NORTHWEST
East Oregonian
Page 2A
Wednesday, December 27, 2017
Pacific Starfish making comeback
BRIEFLY
Oregon mother,
daughter killed in
Christmas crash
Millions killed from
2013-2014 due to
mysterious syndrome
NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. (AP)
— Starfish are making a comeback on
the West Coast, four years after a myste-
rious syndrome killed millions of them.
From 2013 to 2014, Sea Star Wasting
Syndrome hit sea stars from British
Columbia to Mexico. The starfish would
develop lesions and then disintegrate,
their arms turning into blobs of goo.
The cause is unclear but researchers
say it may be a virus.
But now, the species is rebounding.
Sea stars are being spotted in Southern
California tide pools and elsewhere,
the Orange County Register reported
Tuesday.
“They are coming back, big time,”
Darryl Deleske, aquarist for the Cabrillo
Marine Aquarium in Los Angeles, told
the newspaper.
“It’s a huge difference,” Deleske
said. “A couple of years ago, you
wouldn’t find any. I dove all the way as
far as Canada, specifically looking for
sea stars, and found not a single one.”
Similar die-offs of starfish on the
West Coast were reported in the 1970s,
‘80s and ‘90s, but the latest outbreak
was far larger and more widespread,
according to a report by researchers at
the University of Santa Cruz.
Beginning with ochre stars off Wash-
ington state, the disease spread, killing
off mottled stars, leather stars, sunflower
THE DALLES (AP)
— Oregon State Police
say a woman and her
12-year-old daughter died
in a Christmas Day car
crash on Highway 26 in
Wasco County.
Sgt. Kaipo Raiser says
troopers from The Dalles
and Portland responded
mid-afternoon to the crash
in which an eastbound
Nissan Versa lost traction
and crossed into the path
of an oncoming Subaru
Outback.
The Versa was struck
on its passenger side. The
driver, 48-year-old Deirdre
Mackey of Lake Oswego,
and her daughter died at
the scene.
The two people in the
Subaru were taken to
a Portland hospital for
treatment of injuries not
considered life-threatening.
Highway 26 was closed
or limited to one lane
for more than 10 hours.
Investigators believe
driving too fast for the
wintry conditions was a
factor in the crash.
AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, File
This 2010 file photo, shows a starfish clings to a rock near Haystack Rock
during low tide in Cannon Beach. Starfish are making a comeback on
the West Coast, four years after a mysterious syndrome killed millions of
them. From 2013 to 2014, Sea Star Wasting Syndrome hit sea stars from
British Columbia to Mexico.
stars, rainbows and six-armed stars.
It hit Southern California by
December 2013.
“When it did (arrive), you just started
to see them melt everywhere,” said
Deleske. “You’d see an arm here, an
arm there.”
The recovery has been promising.
Four adult sea stars, each about 7 to
8 inches long, were spotted this month
at Crystal Cove State Park in Newport
Beach.
“It’s a treasure we always hope to
find,’ said Kaitlin Magliano, education
coordinator at the Crystal Cove Conser-
vancy.
“We lost all of them,” she said. “It’s
good to see we have some surviving and
thriving ... Maybe the next generation
will be more resilient.”
The stars aren’t out of danger yet.
The wasting syndrome never
completely disappeared in Northern and
Central California and it has reappeared
in the Salish Sea region of Washington
state, according to a report.
OregonSaves
opens to smaller
businesses
PORTLAND — A
state project to get more
Oregonians saving for
retirement is being so well
received it’s being opened
up to smaller employers.
Oregon is the first state
in the nation to require
employers make a basic
retirement program
available to their workers.
Under the OregonSaves
program, staff are
automatically signed up
to save 5 percent of their
paychecks — but they can
opt out.
In the six months
since the pilot program
launched, state officials
say about 70 percent of
people have stayed in the
program.
Onion deliveries to be speeded by new transfer site
EO Media Group
NYSSA — A proposed major rail
reload facility in Eastern Oregon that
could greatly help the region’s onion
industry is on track to be built within
three years.
The region’s onion shipping compa-
nies face constant transportation chal-
lenges. Industry leaders say the problem
is getting worse and the reload facility is
sorely needed.
“Transportation is a chronic problem
for us (and) it’s as bad as I’ve ever seen
it right now,” said Kay Riley, manager
of Snake River Produce, one of 30 onion
shipping companies in southwestern
Idaho and Malheur County, Ore.
