Parts of Central Oregon remain in extreme drought despite weather
NOAA scientists say recent atmospheric rivers and below-average temperatures have nearly erased many drought conditions plaguing the West, but a small slice remains in dire condition. “Now we have only about half of the West in some stage of drought,” Joseph Casola, NOAA’s Western Climate Services Director, told a gathering of researchers on May 9. “Most of that is either in ‘D0,’ abnormally dry or ‘D1,’ moderate drought. That extreme or exceptional drought only covers about 1% of the land area.” That 1% includes portions of Central Oregon, where Gov. Tina Kotek has declared drought emergencies. And forecasters say the current cold, wet La Niña pattern is expected to soon transition to a warmer, drier El Niño pattern. (Karen Richards/KLCC)
Related: What we're talking about when we talk about drought 🏜
Most Oregon prisoners can’t get addiction treatment, but there’s a bill to change that
More than 4,000 people were released from Oregon prisons last year, after being housed at a per-person cost of more than $50,000 annually. Of the nearly two-thirds who went into the system needing drug treatment, more than 80% were released without getting it. More than half of the prisoners released in Oregon will be arrested again within three years, most of them having never received the tools and counseling that could help them fight addiction and change their lives. For Rep. Maxine Dexter, D-Portland, not only do these numbers represent a wasted opportunity, they are a violation of prisoners’ right to health care while in custody — as the U.S. Constitution guarantees. Her response is House Bill 2890, which requires that people in the custody of the Oregon Department of Corrections have access to mental health and substance use disorder treatment throughout their incarceration. (Emily Green/The Lund Report)
Report: Oregon reaches new highs for tourism spending in 2022
Oregon’s tourism bureau said Monday the state reached new highs in tourism spending in 2022 and appears to have almost entirely rebounded from the pandemic. Oregon’s tourism industry drove $13.9 billion in direct spending in 2022, up 26.5% from 2021, a news release said. A recent economic impact report released by Travel Oregon said the state’s tourism industry saw increased demand for overnight accommodations, which led to large gains in visitor spending. The state’s travel industry generated 16,450 new jobs for a 16.3% increase from the prior year, which helped Oregon tourism workers earn $821 million in 2022, 23.9% higher than 2021. (Charles Gearing/Salem Statesman Journal)
Landowners may see a fire protection rate hike from state
The Oregon Department of Forestry is proposing to raise the cost of fire protection for private landowners in its Central Oregon District in a move some local ranchers say would be too costly for them. In the current fiscal year, landowner protection rates for the ODF Central Oregon District are $2.21 per acre for timber and 74 cents per acre for grazing land. The proposed rates for fiscal year 2024 would raise the costs for timber by 37% to $3.03 per acre and by 87% for grazing land to $1.38 per acre. State officials say the hike is needed to comply with legislation that called for an “increase in overall wildfire response capacity.” In fiscal years 2022 and 2023, the state subsidized the cost with money from the general fund. (Neil Nisperos/Blue Mountain Eagle)
La Grande High School a cappella choir wins fourth straight state title
La Grande High School’s a cappella choir recently won its fourth straight state title despite facing some new obstacles. In the state’s 4A classification this year, the school edged out St. Helens and North Bend, two schools that had previously competed at the 5A level until moving into 4A last summer. “It was intimidating to be competing against much bigger high schools,” said Kascie Durfee, La Grande’s assistant choir advisor. The school also overcame another challenge when a judge docked it five points for singers wearing gender-specific clothing — boys wore suits and girls wore dresses. The judge had wanted all choirs to wear the same clothing regardless of gender, something that caused an uproar at the competition. (Dick Mason/The La Grande Observer)