STATE
MyEagleNews.com
Wednesday, April 6, 2022
Community Health Beat
Nathan Howard/AP, File
The town of Warm Springs is seen here on Dec. 7.
Warm Springs
grid could go solar
By MICHAEL KOHN
The Bulletin
WARM SPRINGS — An
aging power grid at Warm
Springs may soon get a 21st cen-
tury upgrade.
The Warm Springs Commu-
nity Action Team, a nonprofi t
that supports small business
development on the reservation,
has been accepted to a federal
program that will off er consul-
tancy work on solar energy and
battery development. A second
phase could see the installation
of hard infrastructure.
Inadequate funding and years
of neglect have left infrastruc-
ture on the Warm Springs Indian
Reservation in a dilapidated
state. Power cuts and water sys-
tem breakdowns have become
common in the community of
5,000 people. Working with the
federal government could put
Warm Springs on a path of infra-
structure development that it has
not been able to achieve on its
own.
Climate change exacerbates
outdated infrastructure, as heat-
waves and wildfi res take their
toll on the Warm Springs com-
munity. More reliable power
could help maintain the grid
when air conditioning units are
going full tilt, or if energy infra-
structure is damaged by heat or
wildfi re.
“Electricity here is unreli-
able and the power can go out
for hours,” said Chris Wat-
son, director of the Community
Action Team. “When that hap-
pens, when it’s hot, food goes
bad in refrigerators. Those kinds
of things happen because of the
unreliability of the grid in Warm
Springs.”
Frequent outages
The federal program could
change that by off ering the tech-
nical expertise and funds to
develop solar projects and bat-
teries to boost the grid’s resil-
iency. The program is organized
by Energy Storage for Social
Equity, a division of the Depart-
ment of Energy.
Randy Nathan, owner of
the Eagle Crossing restaurant at
Warm Springs, said power out-
ages shut down his business
once or twice a month, for a few
hours each time. A solar power
backup could help small busi-
nesses like his avoid disruptions.
“I have looked into solar
power for my building,” said
Nathan. “I can’t do it because I
don’t own the building but I’d
like to see that happen.”
Three Oregon communi-
ties are part of the program. The
remaining 11 are located in other
states. Most are Native Ameri-
can communities.
The goal of the project is to
help underserved communities
develop energy storage capabil-
ities, and make the communi-
ties more resilient in the face of
climate change, which impacts
places diff erently across the
country.
During the fi rst phase, the
communities will receive techni-
cal support to assess their energy
challenges and fi nd solutions.
Five of the 14 will be selected to
advance to the second round.
Rogue Climate, a non-
profi t that supports communi-
ties impacted by climate change,
is another Oregon group in the
project. A third Oregon partici-
pant is Coyote Steals Fire Energy
Group in Pendelton, a consul-
tancy group that advises Pacifi c
Northwest tribes on energy use.
IRRIGON — Irrigon is
not renewing its contract with
the Morrow County Sheriff ’s
Offi ce for law enforcement
services.
The city council at its
meeting March 15 voted
instead for the city to estab-
lish a one-person police
department.
City Manager Aaron
Palmquist in a memo to the
council explained this has
been a topic of discussion in
the town.
“As Irrigon grows and may
desire to take charge of their
destiny, should they continue
down the road of contract-
ing or begin the step in mov-
ing in the direction of having
their own law enforcement,”
according to the memo.
He said Mayor Margaret
Anderson wanted the council
to address the issue because
“we are at a good time for all
parties to make any adjust-
ments if needed and desired.”
The Irrigon City Coun-
cil voted unanimously not to
renew.
The small town on the
Columbia River has been
Let your voice be heard!
Blue Mountain Hospital District is asking for your help to identify
important healthcare needs in our county.
We would appreciate if you would take the time to complete this
short survey. It should take less than 10 minutes to complete, and
your responses are anonymous & confidential.
Net-zero buildings
In phase two, the remaining
participants will be able to tap
into federal funds to help pay for
the installation of solar and bat-
tery projects. Net-zero-energy
buildings and solar-powered
homes could be in the offi ng for
Warm Springs if the community
gets this far.
Solar and battery projects
help communities deal with cli-
mate change in diff erent ways.
As the country experiences more
coastal fl ooding and wildfi re due
to climate change, backup power
will be necessary in case power
stations and infrastructure are
damaged.
Increasing heatwaves are
another factor, as more power
is needed when air-conditioning
units a switched on.
And then there are droughts,
all too familiar in Central Ore-
gon. These create increased
competition for water between
energy production and other uses
— having a backup energy sup-
ply reduces that stress.
In 2020, Warm Springs expe-
rienced over 630,000 minutes of
community-wide time in which
people were without power,
according to Watson, the action
team director.
“Having systems like this in
place can provide an added level
of protection should there be
systemic issues with the power
grid,” said Watson.
Irrigon plans a
police force of one
East Oregonian
What's new at BMHD?
paying the Morrow County
Sheriff ’s Offi ce more than
$95,000 a year in a contract
for services, plus the purchase
of a car for the sheriff ’s offi ce
every three years, which the
sheriff ’s offi ce returned to the
city after three years.
Irrigon now is searching
for a new chief, who will be
the only offi cer in the depart-
ment. The city also will pur-
chase a new car and renovate
an offi ce in city hall for the
new department.
Under the plan, there will
not be 24/7 police coverage
for the town of more than
1,800 people, but per Ore-
gon law, the county still will
have to provide some ser-
vices. Code enforcement
and complaints, however,
would be solely the city’s
responsibility.
“This may be an opportu-
nity for Irrigon as we continue
to grow and become more
resilient,” Palmquist told the
council in the memo.
Additionally, he contin-
ued, the Irrigon Municipal
Court “has been a good addi-
tion and is working through to
strengthen lrrigon’s presence
and strength in the region.”
Once you complete the survey you'll have the option to enter a
drawing for $100 in Grant County Greenbacks.
Hard copies of the survey are available at the door screeners and
front desks at BMHD & Home Health/Hospice if you are unable to
complete it online.
To access the survey via the QR code, open the camera on your smart
phone and hold it up to this image. If you're reading online, simply
click the QR code.
We appreciate your time and help as we continue to make
improvements to healthcare in Grant County!
Scholarship Applications
Open
Grant County graduating seniors
looking to pursue a career in
healthcare: visit our website to
download our scholarship
application.
Submission deadline: May 13th.
Locally Grown
Prenatal/Postpartum
Classes
Attention expecting parents! In
person prenatal/postpartum
classes are back! Talk to your
provider to get scheduled for our
next series of classes.
We're Hiring!
Certified Nursing Assistant | Care Center - (Full Time)
Environmental Services Technician - (Full Time)
Maintenance Assistant | Care Center - (Part Time)
Patient Access Registrar | Emergency Dept. - (Full Time)
Many other full-time, part-time & casual positions open,
visit our website for more information & to apply.
Save the Date:
Blue Mountain Healthcare Foundation
Fundraiser Golf Scramble
Saturday, July 16th, 2022
John Day Golf Club
www.bluemountainhospital.org
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