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CapitalPress.com
Friday, December 13, 2019
Winter ‘not scary’ for NW farmers, weatherman says
By MATTHEW WEAVER
Capital Press
The Pacific Northwest
will see slightly above nor-
mal temperatures and normal
precipitation throughout the
winter, a well-known weath-
erman predicts.
Art Douglas, a professor
emeritus of atmospheric sci-
ences at Creighton Univer-
sity in Omaha, Neb., is best
known for his presentations
at the Spokane Ag Show
every winter. Warm waters in
the North Pacific and North
Atlantic will favor high pres-
sure ridges across the north,
meaning “weak storminess”
for the winter, Douglas told
the Capital Press.
“Especially for you guys
in the Pacific Northwest, it’s
not scary,” he said.
Uncertainty in NOAA
and European forecasts con-
tinues to shift beween El
Nino, which means warmer
winters for the Pacific
Northwest, and La Nina,
which means colder winters.
Douglas predicts a mild
December and January, with
a cold February. The weather
will be dry at the beginning
of winter and wet in Febru-
ary, in the form of snow.
“One of your biggest
fears are arctic outbreaks,
especially toward the end
of winter that might freeze
the wheat,” he said. “This
is the type of winter where
Art Douglas
I would be very cautious as
to what might happen to win-
ter wheat.”
Douglas says the year so
far appears to be most like the
years 2018, 2014 and 1959.
He
predicts
“major
jumps,” from a mild start to a
cold finish, and from some-
what dry to much wetter. The
cold in February will persist
into March.
“You go from a cold
March to a warm April back
to a cold May,” Douglas
said.
In the spring, the Pacific
Northwest will consistently
trend toward slightly higher
temperatures compared to
the rest of the country.
“No concern in this fore-
cast for you guys (for pre-
cipitation),” Douglas said.
“Pretty darn normal in
March, some spotty in April
... and then you get into May
and the moisture tries to
increase up into the wheat
area. If you want moisture,
you want it in May as it’s
really growing, starting to
bloom and all that kind of
good stuff.”
The summer forecast
so far resembles cool-and-
wet summers from 2014 to
2019. The forecast could
change if equatorial sea sur-
face temperatures move to
El Nino or La Nina, Douglas
said.
“I don’t see how an El
Nino or La Nina could come
between now and March,”
he said. “What might hap-
pen after that? I’m truly clue-
less. We’ve had too many El
Nino years in a row starting
in 2014. We’ve never had a
really good La Nina over the
past five years. Statistically,
it’s overdue.”
La Nina “recharges”
the system to develop an
“impressive” El Nino, Doug-
las said. He doesn’t think
that’s likely, but also doesn’t
expect an El Nino for next
summer.
“We’re neutral,” he said.
“The middle ground isn’t
real common. Most years
sort themselves out as being
El Nino or La Nina. The tran-
sition more often than not
takes place over a very short
period of time.”
The current forecast could
mean another hot, dry sum-
mer in the Western U.S.,
Douglas said.
Idaho joins battle between states over ESA OSU names new dean
By DON JENKINS
Capital Press
A coalition of 13 states,
including Idaho, on Mon-
day joined the defense of
the Trump administration’s
revisions to the Endangered
Species Act from an attack
by 17 other states, includ-
ing Oregon, Washington
and California.
Idaho and like-minded
states filed a motion to inter-
vene in a lawsuit brought by
the other states, the District
of Columbia and the city of
New York. The suit seeks to
toss out Trump’s ESA rules.
If the suit prevails, rural
Idaho residents will lose,
according to Scott Pugard,
administrator of the gov-
ernor’s office of species
conservation.
“Because over 60%
of Idaho’s land is feder-
ally managed, regulations
that affect federal land use
decisions have a profound
impact on Idaho’s economy,
custom, culture and way of
life,” Pugard said in a court
document.
The lawsuit is pending in
the U.S. District Court for
Northern California. If the
presiding Judge Jon Tigar
allows Idaho and its part-
ners to intervene, a majority
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Idaho and 12 other states are defending the Trump
administration’s revisions to the Endangered Species
Act against a lawsuit filed by 17 other states. Idaho
cites the preservation of the greater sage grouse as
an example of states working with federal agencies to
conserve species.
of states will be involved in
the case.
The 17 states suing to
repeal the Trump revisions
are represented by Dem-
ocratic attorneys general.
The 13 states defending the
changes have Republican
attorneys general.
The states led by Demo-
crats argue that the Trump
administration has weak-
ened the ESA, and a weaker
federal law will undermine
their efforts to conserve
species.
The states led by Repub-
licans say the Trump admin-
istration has enhanced spe-
cies survival by reigning in
the Obama administration’s
overreach on designating
critical habitat.
The Trump rules will
allow states and landown-
ers a chance to collaborate
and be creative in protect-
ing species, according to
the state.
In one revision, threat-
ened species will no lon-
ger automatically receive
the same blanket protec-
tion as endangered spe-
cies. Instead, the U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service will
write recovery plans tai-
lored for each new threat-
ened species.
The rule, according to
the motion to intervene, will
give “more room for states
to take the lead in protect-
ing threatened species in
ways that protect landown-
ers’ rights to make reason-
able use of their property.”
Idaho has a history of
working with federal agen-
cies to protect species, such
as the greater sage grouse,
according to Pugard.
Tigar is also presiding
over two lawsuits filed by
environmental groups over
the ESA changes.
According to the Jus-
tice Department, all of the
lawsuits should be dis-
missed because the states
and groups haven’t been
harmed.
