NORTHWEST
Oregon thinning project
can proceed, judge rules
have conducted a compre-
hensive “environmental
impact statement” about
the project, the plaintiffs
claim.
The
environmental
groups argue the thinning
project will remove habitat
for the threatened northern
spotted owl that will take
up to 100 years to recover.
The Forest Service
countered that no spotted
owls occupy the area that’s
intended for logging and
that thinning is a proven
method to reduce fi re dan-
ger that’s not considered
scientifi cally controversial
enough to warrant an EIS.
Trees that are left in
the remaining canopy
after thinning will face
less competition for water,
light and soil, rendering
them healthier and better
able to withstand fi re and
disease, the Forest Service
argues.
Last month, the judge
ruled against the environ-
mental plaintiffs’ argu-
ments that logging and
road-building should be
stopped while the gov-
ernment conducts a more
extensive analysis of the
thinning project.
Mosman has entered
an order stating that he’s
By MATEUSZ
PERKOWSKI
Capital Press
SALEM — A thinning
project in Oregon’s Mount
Hood National Forest can
proceed while environ-
mentalists try to convince
a federal appeals court that
old growth habitat would
be logged unlawfully.
Chief U.S. District
Judge Michael Mosman
has denied a request by
environmental groups to
block an early phase of
the Crystal Clear resto-
ration project while they
challenge an earlier ruling
before the 9th U.S. Circuit
Court of Appeals.
The
environmental
plaintiffs — Bark, Cas-
cadia Wildlands, Ore-
gon Wild and Wildearth
Guardians
—
claim
the U.S. Forest Service
approved the 11,700-acre
project in violation of the
National Environmental
Policy Act and National
Forest Management Act.
Removing large trees
from the forest canopy
to improve fi re resiliency
is “highly controversial”
and has “uncertain envi-
ronmental effects,” which
means the agency should
Oregon Court of Appeals
upholds Tillamook
transmission line approval
ruling in the favor of the
Forest Service and High
Cascade Inc., a timber
company that’s inter-
vened in the lawsuit, but
hasn’t yet issued a writ-
ten opinion explaining his
reasoning.
The plaintiffs have
appealed that decision and,
in the meantime, requested
that Mosman block a 132-
acre portion of the proj-
ect while their challenge is
pending.
The judge has ruled
against that motion, fi nd-
ing that multiple factors
weigh against an injunc-
tion even though the envi-
ronmentalists would suf-
fer “irreparable harm”
by not experiencing that
harvest unit in its current
state.
The project won’t cause
irreparable harm to the
formation of snags that
can be inhabited by wild-
life or to the ability to view
northern spotted owls in
the wild, the judge said.
An injunction against
thinning wouldn’t be in the
public interest and it’s also
unlikely the environmen-
tal plaintiffs will prevail in
their claims the Forest Ser-
vice violated federal laws,
the judge said.
Forecast for Pendleton Area
TODAY
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
SUNDAY
Thursday, June 20, 2019
MONDAY
distribution line.
Opponents claim the
project could be avoided
by building a second dis-
tribution line along exist-
ing road easements, which
wouldn’t take additional
farm and forest land out
of commission.
During oral arguments
in May, the Court of
Appeals mostly focused
on whether such a trans-
mission line is permissi-
ble within estuary zones
in Tillamook County.
Tilla-Bay Farms and
Oregon Coast Alliance
argued the county govern-
ment and Oregon’s Land
Use Board of Appeals
improperly determined
that transmission lines
are allowable as a “similar
use” to distribution lines,
which can cross such
estuary zones.
The utility district
countered that conduit
lines for transmission
lines are identical to dis-
tribution lines and no sup-
port structures will be
constructed within the
estuary zones.
On June 19, the Oregon
Court of Appeals affi rmed
LUBA’s decision that Til-
lamook County had ade-
quately followed land use
By MATEUSZ
PERKOWSKI
Capital Press
TILLAMOOK — The
Oregon Court of Appeals
has upheld the approval of
a 9-mile transmission line
across farms and forest
land in Tillamook County
without explaining its
legal reasoning.
