Multnomah County calls on state regulators to block Zenith Energy’s crude oil storage in Portland
Multnomah County commissioners on Thursday asked the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality to deny a key air quality permit that would allow Zenith Energy to continue storing crude oil at its Portland terminal.
Few Oregonians will benefit from clean energy rebates
Just 13,000 Oregon households will likely benefit from the much-awaited federal home electrification and efficiency rebates that will become available next year, according to a new estimate from the Oregon Department of Energy.
Oregon’s first electric garbage truck hits Portland streets
With just a few squeaks, the Peterbilt 520 EV – Oregon’s first fully electric garbage truck – glided onto the streets of Northeast Portland to make a test run on a night route. Its journey shows why, despite Portland’s ambitious climate goals, the changeover to electric medium- and heavy-duty trucks remains years out for not only the trash fleet but the city’s buses, fire engines and delivery trucks.
Alarming climate study leads to search for solutions: Beat Check Podcast
Dr. Jillian Gregg, an ecologist and principal investigator of Corvallis-based Terrestrial Ecosystems Research Associates, is the author of a new alarming climate change study. She talked about the alarming data, the transition to an economy that puts a pause on over-consumption and fossil-fuel emissions and solutions we all can participate in that will help slow climate change.
More than 100 cities have banned gas leaf blowers. Will Portland be next?
The moment seems ripe for a tenacious group of local activists who finally appear to be getting traction after years of lobbying city, county and state lawmakers for a leaf blower ban.
Toxic vapors will be deadly when mega-earthquake hits Portland, report says, prompting call for regulation
Thousands could die – with tens of thousands injured – from a threat few consider when they think about the Big One: toxic vapors.
Young Somali American brings green Islam movement to Portland
A young Somali American becomes an organizer who encourages young African and Muslim people to engage with nature and advocate for their communities in the Portland area, which face many challenges brought by climate change.
Oregon natural gas utility can’t ask customers to pay for political spending, new pipelines
Avista, Oregon’s second largest natural gas utility, can no longer make customers pay for its political activities and subsidize new residential gas pipelines, according to the terms of a settlement agreement approved by the Oregon Public Utility Commission.
Mystery of the green plume on Willamette River near Portland solved
Long, squiggly bands of green slime coated parts of the Willamette River near Portland on Monday, sending water quality regulators scrambling for answers.
Students, legislators push for school districts to tackle climate change: Beat Check podcast
At the end of September, students from 50 school districts across the country launched a new campaign to spur climate action in classrooms, school buildings and in the job market. Adah Crandall, a 17-year-old youth climate organizer and recent graduate of Portland’s Grant High School, talked with Beat Check about the student campaign, new legislation and recent efforts at climate change denial in classrooms across the U.S.
Likely culprit found for recent gray whale die-off
Over the past four years, hundreds of gray whales have washed up dead on the beaches of Mexico, the U.S. and Canada – and scientists have been trying to figure out what’s causing the majestic animals to die en masse for so many years. Now, researchers from Oregon State University have an answer.
Pump-station miscue sends 11,000 gallons of sewage into Willamette River, prompting safety advisory
A malfunction at a pump station sent about 11,000 gallons of sewage into the Willamette River, prompting a safety advisory from the Portland Bureau of Environmental Services.
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