OFF PAGE ONE
A12 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 17, 2022
Fair
Continued from A1
Burke, a Pendleton resident who is
serving his first year on the board, is one
of the volunteers.
He said he looks after emergency
medical services and outdoor vendors,
though he added he helps out with other
activities, too.
Working throughout the year, he said
he has not kept track of the total hours he
puts into the fair, though he figured it is
“substantial.” During fair week alone, he
said he could work up to 20 hours a day.
On a slow day during fair week, he
only works 14 hours.
Burke explained his dedication, say-
ing he has been coming to the fair for
20 years. He spent years assisting in FFA
and 4-H, he said. As such, he said he wit-
nessed the fair had value; it gave young
people something to do, and it made
them happy.
Burke’s story is not unique, as other
volunteers on Aug. 11, said they work
long days, too.
Micheal Hampton, fellow board direc-
tor and Echo resident, said he also puts
in several hours a day in dedication to
the fair.
“It’s a big team,” he said of the army of
individuals who support the fair.
In charge of animals and the parade,
he was volunteering at the fair with other
family members, including his daughter
Gina Hampton and nephew Dominick
Sharp.
Gina, 15, was helping her dad set up
equipment in the animal barns. She de-
scribed her situation as being “born into”
fair work.
A member of FFA and 4-H, she said
she enjoys helping with the fair and mak-
ing it possible for other people to present
their animals.
She said that her cousin, 5-year-old
Sharp, also is being prepared for fair
work. The young boy accompanies older
family members for now, “doing what he
can,” according to Gina, and he is learn-
ing what it takes to be a better volunteer
EPA
Continued from A1
Kowalski encouraged the state
to regulate industrial discharge
and animal feeding operations
through a permitting system es-
tablished by the EPA’s National
Pollutant Discharge Elimination
System.
Before ending the letter, Kow-
alski left the door open to the
EPA taking emergency action in
Eastern Oregon.
“The Agency will continue to
closely monitor the situation and
continues to assess options for
Above: From left, Lori Browning, Tabor
Mills and Dave Melville smile for a picture
Thursday, Aug. 11, 2022, at the Umatilla
County Fair, Hermiston. The three people
were among volunteers at the Lions Club
booth. Below: Kelley Burke, a member of
the Umatilla County Fair Board of Direc-
tors, poses in his cart Thursday, Aug. 11,
2022, at the fair in Hermiston.
Photos by Erick Peterson/Hermiston Herald
Sandy McKay, left, and Ellery Jones look at work that needs to be done Thursday, Aug. 11, 2022, at the Umatilla County Fair, Hermiston.
in the future.
Gina said it is not easy to volunteer
at the fair, but it is fun and it makes her
happy, especially when she is present
with her father, cousins and other family
members.
“It gives me a good feeling,” she said.
Volunteers Sandy McKay and Ellery
Jones said they are pleased to give their
labor and time to the fair. In their regular
jobs, McKay and Jones are ag advisors at
Hermiston High School. During the fair,
they volunteer their labor from 6 a.m. to
past 9 p.m. every day.
This is worthwhile, still, they said, be-
cause they want to assist students who
are presenting their animals. Hermiston
High alone has 37 students with animals
at the fair, they said. Other young peo-
additional Agency intervention
if necessary,” he wrote.
State agencies outline their ef-
fortsResponding to requests for
comment, representatives from
the Oregon departments of en-
vironmental quality and agricul-
ture explained the enforcement
work they already were doing
while also emphasizing the bar-
riers to expanding it further.
DEQ’s Laura Gleim reiter-
ated the agency’s position on en-
forcement: It would take action
where it could, but its reach was
limited.
“DEQ is using what regula-
ple are present, too, and the advisors said
they like to provide guidance.
“I love it,” McKay said. “It’s the best job
in the world.”
Jones agreed, adding she was born
and raised locally, attended the fair regu-
larly and is glad to be helping out now.
Lori Browning, Lions Club member,
was among the people selling hamburg-
ers and other treats. The principal of
Sandstone Elementary, Browning said
she enjoys volunteering for the fair as
one of the things she does for others.
“It’s something I do to give back to the
community,” Browning said. “Anything
like this can’t be bad.”
As with other volunteers, Browning
said she is planning to return next year to
volunteer again.
tory authority we have to reduce
nitrate contamination from spe-
cific sources, including enacting
stricter limits on food processing
wastewater facilities,” she wrote
in an email. “However, DEQ
only has regulatory authority
over a small portion of the iden-
tified sources of nitrate in this
area.”
Liz Beeles of ODA said her
agency would continue to mon-
itor and regulate groundwater
pollution from animal feeding
operations and certain irrigated
agriculture. But the latter could
be difficult to track.
Gina Hampton,
left, and her
dad, Micheal
Hampton, bring
buckets to the
animal barns
Thursday,
Aug. 11, 2022,
at the Umatilla
County Fair,
Hermiston. The
pair are volun-
teers and stated
they enjoy their
work.
“The current monitoring
framework makes it difficult to
identify specific irrigated agri-
cultural nutrient sources and
link them to water quality out-
comes in groundwater,” she
wrote.
Beeles added the department
was looking into ways to “sup-
port or enhance” voluntary mea-
sures proposed in a 2020 plan.
Instead of focusing on en-
forcement, Oregon Health Au-
thority spokesperson Jonathan
Modie detailed his agency’s leg-
islative efforts.
In an email, Modie wrote that
OHA will seek money from the
Emergency Board for well treat-
ment systems and replacement
water filters for affected house-
holds through June 2023.
During the Legislature’s long
session next year, OHA plans to
ask for money to pay for a new
domestic well safety coordinator
position, among other things.
Morrow County Emergency
Manager Paul Gray, who has
helped coordinate the county’s
emergency response to the ni-
trate pollution, did not return
requests for comment.
Scott Lukas, the committee
chair of the Lower Umatilla Ba-
sin Groundwater Management
Area, was traveling and said he
would not be able to comment
at the time.
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