Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 27, 1973)
1 1 1FARY U OF 0 EUGENE. ORE . 97403 A wet September Raimis break drouth s i I A f I T m- V " ' This isn't a new rug pattern. It is good rain puddling on the Heppner street during Sunday's drouth-breaking downpour. The three-day off-and-on rain measured 2.24 inches in Heppner.. To date, this is the second wettest September since 1910, according to weather records here. Boardman ewa gets By MARY LEE MARLOW Several problems have to be overcome before the Board man sewage system can be expanded, it was learned at a meeting of the council last week. Stanley Wallulis, Pendleton engineer and chief mentor on the Boardman sewer project, said available land at the present site is not adequate and sewer collectors leading to the plant are too small to carry projected loads. The city had hoped to expand the sewage treatment by upgrading the treatment process and adding lagoons as ' the population increases. Wallulis told the council that it would be best to start looking for another site. The present plant is located on land owned by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and the Corps has nim rry--j y " ! r w. r ar Marcia Bedortha, a recent graduate of Oregon State University, Corvallis. is a new addition to the staff of the Gaiette-Times. Marcia majored in Journalism in college and before moving to Heppner lived in Madras. She is interested in agriculture, and enjoys the outdoor type of life. plan ge setback stated it would oppose any major expansion that would bring the plant boundaries close to the Corps' recreation area on the Columbia River. Wallulis said a site to the south and west of the city limits would be best because the sewage would travel by gravity and there is ample open space availalbe for lagoons and an irrigation system. Sewer lines to the plant are designed to carry waste pro duced by 1,250 persons. Wal lulis said the Department of Environmental Quality and the Environmental Protection Agency require plants to be designed for service 20 years in the futureor in Board man's situation to serve 4,000 persons. New regulations re quire the treatment plant to include a holding area for three month's sewage in case it can't be disposed of in the winter months. Wednesday of last week a number of alternate sites suitable for waste disposal were viewed as possible answers to the problem of sewage disposal. Wallulis said sites were found on both public and private lands, but details of the locations could not be revealed until negotiations have been completed. Preparations for an appli cation for a design engineer ing grant are under way. Wallulis and Mayor Dewey W. West Jr. plan a trip to Portland this week to talk with the Corps of Engineers about selecting a site south of the freeway. If a site can be obtained there, it would be possible to have room to build a large inexpensive lagoon system, use the effluent for irrigation and get the sewage to the plant by gravity rather than expensive pumps. Energy crisis enpMnecJ A meeting was held Monday night at Heppner High School cafetorium, sponsored by the Blue Mountain Community College ana the utility com panies to acquaint people with the present electrical short age. Although there is a shortage of electrical energy in the state, most people are un aware of the seriousness of the power shortage. Primarily, the shortage is due to the lack of water needed to convert into hydroelectric energy. The present problem is not a system of inadequate genera ting and transmission capa city to meet the loads. It is a shortage of fuel, and in the Northwest that means water. The water must be converted into kilowatt hours which can be generated when the water is released and passes hours through the various gener ators. Of the local 46 billion kilowatt hours when the res ervoir is full, only 31 billion kilowatt hours are now stored. This leaves a deficiency of 15 billion kilowatt hours. This deficiency is 33 per cent of the storage capacity, and inas much as this is a quarter of the I New flood, rain reporting system Dave Bauman, hydrologist for the Portland River Fore cast Center, spoke about a new flash flood alarm system and precipitation gauge sys tem at a preliminary meeting Tuesday morning at the Mor row County Soil Conservation office The hydrologist introduced the new flash flood alarm system, which is a system for detecting flash flooding in streams. In this system, early warnings of a flooding is conveyed to downstream communities in forms of audible and visual alarms. The other system, the pre A red carpet newcomers, The city of Heppner will turn out Tuesday evening, Oct. 2, to welcome 35 new comers who have moved here