Riley said the planned reload facility
is so important “it could keep us in busi-
ness, and we could go out of business
without it.”
The facility would allow shipping
containers to be transfered between truck
and rail. It could benefit a wide range of
agricultural commodities grown as far
away as southcentral Idaho.
Most onions produced here are sold
to markets on the East Coast. Shippers
must currently truck them 216 miles
west to the nearest reload facility in
Wallula, Wash, before they begin their
journey east.
Eliminating that step will reduce
the cost of shipping onions, improve
timeliness of delivery and possibly open
new markets, said Grant Kitamura,
general manager of Baker & Murakami
Produce, the region’s largest onion
shipper.
“This is a major game changer for
onion shippers,” he said. “It will help
us maintain our viability as an industry.
Transportation has been a real issue for
onion shippers in Oregon and Idaho for
many years and it’s been getting worse
and hopefully this will help us turn it
around.”
Bruce Corn, an Oregon farmer, said
the facility could markedly speed up
delivery times to East Coast markets.
“It can result in a substantial savings
in transportation costs and also be a
much more reliable source of transpor-
tation,” he said.
The $5.3 billion transportation
package passed by the Oregon Legis-
lature this year included $26 million
for a reload facility in Eastern Oregon.
A 400-acre piece of land just north of
Nyssa was recently chosen as the facil-
ity’s location.
The plan for the facility is for it to
include dry and cold storage, said Rep.
Greg Smith, R-Heppner, who is helping
lead the effort to build the facility.
“All of a sudden, we become a
regional location that can compete
against anyone in the world,” said
Smith, Malheur County’s economic
development director.
The plan also includes building the
infrastructure needed by food proces-
sors, Smith said.
“That way, agricultural food proces-
sors will have a one-stop location where
they can produce and have a shipping
hub right at their back door,” he said.
The biggest challenge now is making
sure the facility is designed and built
correctly, Smith said.
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Copyright © 2017, EO Media Group
TODAY
THURSDAY
Mostly cloudy, a
little icy mix
A little icy mix in
the morning
31° 28°
37° 35°
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
Cloudy with a little
rain
Cloudy with snow
showers
SUNDAY
Mostly cloudy and
chilly
PENDLETON TEMPERATURE FORECAST
45° 37°
44° 28°
35° 21°
HERMISTON TEMPERATURE FORECAST
35° 33°
29° 27°
PENDLETON
through 3 p.m. yesterday
TEMPERATURE
HIGH
LOW
24°
39°
67° (1980)
20°
25°
-9° (1924)
PRECIPITATION
24 hours ending 3 p.m.
Month to date
Normal month to date
Year to date
Last year to date
Normal year to date
0.00"
0.93"
1.33"
16.19"
13.35"
12.80"
HERMISTON
through 3 p.m. yesterday
TEMPERATURE
HIGH
Yesterday
Normals
Records
LOW
27°
39°
67° (1980)
22°
27°
5° (1948)
PRECIPITATION
24 hours ending 3 p.m.
Month to date
Normal month to date
Year to date
Last year to date
Normal year to date
0.00"
0.53"
1.24"
9.29"
9.13"
9.71"
SUN AND MOON
Sunrise today
Sunset tonight
Moonrise today
Moonset today
Full
Last
Jan 1
Jan 8
7:35 a.m.
4:18 p.m.
12:47 p.m.
12:54 a.m.
