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THURSDAY • February 18, 2021 • $1.50
Good day to our valued subscriber Robert Sunderman of La Grande
Ag reps
says dam
breaching a
‘nonstarter’
By MATTHEW WEAVER
Capital Press
BOISE, Idaho — U.S. Rep.
Mike Simpson said his plan to
end all salmon litigation and
remove four Snake River dams
would offer agriculture unprec-
edented legal protection, but
industry stakeholders said it’s a
nonstarter.
Simpson, R-Idaho, has not
proposed legislation, but on Feb.
7, released a $33.5 billion con-
cept for salmon recovery, which
includes removing the Lower
Granite, Little Goose, Lower
Monumental and Ice Harbor dams
on the lower Snake River in 2030
and 2031.
“It’s such a different
approach,” said a Simpson rep-
resentative, speaking on back-
ground. “We’re not saying, ‘Take
the dams out and save salmon.’
We’re saying, ‘Save agriculture,
replace everything, and then save
salmon.’”
If the dams are removed, each
interest group would need suffi -
cient resources to replace the ben-
efi ts they currently receive, the
representative said.
Replacement power generation
See, Dams/Page 5A
Poll: Oregon
eager for gas
self-service,
not sales tax
By ZANE SPARLING
Oregon Capital Bureau
PORTLAND — Hands off that
gas pump!
The quirks of life in the Beaver
State might bemuse outsiders,
but surely true-blue Oregonians
cherish our time-honored idiosyn-
crasies, right?
It’s just not so, according to a
new survey.
A poll by the Oregon Values
and Beliefs Center, a project of
DHM Research, found a majority
of state residents are ready to
pump their own gas and buy
a bottle of spirits at the local
supermarket.
Just don’t expect them to vote
in a sales tax, which three out of
four here oppose.
“Support tends to increase
among higher-income Orego-
nians, but no demographic groups
See, Poll/Page 5A
Alex Wittwer/The Observer
The most recent winter storm over Elgin adds an additional 2 inches of snow Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021. Snow- and ice-covered branches have
been a cause for weather-related power outages across the state.
More snow ahead
But National Weather
Service says winter weather
may start winding down soon
By DICK MASON and ALEX WITTWER
The Observer
LA GRANDE — Winter weather storms
will continue to deliver more snow in the
Grande Ronde Valley through Friday.
While not record breaking, a few sites
already have landed in the top 10 range,
according to the National Weather Service.
Cove has received near record snow totals.
The National Weather Service reported Cove
received 22.6 inches of snow from Thursday
to Monday, Feb. 11-15 — with 15.4 inches
falling Feb. 13-15, its 10th highest three-day
total ever.
And from Feb. 12-15, Cove received 18.2
inches of snow, its sixth highest four-day total
ever.
“It was an impressive amount over the fi ve
days,” said Dan Slagle, a meteorologist with
the National Weather Service in Pendleton
“We usually get one system and then a break,
but this is multiple days of more moderate
snow.”
Other noteworthy local totals include 28.8
inches from a site 9.8 miles north of Elgin
from Feb. 11-17, and 12.5 inches of snow
in Union from Feb. 11-17. Reports from La
Grande were not available at press time.
Wallowa County also received its share
of snow during a similar time frame, with
Wallowa reporting 16.7 inches and Lostine
Alex Wittwer/The Observer
Gene Hardy gets ready to drive a plow-equipped tractor down Hardy Road on Wednesday,
Feb. 17, 2021. Hardy is a member of a multigenerational farming family that has lived in Elgin
for nearly a century.
reporting 12.5 inches from Feb. 11-17.
Tollgate, which has already received
plenty of snow over the week, could gain
another 8-12 inches as the week ends, with
more coming over the weekend. Severe
winter weather conditions, high winds and
drifting snow there led the Oregon Depart-
ment of Transportation to close Highway 204
between milepost 0 near Weston and mile-
post 39 near Elgin.
ODOT reported the evening of Tuesday,
Feb. 16, crews were working to clear as much
snow as possible, focusing on the highway
lanes.
See, Snow/Page 5A
Recovery continues for 2020’s flood victims
Events set Saturday in La Grande, Pendleton
to help ranchers replace fencing lost in floods
By DICK MASON
The Observer
ELGIN — Many in Uma-
tilla County and Walla Walla
County in Washington continue
to struggle to recover a year
after devastating fl oods in early
February.
The many trials that came
later in 2020 may have blotted
out that plight for some, but it
will come to light again this
weekend.
A fundraiser set for Saturday,
Feb. 20, in La Grande and Pend-
INDEX
Business ....... 1B
Classified ...... 3B
Comics .......... 7B
Crossword .... 3B
Dear Abby .... 8B
leton will speak loudly to the
desperate circumstances many
people in Umatilla and Walla
Walla counties still face. The
event will be at the Les Schwab
tire centers in each city from
8 a.m. to 6 p.m. to collect dona-
tions and materials for fi ve Uma-
tilla and Walla Walla county
ranchers who need money and
materials to replace fencing they
lost in the fl ood.
The fencing is critical.
SATURDAY
UNION COUNTY — Union County was not spared the wrath of the 2020
early February fl ood. The portion of Union County hit the hardest was
its northern edge along Highway 204, also known as Tollgate Highway. A
10-mile stretch of the roadway, much of which was in Union County, was
closed for two weeks in early February after being extensively damaged,
said Tom Strandberg, spokesperson for the Oregon Department of Trans-
portation. ODOT reopened the highway after two weeks, but several por-
tions were down to one lane.
The state transportation agency conducted major work that summer to
restore portions of the road.
“The highway had to be rebuilt,’’ Strandberg said.
Other portions of Union County also hit hard included Elgin, where Mayor
Allan Duffy declared a state of emergency. Elgin closed all of Hemlock,
South Fifth, Sixth and Cedar streets and Hu Na Na RV park due to fl ooding.
And Imbler School District Superintendent Angie Lakey-Campbel can-
celed classes there for a day because the fl oodwaters posed a risk to school
buses.
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown declared a state of emergency on Feb. 7, 2020 in
Union, Umatilla and Wallowa counties due to severe fl ooding.
See, Floods/Page 5A
WEATHER
Horoscope .... 4B
Letters ........... 4A
Lottery........... 3A
Obituaries ..... 3A
Opinion ......... 4A
FLOODING IN 2020 ALSO HIT UNION COUNTY
Region .......... 2A
Spiritual ........ 6A
Sports ........... 8A
State .............. 7A
Sudoku ......... 7B
TRIP TO RWANDA
Full forecast on the back of B section
Tonight
Friday
31 LOW
40/26
Snow, 1-3”
A snow squall
CONTACT US
541-963-3161
Issue 21
3 sections, 24 pages
La Grande, Oregon
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to news@lagrande
observer.com.
More contact info
on Page 4A.
Online at lagrandeobserver.com