An area charred by the Cedar Creek firefighting, photographed on Oct. 5, 2022.
Courtesy of Inciweb
Cedar Creek fire, smoke continues to cause air advisories in Willamette Valley
Continuous smoke in Lane County led the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality and other agencies to issue air quality advisories Monday. Smoke from the Cedar Creek fire and fires in Washington are contributing to smoke in Lane, Clackamas, Douglas, northern Klamath, Multnomah and Washington counties.
The agencies expect the air quality advisory to last until at least Friday.
The Cedar Creek Fire is larger than 122,000 acres and is just under 40% contained. Dry fuels and unseasonably warm temperatures contributed to fire growth along the southern fire edge near Lucas Lake on Sunday. (OPB Staff)
Oregon State University seeks tribal help to restore woodlands with traditional ecological knowledge
Oregon State University’s College of Forestry is looking to partner with Pacific Northwest tribal nations on a three-year forest restoration effort. The pilot project received $5 million from the U.S. Department of the Interior. The goal: improve the resilience of the region’s woodlands to climate change through traditional ecological knowledge. (Dean Rhodes, Smoke Signals)
Portland-area study: Transgender identities erased after death
A study conducted by health officials in Multnomah, Washington and Clackamas counties showed more than half of transgender and nonbinary people were misgendered on their death certificates. The epidemiologists who did the study pointed to the erasure of a vulnerable population and how these misidentifications could amount to inaccurate data used during governmental decisions. (Max Egener, The Portland Tribune)
Ashland Native American art installation has a spirit
The red-painted Otterlifter Canoe near Ashland High School was donated by the Wahpepah family and according to the large black-and-white panels with information about the vessel, it’s meant to degrade gradually over time. The canoe was carved 22 years ago from a 365-year-old sugar pine. Though the canoe is new to its location near the school, this type of vessel dates far back in the history of local Indigenous people. “We understand that we’re in relation with all things — the plants, the river, the animals, the land,” Chantele Ritalos, a member of the Siletz Tribe, said in remarks during a dedication ceremony. “The canoe, for our people, is no different. The canoe has a spirit.” (Kevin Opsahl, Medford Mail Tribune)
SOU dishes on details of Lithia Motors donation
On Sept. 14, Southern Oregon University received its largest gift ever, $12 million from Lithia Motors. Now, weeks after the announcement, school officials are sharing more details. The donation will be used to support sustainability. Five million dollars will go to a scholarship program, $4 million to starting a sustainability institute and $1 million will go to a “president’s fund.” Lithia has also pledged to support electric vehicles and charging stations throughout campus. (Kevin Opsahl, Medford Mail Tribune)
Eugene Airport sees growth since pandemic, adds new routes while some are discontinued
The Eugene Airport has had a noticeable increase in business, with 32% more passengers in 2022 compared to 2021. According to officials, the increase is due to adding new routes in the last two years as well as airlines bringing in larger planes. The airport has newly added flights to Hollywood Burbank Airport and to San Diego. Other routes have been recently canceled, including a nonstop flight to Los Angeles International Airport and summer flights to Chicago. (Louis Krauss, The Register Guard)
