A8 THE BULLETIN • WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2021
EDITORIALS & OPINIONS
AN INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPER
Heidi Wright
Gerry O’Brien
Richard Coe
Publisher
Editor
Editorial Page Editor
The agenda for Bend’s
new state representative
W
hen Jason Kropf was running to be the state
representative for Bend, he pledged to fight for the
community’s priorities.
Now he’s in office. He’s a chief
sponsor of one bill, a sponsor of an-
other and is working on much more.
The bills he sponsors are far from
the only measure of what he does as
a state legislator. But they are crucial
steps. We spoke with him Monday
about his legislative agenda.
House Bill 2593 helps plug a fund-
ing gap in Oregon for search and
rescue. The answer in the bill is not:
Raise more taxes. Kropf is a chief
sponsor.
Sheriffs in Oregon are directed by
state law to run search and rescue op-
erations. There isn’t a great funding
source for it. State law puts
a cap on how much any in-
dividual can be charged at
$500, anyway. Some difficult
searches and rescues cost far
more than that. And basi-
cally in Oregon, people ar-
en’t forced to pay. You don’t
Kropf
want to force people to pay,
because they might not call
for help.
In places like Deschutes County
beautiful scenery and tourists adds
up to a lot of search and rescue mis-
sions. Deschutes Search and Rescue
carried out 128 missions in 2019
and 106 in 2020. The Sheriff’s Office
runs the program. Volunteers are
the backbone of its success. Working
with the professionals at the sheriff’s
office, volunteers carry out many of
the rescues. Volunteers also run a
private nonprofit to raise money for
Deschutes SAR. Sheriff Shane Nelson
told us Deschutes SAR is actually in
good shape financially. That’s because
of the fundraising, donations from
people who are rescued and because
county residents supported taxes for
his office. Many counties, though,
struggle, and Deschutes could always
use help.
H.B. 2593 could be a smart solu-
tion. It would authorize a nonprofit
representing sheriffs to sell search
and rescue cards. The money raised
would be used to reimburse search
and recreation operations and train-
ing. Distribution of the money would
take into consideration the volume
and nature of rescues in a county and
other factors. There’s a similar pro-
gram in Colorado.
People will still get rescued if they
don’t have a card. It’s just a way for
people to show their support of the
efforts to keep people safe when they
venture out.
Rep. Anna Williams, D-Hood
River, originally introduced the bill.
Kropf said he supported it, because
it’s a creative solution to a funding
problem for an essential service.
When people call for help, he said,
you want our sheriffs to be able to
respond fully staffed, equipped and
trained.
Kropf’s committee assignments
are centered primarily around justice
— public safety, civil law and the judi-
ciary. “I want to make Oregon as safe
as possible,” he said. “Expect more ac-
tion on racial justice.”
His solution is not just more laws
and more law enforcement, more
incarceration. He wants more addic-
tion and mental health treatment.
He wants training and support for
inmates so when they get out they
can live productive lives and not
re-offend.
That’s part of the reason he is sup-
porting House Bill 2912. It extends
and adds more funding to a pilot pro-
gram at Coffee Creek Correctional
Facility. The program helps inmates
with legal services so they understand
and can overcome the barriers — le-
gal, economic and social —
they will have when they get
out of prison.
We can’t predict what
else will come up this ses-
sion. But there are two
long-standing issues for De-
schutes County that require
legislative action: funding
for Oregon State Univer-
sity-Cascades and more judges for
the county. Kropf has spoken to Gov.
Kate Brown about how important the
funding is for the campus to build on
its success and student demand.
He is also on the committee that
will be reviewing the requests for new
judges in the state. The simple fact is
“we don’t have enough judges in this
community,” Kropf said. The county’s
court system runs well and does sev-
eral innovative things, such as having
a specialized drug court to help peo-
ple overcome addiction, not just jail.
It needs enough judges to be able to
specialize.
The county also needs enough
judges so one judge could be assigned
to one family to handle all the claims
regarding divorce, custody, delin-
quency and other matters. The logic
is obvious. The judge will be more
efficient, better informed and there
would be more uniformity in ap-
proach. But it’s hard for Deschutes
County to pull that off if there are so
few judges that they must be pulled to
other duties.
Additional judges for Deschutes
County have been yanked before in
last minute negotiations by the Leg-
islature’s Democratic leadership. Per-
haps as a Democrat, Kropf will have
more success. Let’s hope so.
These issues are just a start. He has
more bills he is working on — gun
safety, clean energy, siting of shel-
ters and the bill we wrote about re-
cently that could help flows in the
Deschutes River. Kropf believes what
we believe. It doesn’t matter if you are
a Republican, a Democrat or some-
thing else. Bend needs excellent rep-
resentation in the Legislature. He was
a Deschutes County deputy district
attorney before he was elected. He is
now, though, working full time as a
state legislator to be the best represen-
tative he can for Bend. We may dis-
agree with him from time to time, but
we can’t ask for more commitment
than that.