Last month, the Til-
la-Bay Farms dairy was
joined by the Oregon
Coast Alliance conserva-
tion group in arguing the
project didn’t comply with
land use rules.
The transmission line
is controversial because
critics fear it will dis-
rupt farm activities, such
as aerial spraying, while
encouraging trespass and
vandalism of private for-
estland. The Oregon Farm
Bureau and Oregon Dairy
Farmers Association have
opposed the project’s
approval.
The Tillamook Peo-
ple’s Utility District says
the transmission line is
necessary for reliable
service to the commu-
nity of Oceanside, which
faces power outages from
vehicle and trees col-
liding with an existing
Pleasant with
clouds and sun
69° 48°
72° 51°
Warmer with
clouds and sun
Partly sunny,
breezy and nice
Sunshine and
pleasant
PENDLETON TEMPERATURE FORECAST
82° 54°
76° 48°
77° 49°
HERMISTON TEMPERATURE FORECAST
75° 52°
78° 56°
87° 58°
81° 50°
82° 54°
OREGON FORECAST
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
61/51
60/44
72/49
Longview
Kennewick Walla Walla
69/50
Lewiston
63/51
75/53
Astoria
62/51
Pullman
Yakima 74/52
66/48
67/49
Portland
Hermiston
68/54
The Dalles 75/52
Salem
Corvallis
66/48
Yesterday
Normals
Records
La Grande
61/44
PRECIPITATION
John Day
Eugene
Bend
69/46
62/36
61/41
Ontario
70/51
Caldwell
Burns
76°
55°
81°
54°
102° (1961) 39° (2016)
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
67/48
0.00"
Trace
0.43"
4.42"
5.10"
5.54"
Today
Fri.
Boardman WSW 10-20
Pendleton
W 10-20
Medford
75/48
W 4-8
WNW 6-12
SUN AND MOON
Klamath Falls
69/35
Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2019
Sunrise today
Sunset tonight
Moonrise today
Moonset today
5:05 a.m.
8:48 p.m.
11:31 p.m.
8:10 a.m.
Last
New
First
Full
June 25
July 2
July 9
July 16
NATIONAL EXTREMES
Yesterday’s National Extremes: (for the 48 contiguous states)
High 109° in Cotulla, Texas Low 31° in Climax, Colo.
SUMPTER — Sumpter’s
assistant city recorder said
she and two of the city’s three
other employees are on paid
administrative leave.
LeAnne Woolf, a former
city councilor in the town
of 210 about 28 miles west
of Baker City, said Sumpter
Mayor Greg Lucas told her on
May 14 that she was on leave
due to “overcommunicating.”
Woolf said Lucas cited
as an example a note she
allegedly wrote on a Sumpter
resident’s water bill, but he
didn’t provide a copy.
Woolf said she wrote
“Happy 2019!” on custom-
ers’ bills in January, but
she’s not aware of anything
she might have written that
would have prompted her to
be disciplined.
NATIONAL WEATHER TODAY
ORE.
TILLAMOOK
STATE
FOREST
Tillamook
Bay
101
6
Tillamook
Netarts 131
Proposed new
transmission
line
101
3 miles
Capital Press graphic
rules in approving the
project but did not issue a
written opinion.
The Tillamook Peo-
ple’s Utility District is
also trying to obtain the
power of eminent domain
to foreclose on portions of
37 properties in the path
of the planned transmis-
sion line.
Critics of the project
argue eminent domain
power
isn’t
justifi ed
because demand for elec-
tricity in Oceanside isn’t
growing as rapidly as the
utility district expects.
The eminent domain
decision will be made by
the Oregon Public Util-
ity Commission, which
is still deliberating on
the matter.