within the past six months. New teachers are included in the list. The affair will be held at Heppner High School begin ning at 7:30 o'clock. Herman Winter will act as master of ceremonies and Martha Mc Gowan of Pilot Rock will entertain with a chalk talk and do caricatures of several of the guests. Heppner merchants will have displays of various kinds to acquaint newcomers with total electrical energy source, there is an 8 per cent deficiency for total needs during the period until March I97C , The goal of the power conservation program is to get the public to save electricity, and thus fill the reservoirs to meet the demands later in the year. Mr. Joy, district manager of Pacific Power and Light Co, told homeowners how to save electrical power in the home rather than wait for industry to shut down. Some of the suggestions given coincide with the solu tions of Dave Harrison, man ager of Columbia Basin Elec tric Co-op. In reply to the question, asked again and again, "If I save on electricity, will it help the present situation?" the ans wer was yes. Some of the methods of saving energy during peak hours of 5-7 p.m., are: give up one TV show per night; reduce the temperature of the water heater to 160 degrees; if there is a dishwasher, wash dishes only when there is a full load; and when clothes are w ashed, if possible, use colder water. Rain Ml this week boosting the total amount of rainfall fur September to 2.24 inches, the second largest amount of monthly rainfall recorded since 1910. September needs only .31 more inches of rain to exceed the 2.55 inches of rain record ed In September, 1927. The normal precipitation for the month of September averages .73. Heppner record ed 1.88 inches from Wednes day of last week to Monday of this week. September's rain fall brought the year's total rain to 6.79 inches, which is far below the normal precipita tion for this time of the year. "Heppner could break the record for the driest year," commented Don Gilliam, Heppner weather recorder, "But it would have to record THE Vol 90, No. 32 cipitation gauge, would record to a satellite such information as precipitation, river crests, river speeds, temperatures and flood data. This gauge records data every 15 minutes and could record storms and possible flood information. "The government will in stall the $10,000 systems and will maintain them twice a year," pointed out Bauman. t, t The ., only , cost ,, Heppner would be paying is the phone system which is needed in the flood alarm system. The two proposed systems will be introduced to the Heppner community next month. for Oct. 2 their types of business. Firms wishing to reserve space should contact Mrs. Glenn Smith, chairman of the Sorop--timist committee that is cooperating with the minis terial association and Cham ber of Commerce is welcom-, ing newcomers. This is the third year that the city has reserved an entire evening to welcome and get acquainted with new resi dents. A special display will be an art show which will exhibit paintings of well-known local artists. and wash when there is a full load. What are the alternatives if energy is not saved? They vary from area to area, and here in Morrow County mea sures have been submitted to the Public Utilities Commis ion for approval. James Boyce to have surgery James Boyce, who was injured in a traffic accident Sept. 18, was released from St. Anthonys Hospital, Pendleton, " yesterday. Boyce had been in the intensive care, unit of the hospital following the acci dent. However, last Monday he was given permission to get up and walk about the hospital. Although his recovery has been rapid, it was learned that young Boyce will have to undergo surgery for his collar bone today and may not be released until next week. Boyce who celebrated his 16th birthday Monday hopes that when he returns home his many friends will visit him. no more than 1.02 inches for rain for the rest of the year." The driest year ever re corded since 1910 was in 1939 when there was 7.81 inches of rain. The rain answered the prayers of Morrow County wheat farmers, livestock growers, and forest personnel. "I'p until last Wednesday, Morrow County wheat grow ers were faced with extreme dry conditions for seeding," explained Harold Kerr, Mor row County extension agent. Some farmers were con templating dusting the seed in or just sitting back waiting for rain. Wheat growers were already faced with a cut in yields this year due to inadequate moisture this spring. "With this rain, I can now go llrppner. Ore.. September 27. 