News

GRAND COULEE DAM, Wash. -- Federal water and dam managers are draining reservoirs in the Columbia and Snake River basins to get ready for "big water" coursing downriver. In recent weeks, the Army Corps of Engineers has called for bigger drawdowns, or as the agency calls it "drafting", to protect against flooding. Supervisory engineer Peter Brooks says more room is needed to catch runoff from the bountiful snows of March.

RICHLAND, Wash. – Occupy Portland activists took to the road this weekend. About 100 protesters showed up in sunny downtown Richland Sunday afternoon. They were there to rally against nuclear power and in favor of cleaning up the Hanford Nuclear Reservation. Correspondent Anna King was there.

On a large stage Native Americans and Occupy coordinators like Mirium German voiced their concerns.

“Hanford is an environmental tragedy waiting to happen,” German said.

GOLD BEACH, Ore. -- Curry County Commissioners have rejected the state's plan to help put the county on a path to fiscal stability. From Oregon Public Broadcasting, April Baer reports the Commissioners say they can't support spending  $75,000 to pay for the committee that would work out a restructuring plan. 

ATHOL, Idaho -- Tax evasion will get you into hot water with the IRS. But in north Idaho, it won’t necessarily spell the end of your political career. A Republican state legislator who believes the federal income tax is unconstitutional is battling charges of tax evasion, even as he seeks reelection.

The federal government says Phil Hart owes more than $500,ooo in unpaid taxes, interest and penalties. The U.S. Justice Department is threatening to foreclose on his home near Athol, Idaho if he doesn’t pay up. Meanwhile, Idaho tax collectors say Hart owes the state another $53,000.

VANCOUVER, B.C. -- Canadian pipeline operators are considering expanding the line that brings oil from the Alberta Oil Sands to western British Columbia. Environmentalists and others say that raises the potential for oil spills in Northwest waters and, it involves a different type of oil.

Right now the Trans Mountain pipeline moves 300,000 barrels of oil per day to an export terminal near Vancouver, B.C. If the Canadian government approves the expansion that amount could almost triple. More oil in the pipeline means more oil loaded onto large tanker ships. Those ships will eventually head out the Strait of Juan De Fuca to the Pacific.

SPOKANE -- The state liquor board visits Spokane Monday for a hearing about the hours of alcohol sales. SPR’s Paige Browning tells us some think 2:00 am is too early to shut off the taps.

MEDFORD, Ore. -- Researchers say they have learned why invasive barred owls are thriving while native spotted owl populations are slowly disappearing.

The barred owl and the spotted owl are like a pair of siblings. They’re closely related species, and they compete over everything. They compete over the best trees to roost in. And for the best food source too, juicy flying squirrels. But barred owls are less picky. And that gives them an edge.

COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho -- A landmark settlement announced this week between the federal government and American Indian tribes is expected to have long-term effects beyond the $1 billion in the agreement. Nine Northwest tribes are part of the deal: Coeur d’Alene, Nez Perce, Shoshone-Bannock, Colville, Spokane, Tulalip, Makah, Nooksack, Swinomish.

RICHLAND, Wash. – New research has found that commercial building owners can chop their heating and cooling costs nearly in half by implementing a few energy efficient controls.

Those big rooftop heating and cooling systems you see on top of supermarkets and strip malls could produce big savings for building owners. Researchers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, Wash., studied buildings across the country. They used computer simulations to find an average savings of 25 to 35 percent after retrofitting existing systems. Srinivas Katipamula led the study.