June 8, 2018
CapitalPress.com
5
First Columbia River Treaty talks ‘very productive’
Next talks will be in
British Columbia
By MATTHEW WEAVER
Capital Press
The first two days of nego-
tiating updates to the Colum-
bia River Treaty were “very
productive,” U.S. negotiators
say.
The talks were May 29-30
in Washington, D.C.
Some provisions of the
treaty, adopted in 1964 for
cooperative development and
operation of water resources
in the Columbia River Basin,
are set to expire in 2024.
Negotiators spoke during
a conference call May 31 fol-
lowing the first round of nego-
tiations to modernize the treaty
between the U.S. and Canada.
Media were advised to
identify speakers only as “se-
nior U.S. government offi-
cials.”
“We’re in the beginning
stages and right now we’re
just reaffirming cooper-
ation,” one official said.
“We’re just laying out what
our future objectives are at
this point.”
Negotiators are relying
on a 2013 regional recom-
mendation developed by the
Bonneville Power Adminis-
tration and U.S. Army Corps
Wikimedia Commons
The Grand Coulee Dam on the Columbia River in Washington state. The first round of negotiations to update the Columbia River Treaty
was last week in Washington, D.C.
of Engineers after years of
consulting federal agencies,
states, tribes and “extensive”
stakeholder engagement.
“This is our guide, this is
our foundation,” the official
said.
U.S. objectives include
continued careful manage-
ment of flood risk, ensuring a
reliable and economical pow-
er supply and better addressing
ecosystem concerns.
Both the U.S. and Cana-
dian governments have also
brought up mitigating any im-
pacts associated with climate
change, an official said.
The official declined to go
into specific negotiating posi-
tions.
When asked by reporters
whether the Trump adminis-
tration had issued “marching
orders” or expressed views on
the treaty as a good deal or bad
deal, the officials reiterated
that they were relying on the
regional recommendations.
Asked if Trump’s tariffs on
steel and aluminum and rene-
gotiations of the North Amer-
ican Free Trade Agreement
would affect negotiations, the
official was not aware of any
discussions to merge the is-
sues.
“We have no information
that suggests these discus-
sions will be impacted at this
point,” an official said.
Pacific Northwest tribes
and First Nations tribes in
Canada have expressed con-
cerns that they don’t have a
seat at negotiations, a reporter
said.
The officials are “deeply
grateful” for the tribes who
contributed to the consensus
outlined in the 2013 recom-
mendation.
“We value the expertise
and experience of the tribes,
and the department has main-
tained regular contact and
communications with the
tribes,” an U.S. official said.
“We will continue to consult
with the tribes on a regular
basis as negotiations proceed.
We are working with the tribes
to develop an engagement
plan that allows for meaning-
ful consultation throughout
the negotiation process.”
The next round of negoti-
ations will be Aug. 15-16 in
British Columbia.
Wheat enters risk period for starch damage in late June
By MATTHEW WEAVER
Capital Press
Washington’s wheat crop
will enter the risk period for
starch damage in late June, a re-
searcher says.
It’s a matter of when the
wheat reaches the anthesis, or
flowering, stage, said Camille
Steber, a research plant molec-
ular geneticist at the USDA Ag-
ricultural Research Service in
Pullman, Wash.
At that point, farmers will
need to be on the lookout for big
temperature fluctuations, Steber
said.
“We just did one last night
— we went from the 80s yester-
day to the 60s today,” she said
June 4. “If that happens in the
last week of June, then I would
worry. Hopefully, by then our
temperatures will even out.”
Starch damage, which reduc-
es the quality of baked goods
and noodles made with wheat,
is measured by a falling num-
ber test. Farmers were caught
off guard in 2016 when roughly
44 percent of soft white wheat
samples and 42 percent of club
wheat samples tested below
300, the industry standard.
The industry estimates
starch damage that year cost
farmers more than $30 million
in lower prices.
Last summer, temperatures
were consistent during the
flowering stage, so there were
few instances of falling number
tests results below 300, Steber
said.
In 2017, Steber and her
team tested more than 10,000
Washington wheat breeding
lines to identify genetic resis-
tance to starch damage. This
year, she expects to test more
than 11,000 lines, and next year
she will begin examining Idaho
and Oregon lines.
She provides the informa-
tion to breeders and expects
new wheat varieties will be
more resistant to starch damage
compared to current varieties.
Currently, the wheat variet-
ies Cara, Skiles and Mary have
the most stable falling number
test results over time, she said.
Otto is the most stable variety
adapted to the drier part of the
state.
Steber provides variety in-
formation about falling num-
ber tests and starch damage on
her website and WSU’s Small
Grains websites.
“We can only wait and
see what the weather does,”
she said. “The point where
(farmers) could do some-
thing is the point where they
chose what to plant.”
USDA Agricultural
Research Service plant
molecular geneticist
Camille Steber is testing
wheat lines for genetic
resistance to starch
damage. She said wheat
is vulnerable to damage
from late June to mid-Ju-
ly, when it is flowering.
The damage is often
caused by wide swings
in temperature.
Capital Press File
Stephen Ward/OSU
Mateus Pasa previously worked for a year at the Mid-Columbia
Agricultural Research and Extension Center in Hood River, Ore.
OSU Extension’s new tree
fruit specialist from Brazil
By GEORGE PLAVEN
Capital Press
A new tree fruit specialist
has arrived at Oregon State
University Extension just in
time for the cherry and pear
growing seasons.
Mateus Pasa was hired in
April at the OSU Mid-Co-
lumbia Agricultural Research
and Extension Center in Hood
River, Ore. A native of Brazil,
Pasa spent four years as a re-
search pomologist at the San-
ta Catarina Agricultural Re-
search and Extension Center
in São Joaquim.
Though he primarily
worked with apples during
his time in Santa Catarina,
Pasa will be responsible for
finding ways to improve fruit
set and production for pears
and cherries in the Columbia
River Gorge.
“The growers and the fruit
industry are very supportive,”
Pasa said. “I’m working to
help them fix their main prob-
lems, and to get better and
more efficient and make their
orchards more profitable.”
Pasa is no stranger to the
region. During his doctor-
ate program, he spent a year
at MCAREC working with
Todd Einhorn studying the
effects of prohexadione calci-
um — a chemical used to thin
trees and reduce fire blight —
on the growth of pears.
Pasa now leads the cherry
and pear research program
at MCAREC, along with
Ashley Thompson, who was
also hired in April. Pasa said
they will continue to develop
new rootstocks that allow for
planting orchards in higher
densities, paving the way for
more mechanization and re-
duced labor costs.
“We need to think ahead
and reduce the need for la-
bor,” Pasa said.
Pasa can be reached at
MCAREC at 541-386-2030,
ext. 38216, or by email at ma-
teus.pasa@oregonstate.edu.
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