Editorials reflect the views of The Bulletin’s editorial board, Publisher Heidi Wright, Editor
Gerry O’Brien and Editorial Page Editor Richard Coe. They are written by Richard Coe.
Understanding greenhouse gases
BY SCOTT CHRISTIANSEN
For The Bulletin
G
reenhouse gases (GHGs) are
out of sight and out of mind.
This public service message re-
views U.S. GHG emissions from car-
bon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4),
nitrous oxide (N2O) and fluorocar-
bons (see table below). Also presented
are the carbon dioxide equivalency
(CO2e) of GHGs, indicating their po-
tential to trap more heat relative to
CO2.
Note that fluorinated gases have no
natural source — they are 100% man-
made — and are dangerous because
of their high CO2e and long atmo-
spheric lifetimes. Two examples: per-
fluorocarbon, used in the manufac-
turing of semiconductors, has a CO2e
near 10,000 and sulfur hexafluoride,
used as an insulating gas in electrical
transmission equipment, has a CO2e
of 22,800, making it among the most
potent GHGs.
Finally, carbon black and water va-
por also contribute to global warm-
ing, but they are not GHGs.
Note: U.S. Environmental Protec-
tion Agency data were used in the
preparation of this article.
GHG GHGs in the US atmosphere (%) CO2e
CO2
81
1
CH4
10
25
N2O
7
300
Fluorocarbons
2
10,000+
Human activities have increased
CO2 in the atmosphere. The concen-
tration of CO2 in Earth’s atmosphere
is currently 412 parts per million
(ppm). This represents a 47% increase
since the beginning of the Industrial
Age when the concentration was near
280 ppm. CO2 presents a major chal-
lenge because it stays in the atmo-
sphere for 300-1,000 years.
CO2 is generated from the com-
bustion of fossil fuels used for trans-
port (34%), electricity (32%), industry
(15%), homes and businesses (11%),
and other sources (7%). Several in-
dustrial processes also produce CO2
emissions that do not involve com-
bustion such as production of cement,
iron, steel, and chemicals. Many in-
dustrial processes also use electricity,
Climate Changed
CENTRAL OREGON
GON
CROSSROADS S
By Scott Christiansen
indirectly generating CO2.
CH4: Human activities emitting
CH4 include leaks from natural gas
systems and the raising of livestock.
CH4 is also emitted by natural sources
such as wetlands. In the US, 38% of
CH4 emissions are from livestock (en-
teric fermentation) and manure man-
agement; 36% from natural gas, pe-
troleum, and coal mining; 17% from
landfills; and 9% from other sources.
Agriculture is the largest source of
CH4 emissions in the U.S. Reorganiz-
ing our waste management systems
to fully separate our garbage would
improve our ability to compost or-
ganic materials and generate electric-
ity from the emitted CH4. Recycling
metal, glass, plastic, paper and organic
materials is an essential step in the
transition to a circular economy.
Natural gas and petroleum systems
are the second largest source of CH4
emissions in the U.S. CH4 is emitted
to the atmosphere during the produc-
tion, processing, storage, transmission
and distribution of natural gas and the
production, refinement, transporta-
tion, and storage of crude oil.
According to Science Advances,
satellite sensors have revealed that
fracking in the heartland of the US
is releasing CH4 at a record-break-
ing rate. The high CH4 leakage rate
is mostly from venting, flaring and
fugitive emissions. Solutions include
better wellbore sealings and CH4 de-
tection.
There is another reason to worry
about CH4. The Arctic is warming
faster than the rest of the planet, and
the region is home to enormous stores
of organic carbon locked up in per-
mafrost soils that if thawed would lib-
erate CH4. Water warmed by climate
change is already forcing the release of
CH4 from beneath the sea floor. CH4
emitted today lasts for only a decade
in the atmosphere, so decreasing CH4
emissions is a feasible place to begin
making progress in combatting cli-
mate change.
N2O accounted for about 7% of all
U.S. GHG emissions. Agricultural soil
management is the largest source of
N2O emissions in the U.S., account-
ing for about 78% of total N2O emis-
sions. N2O is also generated from
treatment of domestic wastewater.
N2O is the single greatest ozone-de-
pleting substance — a gas not regu-
lated under the Montreal Protocol.
Limiting future N2O emissions would
enhance the recovery of the ozone
layer (protecting us from dangerous,
cancer-causing levels of ultraviolet ra-
diation).