The revisions won’t
apply to decisions already
made by federal agencies,
so it’s just speculation that
the changes will under-
mine species protection,
according to the Justice
Department.
A hearing on the issue is
set for next year.
Munger Bros. settles with Labor Department for $3.5M
By DON JENKINS
Capital Press
California-based Munger
Bros., owners of a West-
ern Washington blueberry
farm, have agreed to a $3.5
million settlement with the
U.S. Labor Department
over allegations it poorly
housed, unsafely trans-
ported and underpaid some
3,200 employees while also
unlawfully preferring to hire
foreign over U.S. workers.
Munger will pay a $1
million fine and $2.5 mil-
lion in back wages, accord-
ing to a judgment filed in the
U.S. District Court for East-
ern California.
The settlement prohibits
the company from using H-2
workers for three years at its
farm and blueberry packing
plant, Crowne Cold Storage,
in Delano, Calif., and Sarba-
nand Farms in Sumas, Wash.
Although part of the
recent settlement, the sus-
pension took effect last
spring, according to court
records.
In a court filing, the
Labor Department accused
Munger of providing hous-
ing to H-2A workers that
was infested with bed bugs,
had metal bars over win-
dows, and inoperable toilets
and smoke alarms. Workers
were allegedly transported
in vehicles with bald tires,
according to the complaint.
“This case demon-
strates our commitment to
safeguard American jobs,
level the playing field for
law-abiding
employers
and protect workers from
being paid less than they
are legally owed,” Cheryl
M. Stanton, Labor Depart-
ment wage and hour admin-
istrator, said in a statement
Monday.
Munger admitted no
wrongdoing.
“We have accepted the
consent agreement. The
Department of Labor has
presented a novel theory that
has been never used before,
but our obligations to our
employees, customers and
the community motivated
us to comply with the settle-
ment,” the company said in
a statement.
The company declined to
elaborate on what it meant
by “novel theory.”
In a separate court action,
Sarbanand Farms faces
a class-action lawsuit by
some 600 foreign workers
in federal court in Western
Washington.
The suit alleges that
about 70 workers were ille-
gally fired in 2017 for stag-
ing a one-day walkout.
They and other workers
were intimidated into labor-
ing while sick and pres-
sured to pick an unrealistic
amount of berries, the suit
alleges.
for College of Forestry
Thomas DeLuca will
begin on June 30
By GEORGE PLAVEN
Capital Press
CORVALLIS, Ore. —
Oregon State University
has named a new dean for
the College of Forestry.
Thomas DeLuca, who
currently is dean of the
University of Montana’s
College of Forestry and
Conservation, will make
the move to Corvallis
beginning June 30. DeLuca
replaces Anthony S. Davis,
who has been acting dean
since January 2018.
In an announcement
Monday, Ed Feser, OSU
provost and executive vice
president, said DeLuca is
“a highly accomplished
researcher and leader who
understands Oregon State’s
commitment to build-
ing and enhancing healthy
communities, economies
and ecosystems.
“His national and inter-
national experience in
working
collaboratively
with other universities,
a range of forestry pro-
fessionals and an array
of stakeholders will help
advance the great success
and contributions occur-
ring within Oregon State’s
College of Forestry,” Feser
said.
At OSU, DeLuca will
oversee a college with six
undergraduate programs,
four graduate programs
and more than 1,200 stu-
dents. He has spent the last
three years as dean of the
forestry college at the Uni-
versity of Montana, with
six undergraduate pro-
grams, nine graduate pro-
grams and 900 students.
DeLuca is also direc-
tor of the Montana Forest
and Conservation Experi-
ment Station, and a mem-
ber of the governor’s Mon-
tana Forest Action Council.
“I wasn’t looking at any
other options or moves, but
this is the sort of opportu-
th
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S159419-1
nity
that
o c c u r s
once in a
lifetime,”
DeLuca
said. “I feel
strongly
Tom Deluca that this is a
unique posi-
tion at a time in which for-
estry has the potential to
take a front seat in both con-
servation and commerce.”
DeLuca holds a bache-
lor’s degree from the Uni-
versity of Wisconsin-Mad-
ison and master’s degree
from Montana State Uni-
versity, both in soil science.
He earned a doctorate in
soil science and biochemis-
try from Iowa State Univer-
sity in 1993.
DeLuca’s career includes
more than a decade over-
seas in Sweden and the
United Kingdom. He has
held research positions at
the University of Montana,
the Wilderness Society in
Bozeman, Mont., Slippery
Rock University in Slip-
pery Rock, Pa., and five
years as director and pro-
fessor at the University
of Washington School of
Environmental and Forest
Sciences.
The OSU College of
Forestry recently cele-
brated the grand opening
of the A.A. “Red” Emmer-
son Advanced Wood Prod-
ucts Laboratory in Octo-
ber, part of a new $79.5
million forest science com-
plex that will also include
the George W. Peavy For-
est Science Center, slated
to open next spring.
The 17,500-square-foot
advanced wood products
laboratory is dedicated to
researching and testing
mass timber products, such
as cross-laminated tim-
ber, in commercial build-
ings. It is now home of the
TallWood Design Insti-
tute, a partnership between
OSU’s College of For-
estry and College of Engi-
neering, and the Univer-
sity of Oregon’s College of
Design.
With DeLuca on board,
Davis will return to his
previous role as executive
associate dean, which he
held under former Dean
Thomas Maness, who died
in July 2018 following a
lengthy illness.
“Dean Maness had
a broad, inclusive and
inspiring vision, and while
the unique capacity of
this individual will not be
duplicated, there is much
that he set in motion that
I’m excited to help push to
fruition,” DeLuca said.
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