Idaho leaders urged to address systemic failures following prison abuse reports
InvestigateWest reporters uncovered years of sexual abuse by women’s prison guards prompting calls for independent investigation
Environment
Developers’ tree-cutting pace surges under contested Seattle tree protection ordinance
Mayor Harrell promised law would get Seattle “back on track,” but new street-tree planting data raises doubts
Oregon regulators fine polluting wood treater $1 million, allow it to keep operating
The penalty comes days after InvestigateWest found regulators investigating the pollution didn’t take steps to immediately stop it
An Oregon wood treater kept polluting a town’s water source with a now-banned chemical — but regulators didn’t stop it
Nearby tribe calls on state, federal agencies to end a “decade-long pattern of reckless violations”
Washington ferries are going hybrid-electric, but disposal of old ones poses environmental, legal risks
An abandoned ferry in the Puget Sound represents a shared struggle across the West Coast: to sell an old ship or destroy it
In wildfire-prone Washington, ‘collaboration’ on forest management gives way to timber interests
Forest collaboratives formed in the wake of the Pacific Northwest’s “Timber Wars” have become major power players operating largely out of the public eye
The U.S. government sold off these aging ships — leaving states in the Pacific Northwest to pay the price
Washington, Oregon officials say they’ve spent millions removing or destroying abandoned vessels
Pressure builds on Army Corps to produce years-late reports on Willamette River Basin dams
New federal study shows dams harming endangered salmon as Congress pushed for action
Seattle claims to ‘protect’ hundreds of trees that were never threatened
Analysis shows fewer than 3% of “protected” trees were actually preserved under the city’s controversial 2023 ordinance
Energy demand from data centers growing faster than West can supply, experts say
In a webinar hosted by regional transmission authorities, data centers were called a “major challenge” for the energy industry, as well as extreme weather
A tale of two workers: Heat deaths on the job provoke differing responses in Oregon, Idaho
One state adopted worker protections and saw deaths drop, while the other took no action
State Agency Met with Oil-by-Rail Firm in Private Ahead of Permit Application
A 2023 DeSmog investigation uncovered a “backroom deal” between Portland city officials and Zenith Energy. New documents show the state environmental regulator also met with the company.
Oregon begins rewriting landmark climate program derailed by gas lawsuit
During the next year, the Department of Environmental Quality will work on a new program to limit climate emissions and help vulnerable communities