Recommendations to reduce GHGs
Energy: The burning of natural gas,
and oil for electricity and heat (25%)
is the largest single source of GHGs
globally. In Oregon we could rapidly
move to 100% clean energy using hy-
dro, solar and geothermal sources,
while also reorganizing waste man-
agement to create CH4 for electricity
generation.
Agriculture: GHG emissions (24%)
from agriculture, forestry, and other
land uses comes mostly from cultiva-
tion of crops and deforestation (not
adjusted for CO2 removed by seques-
tration). Oregon can focus on refor-
estation and management schemes to
increase sequestration of CO2, reha-
bilitating areas burned by forest fires
while improving forest health state-
wide.
Transport: Almost all transpor-
tation energy comes from petro-
leum-based fuels, largely gasoline and
diesel. State government conversion
to electric vehicles and incentives for
citizens to purchase electric vehicles
can help reduce dependence on fossil
fuels used for transport.
Heating: GHG emissions from
buildings (6%) arise from burning
fuels for heat in buildings. Continua-
tion or increase of government subsi-
dies are recommended to encourage
household energy efficiency improve-
ments.
ý
Scott Christiansen is an international agronomist
with 35 years of experience. He worked for USDA’s
Agricultural Research Service and the U.S. Agency
for International Development.
GUEST COLUMN
Recognize the value of Oregon’s wild and scenic rivers
BY ALLISON HARTZ
A
rbitrary river units.
I learned this phrase at
the outset of a six-day pad-
dling trip on the Wild and Scenic
Rogue River. It’s a way to
communicate and maintain
minimal structure among a
group: for example, “coffee
will be ready in five arbi-
trary river units.” No one’s
going to miss the meaning
here (or the chance to get
first dibs on that sweet nec-
Hartz
tar of life).
Yet, arbitrary river units are not
only a way to loosely keep time in
a remote wilderness with no cell
service. This measurement is an ac-
knowledgement – and understand-
ing – that on the river, time doesn’t
move according to a clock.
It flows. Slow, gentle, with the
first light of day shifting the world
into color and warmth. It roars with
the approach of a rapid, a distant
rush reverberating up the canyon. I
can feel it thrumming through my
entire body, depositing my nerves
somewhere between antic-
ipation and dread. It un-
winds, as we pull our boats
ashore, unpack lunch, and
spread wet layers across
rocks in the sun. And it me-
anders through the after-
noon, kicking up its feet and
taking in the view around
each bend.
On the river, time is marked by
rapids on a map. By a great blue
heron accompanying our boats
downriver. By salmon jumping
in the waning evening light. By a
black bear and her cub clamber-
ing along the shore on an endless
hunt for late summer berries. By
the smell of coffee in the morning.
The always-present sound of flow-
ing water. The search for the perfect
sleeping spot and the last call for the
groover as we’re packing up camp.
This is what I learned on the river.
Growing up, I did not know what
a wild and scenic river was. I knew
the creek that wrapped around my
neighborhood, where we searched
for crawdads in the shallows. I knew
the river that flowed through the
nearby city, how it would smell like
a sewer after big storms. I knew the
harbor that smelled of oil and in-
dustry and fish. The bay that filled
with algae blooms that depleted ox-
ygen and blocked sunlight from the
ecosystems below.
And yet, these were the places
where I learned to swing from a
rope tied to a tree, trying to prove
my courage and also not belly-flop.
On these waters, I paddled a canoe
with my dad, learned to kayak, and
raced in triathlons. Later, I began to
understand the connection we all
share to the water flowing through
our communities.
Rivers shape us. They change our
perspective, our outlook, our mood
through their soothing, rhythmic
flow. With their presence that is
both constant and ever-changing.
In the wonders they reveal around
each bend.
And we shape them too – for bet-
ter or for worse.
In 1968, Congress passed the
Wild and Scenic Rivers Act, aiming
to preserve certain rivers for future
generations while encouraging us to
work together to manage them.
Currently, only 2% of Oregon’s
rivers and streams are protected
under this act. In 2019, Sen. Ron
Wyden, D-Ore., declared his com-
mitment to making Oregon a na-
tional leader in wild and scenic
river miles. This week, he and Sen.
Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., introduced
the River Democracy Act of 2021,
which proposes an addition of 4,700
miles of Oregon’s rivers to the Na-
tional Wild & Scenic River System.
Imagine how many arbitrary river
units those miles will hold.
Thank you, senators, for recog-
nizing the value of Oregon’s rivers.
Because healthy rivers not only cre-
ate healthy wildlife habitat, support
strong economies, and connect
communities. They give people a
place to find a new perspective. To
swing from the rope, paddle toward
that roar of whitewater, or to sit and
watch. Rivers provide a place where
time moves with the flow of the wa-
ter, with life of a salmon, with the
expansiveness of the night sky. In
its own time, measured in arbitrary
river units.
ý
Allison Hartz lives in Bend.