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Washington on guard for troublesome mussel found in Idaho last year
Washington is upping efforts to keep an invasive freshwater mussel from gaining a shell-hold in the state’s rivers and lakes, using tactics ranging from DNA testing to shellfish-sniffing dogs. Quagga mussels can cause major problems as layers of them crust over components of hydroelectric dams and locks, or clog drinking water or irrigation systems. Fisheries […]
U.S. Supreme Court ruling upends $183M opioid settlement payment for WA
A U.S. Supreme Court ruling Thursday derailed a $183 million payment to Washington that was part of a broader bankruptcy plan for OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma. The deal involved the Sackler family, which owned and controlled the company, paying up to $6 billion to help states, cities, and tribes address the harms of the opioid […]
WA transportation projects score nearly $90M in federal grants
Eight transportation projects in Washington will receive a combined $89.7 million in federal grant funding, Democratic members of the state’s congressional delegation said this week. The largest grant, $25 million awarded to King County Parks, will go toward closing a gap in a planned 42-mile bicycle and pedestrian trail – known as the Eastrail – […]
WA lands commissioner wary of federal plan to kill thousands of owls
Washington’s public lands commissioner, Hilary Franz, is voicing skepticism about a federal proposal to kill thousands of barred owls in the Pacific Northwest to help the threatened northern spotted owl. Franz wrote in a letter sent this week to Interior Secretary Deb Haaland that she’s concerned about “unintended consequences” and that the plan “could be […]
Railroad owes nearly $400M to WA tribe, judge rules
BNSF Railway Co. must pay the Swinomish tribe $394 million for violating the terms of an agreement that allowed the railroad to run trains across a strip of the tribe’s land in northwest Washington, a federal judge ruled Monday. U.S. District Judge Robert Lasnik ruled last year against the railroad for trespassing between 2012 and […]
WA State Parks could shorten campsite stay limits beginning this summer
Washington parks officials are looking at shortening the time people are allowed to stay in state campgrounds. The proposed limits would set a maximum stay length of 10 nights in one park within 30 days. They’d also cap the time a person could stay per calendar year in all state parks at 90 days. The […]
Ransomware attack knocks Seattle Public Library’s computer system offline
The Seattle Public Library’s website and computer systems remained down on Tuesday, with the library blaming a cyberattack it detected over the weekend. Public computers, the library’s online catalog and loaning system, e-books, and in-building Wi-Fi were among the knocked-out services. The library said it learned of the attack early Saturday morning ahead of planned […]
Environmentalists seek protections for marmots on Olympic Peninsula
Olympic marmots can spend up to eight months a year hibernating, emerging when the weather warms to forage for food, fatten up, and otherwise go about their business. If you’ve traveled in the alpine terrain of western Washington’s Olympic Mountains, you may have spotted them loafing, sauntering along, or standing alert on their hind legs […]
Washington wins grant to acquire 9,700 acres of forestland in Central Cascades
Washington has secured a $15.3 million federal grant for the purchase of nearly 10,000 acres of forestland around the headwaters of the Yakima River, near Cle Elum. The Department of Natural Resources, which would manage the land once the sale is complete, announced the U.S. Department of Agriculture award on Monday and noted $5.7 million […]
Washington plans aerial spraying in two counties to kill tree-destroying spongy moth
When the invasive spongy moth is in its caterpillar phase, it isn’t a picky eater. That’s part of the reason the bugs are so destructive. “They eat between [300] and 500 different types of plants,” said Karla Salp, a spokesperson for the Washington Department of Agriculture. “Basically, if it’s out there growing, they’ll eat it.” […]
Biden will visit Seattle this week
President Biden will visit Seattle on Friday and Saturday for campaign events, the White House confirmed this morning. Biden is scheduled to first travel to California tomorrow, where he has two Friday campaign receptions planned in the Bay Area. The White House said additional details would follow Wednesday’s announcement. Last week, the Northwest Progressive Institute […]
U.S. Rep. Dan Newhouse gets another challenger from within his own party
Tiffany Smiley, a Republican who mounted an unsuccessful bid for U.S. Senate two years ago, on Monday jumped into the race to unseat GOP Congressman Dan Newhouse. Newhouse has represented central Washington’s sprawling 4th Congressional District since 2015 and was among 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach former President Donald Trump in 2021, following […]