SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 2021
BAKER CITY HERALD — A7
LOCAL & STATE
Wyden: River Democracy Act could get vote in 2022
By MICHAEL KOHN
The (Bend) Bulletin
U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-
Ore., said Tuesday, Nov. 9 that
a plan to protect thousands
of miles of rivers and streams
in Oregon from development
could become law next year.
Wyden — meeting in
Shevlin Park with students
who urged the senator to get
the legislation passed — said
the River Democracy Act
could be passed in 2022 after
the dust settles from Presi-
dent Joe Biden’s infrastruc-
ture bill.
If passed, the act would
add nearly 4,700 miles of
rivers and streams in Oregon
to the Wild and Scenic Rivers
System. The river system is
a special designation that
protects rivers and develops
them for tourism, in the same
way that a national park
develops a designated area
of land.
“My sense is when we
get done with Build Back
Better, … when that gets
done, I think there will be
an effort on both sides of the
aisle to lay out a schedule
for the rest of the Congress
and into 2022,” said Wyden.
“I am pushing hard to make
sure that public lands is high
up on that schedule, that is
what I am pushing for action
in 2022.”
Michael Kohn/The (Bend) Bulletin
Tye Krueger, left, owner of Confl uence Fly Shop in Bend, listens to Sen. Ron Wyden
in Shevlin Park on Tuesday, Nov. 9.
The act, which was
introduced in Congress in
February, could help business
owners in Central Oregon,
particularly those involved in
fi shing and tourism.
Tye Krueger, owner of the
Confl uence Fly Shop in Bend,
urged Wyden to pass the leg-
islation as soon as possible,
saying that passage of the act
is critical to the protection of
fi sh spawning and rearing
habitat in Central Oregon.
“Companies like mine can-
not thrive without healthy,
self-sustaining populations of
wild steelhead, salmon and
trout. These species are in
desperate need of our help,”
COVID-19 recovery
slows, but no sign
of a new spike
By GARY A. WARNER
Oregon Capital Bureau
Oregon’s rebound from
the delta variant spike in
COVID-19 has slowed, with
hospitalizations remaining
high through February, a new
state forecast reported Thurs-
day, Nov. 11.
The number of people in
Oregon hospitalized with
COVID-19 will stay above 400
statewide through Thanksgiv-
ing, Christmas and New Year’s,
according to the forecast from
Oregon Health & Science
University.
Dr. Peter Graven, director of
the OHSU Offi ce of Advanced
Analytics, said due to the
availability of vaccines, Oregon
won’t experience the kind of
surge in infections that swept
the state last winter.
“At this time a year ago, we
were going straight up,” Graven
said Friday, Nov. 12.
The Oregon Health Author-
ity reported Wednesday, Nov. 10
that 67% of all Oregonians —
including children — have been
vaccinated. Among adults, 72%
are vaccinated.
The health authority re-
ports that only Gilliam, Grant,
Malheur and Lake counties
have less than half of adults
vaccinated.
Seven counties have vac-
cinated more than two-thirds of
all residents, including children:
Lincoln, Multnomah, Benton,
Hood River, Washington, De-
schutes and Lane counties.
OHSU forecasts that
hospitalizations will dip under
200 per day by the beginning of
February. That is two months
longer than OHSU forecast
last month and a month longer
than forecast just last week.
The Oregon Health Author-
ity reported Wednesday that
509 Oregonians remained
hospitalized with COVID-19.
That’s less than half the
number at the peak of the
latest spike, when 1,178 were
hospitalized on Sept. 1.
The virus continues to be
the major reason for patients
to be in intensive care units.
COVID-19 patients make up
22% of those currently in the
state’s intensive care units, up
from 18% last week, OHSU
reported.
The overwhelming number
of new infections, hospitaliza-
tions and deaths are among the
estimated 20% of Oregonians
who are neither vaccinated nor
have been previously exposed
to the virus.
Graven said that leaves a
“substantial pool” of unpro-
tected people who account for
over 90% of COVID-19 cases
requiring hospitalization and
99% of deaths.
But the virus is less likely to
fi nd large numbers of unvac-
cinated people to cause a major
outbreak.
“There are more and more
infections occurring and im-
munity is building up,” Graven
said. “As that happens, it
becomes harder and harder to
generate a surge in hospitaliza-
tions.”
With boosters now avail-
able, the possible waning of the
lasting power of vaccinations is
less of a factor.
“I’m not seeing any data
that tell me we’re going to get a
surge driven by breakthrough
infections,” Graven said.
OHA reported Wednes-
day that 13% of previously
vaccinated Oregonians have
received booster shots.
One positive side of
pandemic precautions has
been a second straight year of
lower-than expected seasonal
fl u cases.
OHSU reported fewer than
13 fl u cases a week are being
detected in Oregon. In a typi-
cal fl u season, more than 100
cases are reported per week.
Public health offi cials have
credited the low numbers to
the high rate of mask-wearing,
social distancing and other
safeguards against COVID-19
that also suppress spread of
the fl u.
Featuring oboist, Molly Trindle
Winner of the Concerto+Aria Competition
Performing:
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Orchestra by Mozart
said Krueger.
Krueger handed Wyden
two thick binders contain-
ing letters of support for the
River Democracy Act from
students, advocates and
local businesses in Central
Oregon.
