Monitoring water quality

27 March 2015

Who monitors chemicals in the drinking water?

Concerns about herbicide application on a logged area north of Florence in the Clear Lake watershed, has brought up questions about monitoring water quality. The City of Florence and Heceta Water PUD both have established drinking water protection areas… But are they just words on a page?

Ray Kinney – “You know, if you’re going to have a drinking water source protection area, the definition of that oughta mean something.”

Water quality advocate Ray Kinney says there are plenty of plans, but not a lot of follow through. One reason? It can be expensive to maintain a monitoring program.

Ray Kinney – “The problem is that there’s not a good political climate within the state to do an environmental assessment of toxics. Not because the agencies aren’t interested in doing it. It’s because the legislature won’t fund doing it.”

Kinney added his comments last week to those presented to the Florence City Council Members of the Protect the Florence Aquifer Citizens Group are concerned about the herbicide application. Kinney says more needs to be known about how long chemicals remain in the environment… and how they move through the aquifer.

Dems discussing background checks on private gun sales

Oregon Democrats are taking the first step toward requiring background checks on private gun sales.

A bill introduced Thursday could begin moving through the legislature as soon as next week.

Gun control advocates have tried for years to expand Oregon’s background check requirement. With expanded Democratic majorities in both the House and the Senate following last year’s election, the bill now has much stronger prospects.

The measure would require private gun buyers and sellers who aren’t related to visit a licensed gun dealer for a background check.

Oregon already goes further than federal law in requiring background checks at gun shows.

Federal timber payments won’t preclude need for registration fee

A two-year extension of the federal Secure Rural Schools Act will not change the long-term need for stable road maintenance and repairs in Lane County.

Commission Chair Jay Bozievich said projected operations deficits for the Road Fund are $9-million annually. That’s expected to continue for the long term. The S-R-S money will bring about $11.5-million over two years for roads. An additional $3.3-million is anticipated for the county’s general fund.

Bozievich said if the measure is ultimately approved, it won’t change the long term need for a $35-per-year vehicle registration fee. Voters are being asked to approve that in the May 19th election. The $11-million generated each year by the fee would be split on a 60-40 basis with incorporated cities.

Ready; set; go!  Clean up the beach.

Already more than 35-hundred volunteers have pre-registered for tomorrow’s 30th annual Spring Oregon Beach Cleanup. Many more are expected to show up between ten and one at one of the 45 check-in sites along the coast. They’re spread out along Oregon’s 360-mile coast line between the Columbia River and the California border.

In the Florence area, a large group is expected to converge on the beach at Washburn State Park. Still more will gather at Baker Beach, Heceta Beach and the North Jetty.

Organizers say there will be many volunteers… a lot of them on off-road vehicles… between the South Jetty and Siltcoos Outlet.

The beach cleanup is organized by the statewide non-profit group SOLVE in conjunction with the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department. All of the trash picked up tomorrow will be hauled away for free by local garbage and recycling haulers.