Environment

Ecologists in a vast region of wetlands and forest in remote Oregon have spent the past decade thinning young trees and using planned fires to try to restore the thick stands of ponderosa to a less fire-prone state.

Washington health officials are warning of a spike in shellfish-related illnesses believed to be connected to last month’s heat wave.

Wildlife biologists have captured a female grizzly bear in Washington state for the first time in 40 years, fitting it with a radio collar so they can track its movements, officials said Thursday.

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee on Wednesday declared a statewide drought emergency because of hot, dry conditions that have plagued the region and water supply.

The heat wave that recently hit the Pacific Northwest subjected the region’s vineyards to record-breaking temperatures nine months after the fields that produce world-class wine were blanketed by wildfire smoke.

Tribes across the Northwest called for immediate action to remove the four Lower Snake River dams during a two-day Salmon and Orca Summit in western Washington. The group called on President Biden and congressional members to “take bold action, now.”

The deadly heat wave that roasted the Pacific Northwest and western Canada was virtually impossible without human-caused climate change that added a few extra degrees to the record-smashing temperatures, a new quick scientific analysis found.

As outlandish as the killer heat wave that struck the Pacific Northwest was, it fits into a decades-long pattern of uneven summer warming across the United States.

It’s back to the drawing board for state regulators, after the Washington Court of Appeals ordered the Department of Ecology to rework permits for confined animal feeding operations, known as CAFOs.

Update, July 2, 2021: Carnation has cancelled its scheduled fireworks display. Details below. 

With most pandemic restrictions now lifted, people may be yearning to gather and celebrate with the bright lights and explosive fun of fireworks on the Fourth of July.  But extremely dry conditions have made them more dangerous than ever. Fire marshals statewide are urging caution, and emergency bans are spreading in many parts of Washington.

Record heat across the Northwest is taking a toll on agriculture – both the crops and the workers who harvest them. 

Central Washington farmer Alan Schreiber is worried about his fields.

As the mercury climbs this weekend, water temperatures are also expected to increase. Warmer waters can spell bad news for salmon, especially if the temperatures stay warm for long periods of time.

The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service is proposing new protections for the Mount Rainier white-tailed ptarmigan. If approved, the Endangered Species Act would list the birds as threatened.

White-tailed ptarmigans spend their entire lifecycle on alpine mountaintops, above the tree line of the Cascades. 

A company backed by the Chinese government on Friday ended its seven-year effort to build one of the world’s largest methanol plants along the Columbia River in southwestern Washington, following a series of regulatory setbacks and a long debate over its environmental footprint.

Buildings are one of the largest and fastest growing sources of climate pollution. In Seattle, they’re responsible for more than a third of the city’s greenhouse gas emissions. 

What to do? Well, on Thursday, local leaders celebrated the groundbreaking of a new building that demonstrates some answers.

Electron Hydro is facing a $501,000 fine from the state Department of Ecology – plus new requirements for monitoring water quality near its dam on the Puyallup River.

Democratic Gov. Jay Inslee signed a series of bills Monday designed to strengthen the environment in Washington state.

Environmental justice will be center stage Monday morning in Seattle’s Duwamish River Valley. That's where Gov. Jay Inslee is signing the so-called “HEAL Act.”

Washington state's top Democrats have come out against a proposal from U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho, to remove four hydroelectric dams on the Snake River and replace their benefits as part of a huge infrastructure bill being crafted by the Biden administration.

Another gray whale has died off the Washington coast. The animal was confirmed dead after stranding in the tidal areas of north Port Susan, east of Camano Island.