New
First
Jan 16
47° 28°
37° 22°
Seattle
41/38
ALMANAC
Yesterday
Normals
Records
42° 34°
Jan 24
Today
Spokane
Wenatchee
23/20
22/19
Tacoma
Moses
41/37
Lake
Pullman
Aberdeen Olympia
Yakima 25/21
27/25
43/39
42/37
30/23
Longview
Kennewick Walla Walla
42/39
30/27 Lewiston
29/24
Astoria
31/28
46/41
Portland
Enterprise
Hermiston
42/40
Pendleton 37/30
The Dalles 29/27
31/28
36/34
La Grande
Salem
36/30
48/40
Albany
Corvallis 47/39
50/37
John Day
41/29
Ontario
Eugene
Bend
33/25
50/36
45/28
Caldwell
Burns
34/25
38/16
Astoria
Baker City
Bend
Brookings
Burns
Enterprise
Eugene
Heppner
Hermiston
John Day
Klamath Falls
La Grande
Meacham
Medford
Newport
North Bend
Ontario
Pasco
Pendleton
Portland
Redmond
Salem
Spokane
Ukiah
Vancouver
Walla Walla
Yakima
Hi
46
34
45
53
38
37
50
33
29
41
45
36
33
49
51
54
33
28
31
42
44
48
23
37
41
30
30
Lo
41
22
28
42
16
30
36
30
27
29
21
30
29
30
45
41
25
24
28
40
25
40
20
29
39
27
23
W
r
c
c
c
c
sn
c
c
c
c
c
sn
sn
c
r
c
c
c
sn
r
c
r
c
sf
r
sn
c
Today
Beijing
Hong Kong
Jerusalem
London
Mexico City
Moscow
Paris
Rome
Seoul
Sydney
Tokyo
Lo
21
64
48
31
42
33
31
46
19
69
36
W
s
s
pc
c
pc
c
r
r
s
pc
s
Lo
45
30
39
46
26
35
44
38
33
39
24
35
33
33
48
49
30
30
35
44
34
46
29
36
44
35
30
W
r
sn
c
c
c
sn
r
c
sn
sn
pc
sn
sn
c
r
r
c
sn
sn
r
c
r
sn
sn
r
sn
sn
Thu.
Hi
43
70
60
40
69
36
42
52
36
83
48
Lo
22
63
50
32
43
32
35
36
30
71
38
W
s
pc
c
s
pc
c
pc
sh
c
pc
s
WINDS
Medford
49/30
(in mph)
Klamath Falls
45/21
Boardman
Pendleton
REGIONAL FORECAST
Coastal Oregon: Mostly cloudy today with a
shower in the area.
Eastern Washington: Mostly cloudy today; a
fl urry in the north during the afternoon.
Eastern and Central Oregon: Mostly cloudy
today; a little icy mix across the north.
Cascades: Cloudy today. Showers of rain
and snow in the morning, then rain and
drizzle across the north.
Northern California: Mostly sunny at the
coast today; clouds and sun elsewhere.
Partly cloudy tonight.
Western Washington: A rain or snow
shower this morning, then a little rain in
central parts; a little rain elsewhere.
Today
Thursday
ENE 4-8
NNW 4-8
S 4-8
SSW 6-12
UV INDEX TODAY
Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.
0
0
0
0
0
NEWS
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COMMERCIAL PRINTING
Production Manager: Mike Jensen
541-215-0824 • mjensen@eastoregonian.com
Shown are noon positions of weather systems and precipitation. Temperature bands are highs for the day.
WORLD CITIES
Hi
38
69
61
41
72
35
43
58
28
78
48
Classified & Legal Advertising
1-800-962-2819 or 541-278-2678
classifieds@eastoregonian.com or legals@eastoregonian.com
NATIONAL WEATHER TODAY
Thu.
Hi
49
35
47
53
38
39
48
40
35
41
43
38
36
48
50
54
34
31
37
46
43
50
30
38
46
38
34
KENAI, Alaska (AP) —
Regulators are considering
reducing the amount of
halibut that fishermen are
allowed to catch along the
Pacific coast next year.
The International
Pacific Halibut
Commission is expected
to consider next month
adopting a 24 percent
reduction to the annual
Pacific halibut quota for
fisheries from Alaska to
California, the Peninsula
Clarion reported.
The reduction was
recommended due to low
recruitment rates among
young halibut populations
over the last decade
and increasing pressure
on the fish stocks from
commercial, subsistence
and recreational
fishing, according to
a report presented to
the intergovernmental
organization at its meeting
last month.
Halibut populations
are projected to continue
gradually declining for
the next few years under
the current fishing rates,
according to the report.
Corrections
REGIONAL CITIES
Forecast
Regulators
consider reducing
Pacific halibut
quota next year
The East Oregonian works hard to be accurate and
sincerely regrets any errors. If you notice a mistake in
the paper, please call 541-966-0818.
ADVERTISING
Advertising Director: Marissa Williams
541-278-2669 • addirector@eastoregonian.com
Advertising Services: Laura Jensen
541-966-0806 • ljensen@eastoregonian.com
Multimedia Consultants:
• Kimberly Macias
541-278-2683 • kmacias@eastoregonian.com
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541-564-4531 • jjewett@eastoregonian.com
• Dayle Stinson
541-278-2670 • dstinson@eastoregonian.com
• Angela Treadwell
541-966-0827 • atreadwell@eastoregonian.com
• Audra Workman
541-564-4538 • aworkman@eastoregonian.com
• Grace Bubar
541-276-2214 • gbubar@eastoregonian.com
Subscriber services:
For mail delivery, online access, vacation stops
or delivery concerns call 1-800-522-0255 ext. 1
The original plan
was to start enrolling
larger companies. But
OregonSaves Executive
Director Lisa Massena said
they have a new message
for smaller businesses:
“Everything is working
fine. Come on in.”