1973 Narcotics in Morrow County Prog abuse, Oct Marijuana, LSD, and "Speed," along with other drugs, will be targets of discussion at the Parent's Awareness Drug Session Monday and Tuesday nights. The informal sessions will begin at 7 and last until 9:30 p.m., Oct. 1, at the Heppner Elementary School and Oct. 2 ' at Riverside High School in Boardman. Dick Harp, criminal inves tigator of the Oregon State Police in Hermiston, will be the featured guest. Harp will bring samples of the drugs BPA approves Co-op The Bonneville Power Ad ministration has approved the Columbia Basin Electric Co op's proposed rate revisions for 1974. Under the planned revision, four residential rates Sched ule A, Schedule 3, Schedule 4, and Schedule H will all be consolidated into one new schedule. The new schedule will be called Schedule 1. Currently there are 584 mem bers under Schedule A and 146 members under Schedule H, which are both "farm" rate schedules. Presently there are 183 members under Schedule 3 and 1440 members under Schedule 4, which are "town" rate schedules. There will also be an annual increase in rates 1 1 : : 1 , ' ? - - V : 4 ahead and work the ground, weed, fertilize and seed," said Bob Jepson, lone, who re ceived 1.14 Inches In a 24 hour period. Morrow County livestock growers were also faced with a cutback in feed due lo extreme dry conditions this spring and summer. Hay crops were cut down to ' and range and grazing were low in production. Fall ranges were dry and brown and many ranchers were faced with feeding their cattle earlier than usual. Dick Wilkinson, Heppner, stated as he watched the rain pour off his roof, "The rain will boost my range and grazing hills and will provide some fall forage for my cattle." Last week Marvin Ctiitty of the Heppner Forest Station, TDME jam odd and will discuss the effects and reactions of each drug, as well as drug control laws. A panel discussion consis ting of local representatives from the state police, school, church, youth, and the law will ask questions. The panel, along with the audience, will ' be informed on the drug abuse problem and drug control in Morrow County. According to Carolyn Davis, Morrow County Juvenile Director, a new law which will go into effect Oct. 5 will also be discussed at the meeting. The to this group of 2353 members along with the consolidation which will amount to $30,545. Another revision will con solidate present Schedule 25 and Schedule B into a new rate schedule called Schedule 2. There are presently 421 mem bers under Schedule 25 which is a "town" rate schedule, and there are 38 members under Schedule B, which is a "farm" rate schedule. Along with the consolidation, an annual in crease of $4,300 will be effected to this group of small commercial users. In addi tion, the small commercial users who have separate metering under Schedule 43 will face a $1,000 increase. This schedule will be called Schedule 6 in the future. Drug addict? No. Mike Howell. The county extension ageat is simulating the use of hrroia injection. This and other drugs will be topics f discussioa at the Parents' Awareness Drug Session. Oct. 1 ia Heppner, Oct. I la Boardman. Umatilla National forest, waa looking at the possibility of keeping the sheep and cattle In the forest lands past the normal deadline. The deadline for removal of all stock is Sept. 30, "With the rain, ranchers may be able lo keep their stock In the foresl longer," he pointed out. The rain also ' increase forage production in the forest for livestock as well as wildlife. "Hunters also will be able to hunt in the forest and have a camp fire." stated Chitty. The Umatilla National Forest lifted its ban on open fires last week during the rain. The rain also added life to dry creek beds, greened up the lawns, and put puddles every where in Morrow County. iSc new state law states if any person is found in possession of less than one ounce of marijuana, the violation will carry a maximum fine of $100 and no jail sentence. The old law was that possession of less that one ounce of marijuana for the first time carried a penalty of $1,000 arid one year in jail. The drug session is spon sored by the Morrow County Juvenile Advisory Committee, the Morrow County Drug Abuse and Alcohol Committee and the 4-H Empire Builders. ratio The large commercial schedule is presently called Schedule 37 and it will be referred to as Schedule 3 in the future. Three members are served under it at present and 1 they will face an annual increase in costs of $8,700. This increase would not have that amount except for the projected large increase in load considered by Kinzua in 1974. The co-op serves 268 irriga tion accounts. There is an increase proposed in the end rate from 5 mills to 6 mills, and this would result in an increase of $7,900 in annual revenues. Columbia Basin projects total revenues of nearly $1, 175,000 for 1974. drag 1 4