Search Results

Cloud Peak Energy says they will ship 4 million tons of coal from British Columbia’s Westshore Terminal this year. That means Cloud Peak is almost solely responsible for current US coal exports to Asia via BC. (See here and here for US Customs figures.) Yet in a new investor report, Cloud Peak says they can’t increase coal shipments to Asia because there’s no room at BC export terminals. This is...

On November 10, I’ll be participating in what I expect to be an interesting discussion hosted by the Cascadia Green Building Council. The event will ask “what’s next?” for Northwest Water Issues and focus on moving ideas forward – into action. Doors open at 5pm for networking and refreshments; panelist discussion and action brainstorm 5:30-7pm. The location is in downtown Seattle at the Rainier Square Conference Center, 1301 5th Ave, 3rd...

Alan: A big list this week. The Center for Progressive Reform mounts a spirited defense of regulation, showing that the US economy delivers much greater benefits thanks to rules democratically established to reduce pollution, protect workers, and prevent fraud and abuse in financial markets. Two Texas chemists have developed a nanometer-thick coating that’s an effective nontoxic flame retardant, reports Science News. Made of alternating layers of clay and an extract...

Two national stories in the last week have turned a spotlight on the proposed coal export terminal in Bellingham, WA. (If you’ve somehow missed our thorough work on the subject, take a look here.) First, Stacey Shultz for National Geographic, last Friday: Bellingham, Washington, is admired for its green power purchases, its innovative building efficiency program, and the “buy local” ethos of its bustling Saturday farmers’ market. But the fossil...

Today, the Condit Dam on Washington’s White Salmon River blew up. Here’s video that I captured from the PacifiCorps-sponsored removal site. (There’s more at American Rivers, here.) Years and years of tireless effort by residents of the White Salmon watershed and their allies led to today. As I wrote about the breaching of the Elwha dams earlier this year, “In Cascadia, most of our problems, like these dams, are things...

Washington’s rail system is congested in places. Adding dozens of coal trains each day, without also big new capacity improvements, could cripple the system with gridlock. All that is common knowledge. Less well-known is this: coal shipments are already causing problems. To understand what’s going on, it’s useful to zero in on the northwest portion of the state’s railway system.

Yesterday in Seattle, a 73-year-old woman was mowed down in a crosswalk. Yet today the resident crowd that’s fond of saying there’s a “war on cars” is screaming about a modest proposal before the Washington legislature: to allow cities to reduce speed limits to 20 mph on side streets without first conducting expensive engineering studies. Last year, the bill passed the state House unanimously. I repeat, it passed unanimously: Not...

I updated and edited the Glines Canyon Dam removal video I did last week. You’ll see that work slowed for a few days on the Glines Dam, perhaps because of the heavy rains rushing over the top. If you want to see more about the Elwha, you should also check out American Rivers’ video. By the way, a big chunk of dam removal funding came from the too-little-appreciated US federal...

Anna: I’ve been obsessed with the Occupy Wall Street phenomenon this past week, in part because I’m personally exhilarated by the growing, populist call for change, and in even greater part because of all the lessons in messaging and organizing and mobilizing that this crazy, leaderless, chaotic movement holds for those of us who’ve been trying to stir up interest in policy change by more conventional means for way too...

I just got my Oregon Food Handler’s Badge. It took 52 minutes online and cost $10. Now I can work legally in Oregon restaurants! If, however, I wanted to work braiding hair African-style in Oregon, or kickboxing for prize money in Washington, or selling timeshares in Montana, or promoting concerts in Alaska, or as an athletic trainer in Idaho or as scores of other things across the Northwest, I’d have...