The state has rolled
the program out slowly so
far. That’s been partly out
of concern OregonSaves
doesn’t suffer the same
fate as Cover Oregon,
the botched statewide
attempt to implement the
Affordable Care Act.
About 1 million
Oregonians don’t have
access to a retirement
savings plan at work.
— Oregon Public
Broadcasting
0
8 a.m. 10 a.m. Noon 2 p.m. 4 p.m. 6 p.m.
0-2, Low
3-5, Moderate 6-7, High;
8-10, Very High;
11+, Extreme
The higher the AccuWeather.com UV Index™ num-
ber, the greater the need for eye and skin protection.
Forecasts and graphics provided by
AccuWeather, Inc. ©2017
-10s
-0s
showers t-storms
0s
10s
rain
20s
flurries
30s
40s
snow
ice
50s
60s
cold front
70s
80s
90s
100s
warm front stationary front
110s
high
low
National Summary: A cold rain is in store for the Deep South as more lake-effect snow is
forecast near the Great Lakes. Snow will fall on the northern Rockies as rain dampens the
coastal Northwest. Most other areas will be dry.
Yesterday’s National Extremes: (for the 48 contiguous states)
High 83° in Miami, Fla.
Low -36° in Embarrass, Minn.
NATIONAL CITIES
Today
Albuquerque
Atlanta
Atlantic City
Baltimore
Billings
Birmingham
Boise
Boston
Charleston, SC
Charleston, WV
Chicago
Cleveland
Dallas
Denver
Detroit
El Paso
Fairbanks
Fargo
Honolulu
Houston
Indianapolis
Jacksonville
Kansas City
Las Vegas
Little Rock
Los Angeles
Hi
59
45
32
31
23
42
33
22
48
26
11
13
42
50
15
66
-6
0
81
46
13
61
16
65
34
75
Lo
31
31
16
12
4
30
24
5
33
8
5
7
28
26
1
37
-19
-3
67
38
4
48
9
43
17
53
W
s
r
pc
sf
sn
c
c
s
sh
pc
s
c
c
s
pc
pc
s
s
sh
r
pc
c
pc
s
c
s
Thur.
Hi
58
36
26
28
10
47
36
14
42
29
17
19
44
48
17
70
-15
6
81
50
23
55
29
67
38
79
Lo
29
29
14
13
-1
30
32
4
32
18
11
11
32
25
10
37
-21
-15
68
39
12
43
13
44
22
55
W
s
i
pc
pc
sn
c
c
s
r
pc
sn
c
c
pc
sn
s
pc
sn
pc
c
c
r
c
s
c
s
Today
Louisville
Memphis
Miami
Milwaukee
Minneapolis
Nashville
New Orleans
New York City
Oklahoma City
Omaha
Philadelphia
Phoenix
Portland, ME
Providence
Raleigh
Rapid City
Reno
Sacramento
St. Louis
Salt Lake City
San Diego
San Francisco
Seattle
Tucson
Washington, DC
Wichita
Hi
24
33
84
8
5
32
50
26
32
11
30
75
19
23
46
19
57
61
20
43
68
57
41
78
34
27
Lo
13
18
70
3
2
17
42
13
21
4
16
46
-4
6
17
6
29
35
10
32
49
45
38
44
18
18
W
pc
c
pc
s
s
c
r
pc
c
pc
pc
s
s
s
c
c
s
s
pc
pc
s
s
r
pc
sf
c
Thur.
Hi
31
38
82
18
13
39
50
23
43
22
26
77
9
17
36
18
57
61
28
46
72
57
47
78
29
41
Lo
21
22
68
9
-2
24
42
13
22
8
16
47
-6
5
20
2
29
33
16
32
49
43
42
45
22
16
Weather (W): s-sunny, pc-partly cloudy, c-cloudy, sh-showers, t-thunderstorms, r-rain,
sf-snow flurries, sn-snow, i-ice.
W
pc
c
s
sn
sn
c
r
s
c
c
pc
s
s
s
pc
c
s
s
c
pc
s
s
r
s
pc
c