Cassandra Profita, Author at Northwest Public Broadcasting

Nez Perce Tribe Reclaims Nearly 150 Acres Of Ancestral Land In Northeastern Oregon

By Cassandra Profita December 27, 2020

Nez Perce Tribal Executive Committee Chairman Shannon Wheeler (right) and Secretary Rachel Edwards sign paperwork completing the purchase of 148 acres of the tribe's ancestral land in eastern Oregon. Courtesy of the Nez Perce Tribe

The Nez Perce Tribe is reclaiming an ancestral village site in the Eastern Oregon town of Joseph more than a century after being pushed out the area. This month, the tribe purchased 148 acres of an area known as “the place of boulders,” or Am’sáaxpa.Read More

Washington And Oregon Join Multi-State Lawsuit Over Federal Fuel Emissions Rollback

By Cassandra Profita June 2, 2020

Tailpipe emissions. CREDIT: FLICKR/EUTOPICATION AND HYPOXIA

Oregon and Washington have joined 26 states and cities in suing the Trump administration over a new rule that weakens emission standards for cars and trucks.Read More

2020 Brings New Protections For West Coast Seafloor Habitat

By Cassandra Profita January 12, 2020

Rocky reefs off the Oregon coast provide valuable habitat for rockfish and other marine life. Courtesy of Oceana

Regulations that began Jan. 1 restrict bottom trawl fishing on about 90% of the seafloor off Washington, Oregon and California.Read More

How The Trump Administration’s Environmental Policy Rollback Affects The Northwest

By Cassandra Profita January 10, 2020

Fish advocates say sending water through spill bays is the best way to ensure fish survival through dams in the Columbia and Snake rivers. CREDIT: CASSANDRA PROFITA

A new Trump administration plan to scale back a bedrock environmental law could affect all kinds of projects in the Northwest, including timber sales, hydroelectric dams, and large energy developments like the controversial Jordan Cove liquefied natural gas project with its 235-mile Pacific Connector pipeline.Read More

Not Logging Some Northwest Forests Could Offset Climate Change, Study Finds

By Cassandra Profita December 24, 2019

Elliott State Forest near Coos Bay, Ore. CREDIT: Ore. Dept. of State Lands

Researchers at Oregon State University and the University of California-Berkeley looked at which forests in the Western United States should be prioritized for preservation under climate change scenarios.Read More

Washington, Oregon, Yakama Nation Call For Superfund Listing At Bonneville Dam

By Cassandra Profita October 18, 2019

Bradford Island sits alongside Bonneville Dam in the middle of the Columbia River.

The Yakama Nation and the states of Oregon and Washington are asking the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to declare a new Superfund site on the Columbia River at Bradford Island alongside Bonneville Dam.Read More

Northwest Utility PacifiCorp Releases Plan To Cut Coal Power And Add Renewables

By Cassandra Profita October 4, 2019

A coal mine operation in Wyoming. CREDIT: KATIE CAMPBELL/KCTS9

Environmental groups have been pressing PacifiCorp for years to close more of its coal plants sooner and speed up its transition to renewable energy. But leaders in states like Wyoming, where the utility’s coal plants are stationed, say the company would be hurting local economies and betraying their trust by closing coal plants early.Read More

Return Of ‘The Blob’? Marine Heat Wave Similar To 2014 Disruption Shows Up On West Coast

By Cassandra Profita September 6, 2019

Sea surface temperature anomaly maps show temperatures above normal in orange and red. The warming could lead to dire conditions for sea life. CREDIT: NOAA

Scientists have detected a marine heat wave off the West Coast that they say is reminiscent of the massive stretch of warm water nicknamed “the Blob” in 2014-15.Read More

West Coast Rockfish Populations Rebound Faster Than Expected

By Cassandra Profita June 8, 2019

Widow rockfish pour onto the deck of the Winona J fishing trawler.

Too much fishing with trawl nets led to a devastating collapse in fish populations in the 1990s. Widow rockfish were one of 10 different groundfish species that were declared overfished, and trawl boats were restricted from catching them.Read More

U.S. House Passes Bill To Improve Conditions At Columbia River Tribal Fishing Sites

By Cassandra Profita May 2, 2019

The Underwood in-lieu fishing site in Washington is stationed near the confluence of the White Salmon and Columbia rivers. CREDIT: CASSANDRA PROFITA/OPB

On Monday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill that would provide $11 million to improve unsafe and unsanitary living conditions at tribal fishing sites on the Columbia River.Read More

New Plan Would Return California Condors To Northwest Skies

By Cassandra Profita April 7, 2019

The Oregon Zoo is home to one-tenth of the world’s population of California condors. This one is named Kaweah. CREDIT: Miranda Daviduk/OPB