Woolf said Sumpter City
Recorder Julie McKinney,
and Public Works Director
Jeff McKinney, Julie McK-
inney’s husband, were both
placed on paid leave Friday.
Lucas could not be reached
for comment. He was elected
as mayor in November 2018
as a write-in candidate.
The Sumpter City Council
met on Tuesday night.
Woolf, who attended the
meeting, said Lucas men-
tioned multiple investigations
regarding city operations, but
he did not elaborate.
She said Lucas told a
standing room only audi-
ence at City Hall that attor-
neys have been advising city
offi cials.
Woolf said the city has
hired temporary employ-
ees to replace her and the
McKinneys.
A company from John
Day is handling city recorder
and bookkeeping duties,
Woolf said.
Although Woolf said no
city offi cial has given her
other reasons for her being
put on leave, she has heard
rumors that her “account-
ing practices are under
investigation.”
According to a writ-
ten transcript of a May 16
Sumpter city budget hear-
ing that Woolf provided, City
Councilor Charlie Briscoe
said Jeff McKinney had told
him he had heard he would
be fi red.
Briscoe said he told
McKinney that wasn’t true,
according to the hearing
transcript.
Briscoe did say, according
to the transcript, that he told
McKinney that things need
to change in the city, and that
the city needs accountability.
OREGON IN BRIEF
WINDS (in mph)
66/45
61/37
0.00"
0.05"
0.89"
9.33"
6.40"
7.40"
through 3 p.m. yest.
HIGH
LOW
TEMP.
Pendleton 57/40
68/49
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
69/48
68/54
73°
53°
80°
53°
98° (1967) 35° (1893)
PRECIPITATION
Moses
Lake
66/49
Aberdeen
61/45
71/53
Tacoma
Yesterday
Normals
Records
Spokane
Wenatchee
67/52
Area in
detail
101
Sumpter employees placed on leave
By JAYSON JACOBY
Baker City Herald
Breezy with some
sun
Pacific O
cean
East Oregonian
A2
Oregon’s hate
crime laws see
fi rst update since
1980s
SALEM — Oregon law-
makers unanimously sent
the governor an overhaul
of the state’s hate crime
laws on Wednesday, adding
changes such as including
“gender identity” as a pro-
tected class.
The proposal is the fi rst
signifi cant update to the
state’s hate crime laws
since the 1980s, and the
move is meant to refl ect
a more modern-day Ore-
gon by acknowledging the
increase in crimes against
transgender individuals and
by encouraging more vic-
tim-focused responses to
allegations of bias crimes.
“We know that hate
crimes are increasing both
locally and nationally,” said
House Majority Leader
Jennifer Williamson, a
Democrat from Portland
who carried the measure on
the fl oor.
Hate crimes increased
by 40% in Oregon from
2016 to 2017, according to
FBI statistics, while convic-
tions and arrests for those
crimes have gone down.
The number of hateful inci-
dents is likely much higher
than what the data suggests,
as many local jurisdic-
tions either didn’t submit
data to the FBI or reported
that zero hate crimes
occurred.
Port of Astoria
director resigns
amid criticism
ASTORIA — The Port
of Astoria’s executive direc-
tor has resigned.
Jim Knight’s resignation
comes a week after a major-
ity of the Port Commission
publicly lost confi dence in
his leadership and indicated
he could be fi red, The Asto-
rian reported.
The Port Commission
on Tuesday accepted his
resignation and both sides
agreed to release all claims
against each another, assur-
ing Knight will not sue the
agency.
The Port will pay
Knight $221,000, includ-
ing $145,400 for alleged
emotional distress, $33,600
for economic damages and
$42,000 for his attorney
fees.
The agency will also
cover six months of health
benefi ts for Knight, who is
additionally eligible for the
Oregon Public Employees
Retirement System.
Knight left the Port’s
offi ces with his lawyer
before the meeting and
couldn’t be reached for
comment by the newspaper.
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
50s
ice
60s
cold front
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