PGE reports most customers now have power after wind storm
Portland General Electric reports it’s restored power for the majority of its customers after heavy rain and winds led to more than 100,000 outages on Tuesday. As of Thursday morning, there were still about 9,000 customers without power. PGE reported more than 600 wires were damaged by falling branches and debris, and hundreds of people have been working around the clock to repair storm damage and bring the electricity back online. Pacific Power at one point had about 50,000 customers without electricity earlier this week. But that number was down to about 2,000 by Thursday morning, mostly in the Grants Pass area. The utility expects to have nearly all outages restored Thursday. PGE officials said some outages may last into the weekend. (OPB Staff)
Forest Service withdraws plan to log site in Willamette National Forest
The U.S. Forest Service announced Thursday it is withdrawing a decision to log a controversial site in the Willamette National Forest. The Flat Country Project proposed cutting trees from thousands of acres near the McKenzie River. The Forest Service says that area has become overgrown. Environmentalists have staged protests at the proposed site in recent years — including tree sits. They say the logging effort would cut down old-growth forest. The Forest Service did not give its next steps. But in a statement, the agency says it plans to develop a new decision on the Flat Country project in the spring. Though the project started under the former president, the Biden administration has drawn criticism for allowing the project to proceed. Environmental groups say cutting down the trees would negatively affect Biden’s stated climate goals. (OPB staff)
Hummel reflects on 8 years as Deschutes County District Attorney
A native of the East Coast, John Hummel is sometimes struck by a tendency in Oregon to avoid confrontation. That isn’t something he shied from during his recent tenure as Deschutes County District Attorney. Over eight years in office, the outspoken Hummel, a progressive former defense attorney, was nothing if not direct. But that directness occasionally put him at odds with the justice community and drew criticism from those who felt he was bringing attention to himself. “I’m all about transparency,” he said. “When I explained my decisions on cases, many people agreed with me, and many people didn’t.” His last day in office is Jan. 2, when the 53-year-old will move to Portland to join his wife, whom he met during the pandemic. He’s still not sure what’s next, though he’s been approached about running for higher office, including for Oregon’s 5th Congressional District. (Garrett Andrews/Bend Bulletin)
Clark County food banks squeezed by spiking demand
The lines have grown longer in recent weeks at Friends in Service to Humanity and other local food distribution sites as Clark County residents feel the squeeze from inflation. With the price of everything seemingly on the rise, the need for help has followed suit. “As of April and beyond, it has just continued to skyrocket, the number of clients we have,” FISH Executive Director James Fitzgerald said. “We’re serving more than 100 families a day now, where we used to do about 60 to 75 families a day.” (Kelsey Turner/The Columbian)
Morrow County recall election results certified
It’s official. The Morrow County Board of Commissioners is down to just one member. Morrow County Clerk Bobbi Childers on Tuesday certified the results in favor of recalling Commissioners Jim Doherty and Melissa Lindsay. They both said they wouldn’t be filing legal challenges to the results. The Morrow County Board of Commissioners scheduled a special meeting Wednesday, but due to a lack of a quorum, that became a work session. Gov. Kate Brown would have to appoint a new commissioner for the board to have a quorum, and that has not happened. (Erick Peterson/East Oregonian)
New development in competition for regional clean hydrogen hub
The Washington State Department of Commerce and Obsidian Renewables, the developer of a private Clean Hydrogen Hubs proposal centered on Central Washington and Northeast Oregon, said they each received word this week that the two Pacific Northwest bids cleared the first hurdle of U.S. Department of Energy review. The Lake Oswego, Oregon-based company said 33 out of nearly 100 hydrogen hubs applicants from around the country were invited to advance to the next round of vetting. By next summer or fall, the USDOE said it intends to winnow the applicant pool down to between six and 10 winners, who would each receive between $400 million and $1.25 billion to launch their green hydrogen production, distribution and end-user networks. (Tom Banse/NW News Network)
