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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 24, 2018)
NORTHWEST East Oregonian Page 2A Wednesday, October 24, 2018 EPA proposes scaling back cleanup of Portland Harbor PORTLAND (AP) — The U.S. Environmen- tal Protection Agency has proposed to scale back the scope and cost of a planned $1 billion cleanup of a 10-mile stretch of Ore- gon’s Willamette River as it winds through Portland’s industrial area. Five years of research shows one contaminant in the Portland Harbor is less toxic than previously thought and scaling back cleanup plans for that con- taminant could reduce the cost of the overall project by $35 million, the agency said Monday. The cancer-causing chemical in question is benzo(a)pyrene and comes from burning things like coal and oil. It’s part of a larger class of pollutants known as poly aromatic hydrocarbons, or PAH. The Portland Harbor Superfund site is highly contaminated with dozens of pollutants from a century of industrial activity. The EPA spent 16 years developing a $1 billion cleanup plan for the site. “Today’s proposal ensures that the cleanup plan is current with the lat- est science to protect peo- ple’s health and the envi- ronment,” acting EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler said in the state- ment. “We are moving the cleanup forward to return the Lower Willamette to a healthier working water- way for all.” The proposal changes the target levels for cer- tain PAHs in the river’s beaches and sediment, so the cleanup will require less dredging and capping of soil. It also will shrink the footprint of the overall cleanup area by about 17 acres out of the total 2,200 acres, according to the EPA. Portland Harbor project manager Sean Sheldrake AP Photo/Don Ryan, File In this July 6, 2017 photo, late afternoon sun sparkles off the Willamette River in Portland. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is proposing to scale back the scope and cost of a planned $1 billion cleanup of the Portland Harbor superfund site because the agency says new research shows one contaminant is less toxic than previously thought, reducing the cost of the project by $35 million. told Oregon Public Broad- casting that it’s unusual for new research to show that a chemical is less toxic than previously thought. “Where we thought we had to do more to make things safe with respect to this chemical we can actu- ally do less active cleanup,” he said. “The state of the science is indicating it’s not as hazardous as we previ- ously thought.” Sheldrake said the find- ings don’t mean there won’t be any cleanup of PAHs in the river, but there will be less than planned. “Adjustments in our level of knowledge of toxic- ity do happen regularly,” he said. “It just usually doesn’t go in this direction.” Bob Sallinger, conserva- tion director with the Port- land Audubon Society, said his group believes addi- tional cleanup is needed and he’s upset with the EPA. “We were hopeful we were moving into the cleanup phase now,” he said. “This feels like a big step backward. It weakens the plan.” The EPA extended the public comment period on the proposal to Dec. 21, OPB reported. Kickbacks, scheme sends energy tax credit consultant to prison energy tax credits, has been sentenced to nearly four years in federal prison and owes hundreds of thou- sands in unpaid taxes to the Internal Revenue Service. By PARIS ACHEN Capital Bureau A solar consultant, who illegally profited off the sale of Oregon business Martin J. Shain, 61, of Seattle, was a consultant to solar project builders at several Oregon University System campuses. Between June 2012 Forecast for Pendleton Area TODAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY SUNDAY Nice with periods of sun Mostly cloudy Some sun, a shower in the p.m. Sun and clouds Times of clouds and sun 63° 43° 65° 49° PENDLETON TEMPERATURE FORECAST 68° 43° 61° 36° 60° 45° HERMISTON TEMPERATURE FORECAST 65° 42° 65° 47° 69° 41° 64° 36° OREGON FORECAST 59° 41° ALMANAC Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows. PENDLETON through 3 p.m. yest. HIGH LOW TEMP. Seattle Olympia 59/51 60/40 63/36 Longview Kennewick Walla Walla 64/47 Lewiston 61/50 66/43 Astoria 60/49 Pullman Yakima 62/38 58/47 63/43 Portland Hermiston 62/49 The Dalles 65/42 Salem Corvallis 