Managers for Improving Protections on Tank Fumes
It's not often that critics of the Hanford Nuclear Reservation have nice things to say about the Department of Energy. But the Seattle-based group Hanford Challenge issued a report today saying the federal agency has made good progress in one key area; protecting workers from chemical vapors More >

Idaho Flunks Financial Disclosure Test
Idaho has flunked a test about state financial disclosure laws for legislators. The test comes from a Washington, D.C. based group that reviews laws that require legislators to reveal their personal financial information. More >

Former WA Prison Inmate Sues Over Being Shackled While In Labor
Washington state is being sued for shackling a former prison inmate to a hospital bed while she was in labor. In a lawsuit filed today, lawyers say the shackling incident violated Department of Corrections policy and the inmate’s constitutional rights. More >

Oregon Lawmakers Override Governor
After several days of unexpected twists and turns, lawmakers finally ironed out their differences today and overturned Kulongoski’s veto of the state’s K-through-12 education budget. More >