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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (March 22, 2018)
PETITION TO BAN ‘ASSAULT WEAPONS’ OREGON/2A TRUCK FIRE ON I-84 FRESHMAN SPARKS GONZAGA SPORTS/1B REGION/3A THURSDAY, MARCH 22, 2018 142nd Year, No. 111 WINNER OF THE 2017 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD One dollar BOARDMAN Lost Valley settles to keep dairy operating Must limit wastewater, maintain lagoon By MATEUSZ PERKOWSKI EO Media Group Staff photos by E.J. Harris Ron Benage of Hermiston drops off donated care packages for foster care clients at the Department of Human Resources in Boardman. KIDS ON THE LINE Mounting caseloads, slow recruitment keep DHS workers busy By JAYATI RAMAKRISHNAN East Oregonian C hild welfare caseworkers often spend money out of their own wallets, hours after the work day ends. “I remember once I took a kid out of detention, and had to take him to Portland for drug and alcohol rehabilitation,” said Jody Frost, the supervisor for DHS District 12, which oversees Child Welfare for the Department of Human Services in Umatilla and Morrow counties. “He came out wearing an orange jumpsuit. I had to take him and buy him clothes.” DHS workers face a challenging job — helping children and families in peril, while managing ever-growing caseloads. The state’s foster care system and DHS recently came under scrutiny, An audit of the state’s foster care system released in January said the system’s needs are mounting, and criticized practices such as case workers housing foster children in motel rooms. The audit made recom- mendations to DHS, including organizing its management system and finding a consistent plan to recruit foster parents. Local case workers said they face the same issues as the state — a dearth of foster parents, growing caseloads, and a lack of time to recruit new employees. There are 5,256 foster homes Service group at the Mormon church in Hermiston put together the care bag for foster care clients in Umatilla and Morrow counties. statewide, including 106 in Umatilla and Morrow counties. Of those, 60 are relatives or somehow known to the foster children. She said DHS always attempts to place children with family members, or with someone significant in their lives, such as a coach or a neighbor. According to a DHS report, a total of 11,645 children statewide were in foster care for at least one day in fiscal year 2017. Of those, just over 4,000 entered the system that year. Frost said the national average for caseworkers is eight new cases per month, while in her district it’s 14 to 16. “They’re doing their best to ensure the child is safe while getting assigned new cases all the time,” Frost said. A case can take anywhere from a few months to a few years to be resolved, and case worker is only reimbursed for $150 per child for the life of the case, no matter how long. “Caseworkers spend so much money out of their pockets,” she said. “They buy kids lunch, haircuts.” She said the most needed donations are hygiene items, baby wipes and diapers. See FOSTER/5A The Oregon Department of Agri- culture has settled its lawsuit against a controversial new dairy as long as the facility complies with waste- water management conditions. Lost Valley Farm, a dairy near Boardman with the capacity to milk 30,000 cows, has agreed to limit wastewater production to 65,000 gallons a day and ensure its manure lagoons have enough capacity to handle water from serious storms. If the dairy follows the agreement’s terms for one year, ODA will resume using normal administrative remedies under the facility’s “confined animal feeding operation” permit. However, the agency can still seek to revoke the dairy’s CAFO permit or request a court injunction if it’s necessary. Earlier this year, ODA fined Lost Valley Farm more than $10,000 for allowing wastewater to overflow into unauthorized areas, failing to maintain lagoon capacity and not reporting the issues to the agency. The civil penalty was preceded by several notices of non-compli- ance with its CAFO permit. A lawsuit against Lost Valley Farm and its owner, Greg TeVelde, was filed by the agency last month after inspectors said the dairy continued to improperly discharge wastewater and maintain inade- quate lagoon capacity. Travis Love, the dairy’s manager, claimed the facility was being held to a higher standard than other Oregon dairies. In a motion for a temporary restraining order, ODA asked Multnomah County Circuit Court Judge Stephen Bushong to stop the dairy from generating any more wastewater. Lost Valley Farm opposed that request, claiming that such an order would effectively shut down the facility at a cost of $30 million and 70 lost jobs. The judge issued a temporary restraining order that required the dairy to follow its CAFO permit but didn’t prohibit wastewater produc- tion. The dairy was to show why the more drastic measure wasn’t neces- sary at a court hearing scheduled for March 23, but that appearance was canceled due to the settlement. Representatives of environ- mental, animals rights and small farms groups opposed the construc- tion of Lost Valley Farm, citing increased pollution concerns. Counties, tribes look to partner for public transit By PHIL WRIGHT East Oregonian Oregon’s new transportation fund could provide public bus service between Pendleton and Boardman. Umatilla and Morrow counties are teaming up to look at that possibility and want the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation on board. In 2015, more than 2,400 people commuted into the Boardman and Irrigon areas to work, according to U.S. Census data. And the number of employees in Pendleton and Hermiston who live outside those cities topped 10,000. Public transportation needs for the area are going to increase as jobs and housing develop. The tribes’ own and operate Kayak Public Transit, the largest transit service in the two counties, which may provide a base for expanded services. The 2017 Legislature estab- lished the Statewide Transportation Improvement Fund, which will provide money to local agencies to tackle public transit needs. J.D. Tovey, planning director for the tribes, discussed the fund and its local implications Tuesday in Pendleton during a joint meeting of Umatilla and Morrow County officials. He said the program encourages “regional coordination and collab- oration” with an aim of creating a statewide transit system. Umatilla County’s 2016 Coor- dinated Human Services Public Transportation Plan identified better regional coordination between transportation providers among 20 needs, along with getting people See TRANSIT/5A Staff photo by E.J. Harris Fleet maintenance and safety manager Rob Johnson uses a portable lift system to lower a bus after working on the vehicle at the Kayak Public Transit maintenance shop Wednesday in Mission.