63/41 La Grande Yesterday Normals Records 61/37 PRECIPITATION John Day Eugene Bend 63/42 60/36 64/39 Ontario 68/40 Caldwell Burns 63° 37° 62° 37° 80° (1933) 20° (1935) 24 hours ending 3 p.m. Month to date Normal month to date Year to date Last year to date Normal year to date Albany 63/44 0.00" 1.14" 0.46" 6.29" 7.80" 7.02" WINDS (in mph) 67/40 62/26 0.00" 1.39" 0.75" 7.91" 13.70" 9.69" through 3 p.m. yest. HIGH LOW TEMP. Pendleton 61/36 63/46 24 hours ending 3 p.m. Month to date Normal month to date Year to date Last year to date Normal year to date HERMISTON Enterprise 63/43 64/43 63° 38° 60° 38° 82° (1933) 19° (1916) In April, Colello was sentenced to five years in prison and ordered to pay $81,000 in restitu- tion. He pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to engage in monetary trans- actions in property derived from unlawful activity, one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and one count of filing a false income tax return. According to court records, Colello pro- vided Shain with names of energy tax credit sell- ers and interested buy- ers — information he was privy to as a Department of Energy employee. Colello then contacted the sell- ers and buyers to nego- tiate credit transfers and deceived them into believ- ing that Shain had bro- Today Boardman Pendleton Medford 67/40 Thu. WSW 4-8 W 4-8 SW 4-8 SW 4-8 SUN AND MOON Klamath Falls 61/29 Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2018 Sunrise today Sunset tonight Moonrise today Moonset today Full 7:24 a.m. 5:54 p.m. 6:27 p.m. 7:07 a.m. Last New First NATIONAL EXTREMES Yesterday’s National Extremes: (for the 48 contiguous states) High 94° in Thermal, Calif. Low 5° in Bodie State Park, Calif. Oct 24 Oct 31 Nov 7 Nov 15 NATIONAL WEATHER TODAY BRIEFLY Elections officials find no wrongdoing in Brown- Nike deal PORTLAND (AP) — Oregon elec- tions officials have found no wrongdo- ing and have closed an investigation into a ballot initiative agreement negotiated by Gov. Kate Brown, Nike and public employee unions. The Oregonian/OregonLive reported Tuesday that elections director Steve Trout sent letters Oct. 19 notifying the governor, Nike and public employee union leaders that he was closing the case. Trout wrote that statements from them outweighed information provided in the complaint filed by Portland resident Rich- ard Leonetti alleging that the initiative deal was illegal. Nike approached the governor in June about keeping the unions’ “corporate transparency” initiative off the Novem- ber ballot. The unions then decided to drop the effort, and Nike threw its sup- port behind campaigns to defeat several conservative ballot initiatives and re-elect Kate Brown. The unions’ initiative would have required large companies to disclose their taxes in state filings or pay a fine. Restaurant stops dinner after $1 million in fines for taking tips Shown are noon positions of weather systems and precipitation. Temperature bands are highs for the day. -10s -0s 0s showers t-storms 10s rain 20s flurries 30s snow 40s ice 50s 60s cold front — Founded Oct. 16, 1875 — 211 S.E. Byers Ave., Pendleton 541-276-2211 333 E. Main St., Hermiston 541-567-6211 Office hours: Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Closed major holidays www.eastoregonian.com To subscribe, call 1-800-522-0255 or go online to www.eastoregonian.com and click on ‘Subscribe’ East Oregonian (USPS 164-980) is published daily except Sunday, Monday and postal holidays, by the EO Media Group, 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801. Periodicals postage paid at Pendleton, OR. Postmaster: send address changes to East Oregonian, 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801. Copyright © 2018, EO Media Group kered the deals. Shain founded a sham company — RC Shain and Associations — under the name of a relative where he funneled commission payments and concealed the income from the IRS. He charged sellers a 1- to 2-percent fee, undercut- ting brokers who typically charged 10 percent for similar transfers. During the three-year conspiracy, Shain deposited more than $1.3 million in income from the scheme. Colello accepted a por- tion of the profits as a kick- back from Shain. The kick- backs came in biweekly cashier’s checks. In total, investigators estimated that Colello received more than $300,000 in kick- backs from Shain. PRECIPITATION Moses Lake 59/46 Aberdeen 57/40 61/41 Tacoma Yesterday Normals Records Spokane Wenatchee 59/51 and March 2015, Shain paid kickbacks to Joseph Colello, former manager of the energy tax credit program, in exchange for energy tax credit sales, according to court records. Shain was sentenced Tuesday to 46 months in federal prison, three years’ supervised release and over $520,000 in restitution. He pleaded guilty in June to one count each of conspir- acy to defraud the United States and tax evasion. “Treating a government program as a personal ATM risks the integrity of all public servants who have responsibility for protect- ing Oregon’s resources,” said Renn Cannon, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Oregon, in a statement Tuesday. 70s 80s 90s 100s warm front stationary front 110s high low PORTLAND (AP) — A Portland restaurant will halt dinner service Satur- day, several weeks after its chef-owner was fined nearly $1 million for taking tips and splitting them between kitchen staff, salaried managers and the general man- ager, among other violations. The Oregonian/OregonLive reports Park Kitchen will remain open for private events. The instances of wage theft took place Subscriber services: For mail delivery, online access, vacation stops or delivery concerns call 1-800-522-0255 ext. 1 SUBSCRIPTION RATES Local home delivery Savings off cover price EZPay $14.50 41 percent 52 weeks $173.67 41 percent 26 weeks $91.86 38 percent 13 weeks $47.77 36 percent *EZ Pay = one-year rate with a monthly credit or debit card/check charge Single copy price: $1 Tuesday through Friday, $1.50 Saturday Circulation Manager: Bonny Tuller, 541-966-0828 ADVERTISING Regional Publisher and Revenue Director: Christopher Rush 541-278-2669 • crush@eomediagroup.com Advertising Services: Angela Treadwell 541-966-0827 • atreadwell@eastoregonian.com Grace Bubar 541-276-2214 • gbubar@eastoregonian.com Multimedia Consultants: • Kimberly Macias 541-278-2683 • kmacias@eastoregonian.com • Jeanne Jewett 541-564-4531 • jjewett@eastoregonian.com • Dayle Stinson 541-278-2670 • dstinson@eastoregonian.com • Audra Workman 541-564-4538 • aworkman@eastoregonian.com at Park Kitchen and its sister restaurant, the now-closed Bent Brick. In 2016, a federal court ruled that the practice of “tip pooling” — used as a way to balance wages between higher-paid restaurant servers and cooks — was ille- gal. That year, Scott Dolich eliminated tipping. The Multnomah County case shows that Park Kitchen and Bent Brick man- agement retaliated against at least one employee who complained about the tip pool. The jury awarded Holly Rice $50,000 in non-economic damages. Candidate for sheriff remains on ballot after death SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — A man who died in a motorcycle crash last month remains listed as a candidate for Spokane County Sheriff on the November ballot. KREM reports that Scott Maclay, who legally changed his name to Dumpozzie Dot Com, was set to face incumbent Ozzie Knezovich. Maclay died Sept. 3 in a crash in Benewah County, Idaho. State law says that if a deceased can- didate wins the election, the affiliated party will select three candidates to send to the Board of County Commissioners to decide the winner. Spokane County Elections Auditor Vicki Dalton says Maclay preferred the independent party. Maclay garnered 13 percent of the votes in the May primary race. Corrections 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. Classified & Legal Advertising 1-800-962-2819 or 541-278-2678 classifieds@eastoregonian.com or legals@eastoregonian.com NEWS • To submit news tips and press releases: call 541-966-0818 or email news@eastoregonian.com • To submit community events, calendar items and Your EO News: email community@eastoregonian.com or call Tammy Malgesini at 541-564-4539 or Renee Struthers at 541-966-0818. • To submit engagements, weddings and anniversaries: email rstruthers@eastoregonian.com or visit www.eastoregonian. com/community/announcements • To submit sports or outdoors information or tips: 541-966-0838 • sports@eastoregonian.com Business Office Manager: Janna Heimgartner 541-966-0822 • jheimgartner@eastoregonian.com COMMERCIAL PRINTING Production Manager: Mike Jensen 541-215-0824 • mjensen@eastoregonian.com