Wyden also spoke with
students from Cascades
the Wild and Scenic Rivers
System, but there is plenty
of room to add more — state-
wide, Oregon is home to
110,994 miles of rivers and
streams.
Wyden, with the sounds
of Tumalo Creek gurgling
behind him, said the bill is
about protecting clean drink-
ing water, reducing wildfi re
risk and helping small
businesses in the recreation
industry.
“It’s a big economic mul-
tiplier for our state,” Wyden
said. “The fact is we can
recreate and achieve other
important goals, like reducing
fi re risk, simultaneously. The
two aren’t mutually exclusive.
We can do both.”
Rivers that fall under
the wild and scenic designa-
tion receive assessments
from federal land managers
for wildfi re risks. That has
become more critical in recent
years for Central Oregon
as drought keeps forests in
tinderbox conditions.
Wyden said the bill was
created in Oregon with river
nominations from thousands
of Oregonians and is not a
Washington, D.C., creation.
“It was written here in our
state … in this community
and scores of others,” said
Wyden. “This is vintage Or-
egon; this is the way we do it.”
Academy and Pacifi c Crest
Middle School.
Lea Heraeus, a sixth
grader at Cascades Academy,
said she and her classmates
were meeting Wyden to share
what they love about rivers
and express the need to pro-
tect them from habitat loss.
“My hope is that there
won’t be more dams built,
which makes it harder for
fi sh to travel upstream and
downstream. I wish it would
be easier for them,” said Her-
aeus, adding that she enjoys
spending time watching
wildlife that inhabits river
areas.
Cascades Academy eighth
grader Maeve Wilcox, a
kayaker, said she wants the
act passed in order to protect
river and stream riparian
areas.
“They provide essential
habitat for native species of
plants and animals, and I
hope no dams are built, and
no mining activities that
make the river unhealthy,”
she said.
The act includes sections
of several rivers in Cen-
tral Oregon, including the
Deschutes and Fall rivers,
Whychus Creek, the North
Fork of the Crooked River,
and Tumalo Creek.
Oregon currently has
2,173 miles designated in
La Grande football players
accused of racist taunts
By DAVIS CARBAUGH
The (La Grande) Observer
LA GRANDE — The
La Grande High School
football team is under fi re
for alleged racism during a
state playoff matchup.
An article from The
Oregonian was published
on Thursday, Nov. 11,
describing allegations that
members of the La Grande
football team hurled racial
slurs at Gladstone High
School players throughout
the fi rst-round matchup at
Eastern Oregon Univer-
sity on Nov. 5, a game La
Grande won 34-12.
The ending of the game
was atypical in a number of
ways. Gladstone was penal-
ized after an argument be-
tween the team’s head coach
Cam Sommer and offi cials
on the fi eld with about a
minute left in regulation.
The game was paused for
roughly fi ve minutes as
coaches and parents on the
Gladstone side of the fi eld
argued with offi cials. Upon
time expiring, the Gladstone
sideline walked off without
shaking hands or confront-
ing the La Grande sideline.
This came as a result of
what Gladstone players in
The Oregonian article claim
was a constant use of racial
slurs by La Grande players
during the competition.
Ricky White, a Gladstone
senior, told The Oregonian
that the racial slurs were
Andrew Cutler/The (La Grande) Observer
La Grande quarterback Logan Williams runs past
defenders along the sideline during a fi rst-round
state playoff matchup against Gladstone on Friday,
Nov. 5, 2021.
a problem from the start of
the game.
“Every Black person on
our team heard (the slur)
all game besides the one
who was injured in the fi rst
quarter,” White told The
Oregonian.
The La Grande School
District released a state-
ment on Nov. 12, which
stated that the investigation
is ongoing at this point. The
school district is working
with the Gladstone School
District and the Oregon
School Activities Association
to get to the bottom of the
issue and fi nd facts on what
transpired during the game.
“It is extremely concern-
ing that our athletes have
been accused of using racist
language during the playoff
game and our school district
will continue to look into
this situation,” La Grande
Superintendent George
Mendoza said in the press
release. “The impact of ra-
cially charged language cre-
ates a great deal of strain in
relationships and impacts a
person’s sense of safety and
belonging. Our goal and
intention is to ensure every
student-athlete feels safe,
valued, understood and
protected.”
The statement noted that
both school districts and
OSAA will continue working
together on the matter. The
entities involved are looking
at game video and question-
ing players, offi cials and
the chain crew to get more
information.
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Grande Ronde Symphony
Returns Live and In-Person…
Join Grande Ronde Symphony for the Fall 2021 Concert
Under the baton of music director, Zachary Banks
Wednesday, November 17, 2021 at 7:00pm PST
Eastern Oregon University’s McKenzie Theatre
Saturday, November 20, 2021 at 1:00pm PST
Saint Francis de Sales Cathedral in Baker City
Other Orchestra Pieces Performed:
Symphony No. 5 by Beethoven
Academic Festival Overture by Brahms
Visit www.GrandeRondeSymphony.org for more information & to purchase tickets on-line
Tickets available at: Direct Music Source in La Grande & Betty’s Books in Baker City
Note: Masks required for audience members
Submit your photos and be entered for your chance
to win a $30 gift certificate to a local
restaurant of your choice
View Rules and Prize information at
bakercityherald.com/pet_contest