Federal agencies and Northern California’s Yurok Tribe have released a plan to reintroduce critically endangered California condors to the Pacific Northwest.Read More

Small-Scale Nuclear Company Looks To Build First Plant In Idaho

By Cassandra Profita March 11, 2019

An artist’s rendition of the NuScale nuclear power project planned for construction in Idaho. Courtesy of NuScale Power

As coal plants retire across the country, Portland-based NuScale Power wants to replace some of that electricity with its small-scale nuclear plants. Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems wants to build a 720-megawatt nuclear plant at the Idaho National Laboratory site in Idaho Falls.Read More

Lawmakers Consider Statewide Plastic Bag Bans In Washington And Oregon

By Cassandra Profita February 19, 2019

File photo. Washington and Oregon lawmakers are considering statewide bans on single-use plastic bags in grocery stores. CREDIT: JULIA REIHS/KUT

Lawmakers in both Washington and Oregon are considering bills that would ban single-use plastic bags statewide to reduce plastic pollution.Read More

Oregon Bottle Deposit System Hits 90 Percent Redemption Rate

By Cassandra Profita January 22, 2019

A row of sparkling clean reverse vending machines greet customers at the grand opening of the Medford BottleDrop center. CREDIT: JES BURNS/EARTHFIX

Oregon’s bottle deposit system is recycling more containers than ever before despite major disruptions in global recycling markets.Read More

Banned Fish Trap Returns To Columbia As Sustainable Way To Catch Salmon

By Cassandra Profita January 16, 2019

Fish trap operators can pick out the hatchery salmon for harvest and release the wild salmon so they can return to their spawning grounds. CREDIT: CASSANDRA PROFITA/OPB

For years, Oregon and Washington have been searching for the best way to catch more hatchery fish while letting the wild fish return unharmed to their spawning grounds. Now, one group says they’ve found it.Read More

Oregon Starts Killing Sea Lions At Willamette Falls

By Cassandra Profita January 9, 2019

Sea lions have been eating steelhead and other fish at Willamette Falls in ever greater numbers.Photo courtesy of ODFW

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife has started killing sea lions below Willamette Falls to protect a fragile run of winter steelhead.Read More

Agreement On Dams Aims To Help More Salmon Survive Columbia And Snake River Journey

By Cassandra Profita December 19, 2018

A new agreement aims to help more young salmon make their way past dams along the Columbia and Snake rivers. The agreement, reached this week, spells out new strategies for spilling more water over the dams — and sending less water through power-generating turbines — each spring. Read More

West Coast Fishery Rebounds After Years Of Conservation Efforts

By Cassandra Profita December 16, 2018

Groundfish trawlers will soon be allowed to catch more fish as depleted populations recover from overfishing. CREDIT: MICHAEL BENDIXEN/OPB

Federal fishery managers are increasing the catch limits for several West Coast species that were overfished and severely restricted for years. Surveys show depleted populations of yellow eye and bocaccio rockfish, cow cod and ocean perch — all classified as groundfish — are rebounding decades ahead of schedule.Read More

Bill To Allow Killing Columbia River Sea Lions To Help Salmon Heads To President Trump’s Desk

By Cassandra Profita December 12, 2018

Congress has agreed to make it easier to kill sea lions threatening fragile runs of salmon in the Northwest. A bill approved by the House this week changes the Marine Mammal Protection Act to lift some of the restrictions on killing sea lions to protect salmon and steelhead in the Columbia River and its tributaries.Read More

Report: Climate Change Is Already Bringing Problems To Northwest — And It Will Get Worse

By Cassandra Profita November 28, 2018

The Eagle Creek Fire as seen from the Cascade Locks Hatchery. To keep hatchery fall chinook from dying because of the fire, Oregon officials released them early. CREDIT: OREGON DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND WILDLIFE

The Northwest is already seeing the effects of climate change, according to a new national climate assessment. Read More

State And Federal Regulators Discuss New Plans For Cleaning Up Hanford Waste

By Cassandra Profita October 16, 2018

TOBIN FRICKE / WIKIMEDIA - TINYURL.COM/H99DL7H

Federal and state energy regulators will hold back-to-back meetings in Portland and Seattle for a proposal to reclassify some of the high-level nuclear waste at the Hanford Nuclear Site.Read More

A Year On, See How The Eagle Creek Fire Changed The Columbia River Gorge

By Cassandra Profita September 6, 2018

Scene from the 2017 Eagle Creek Fire in Columbia River Gorge

A year ago, the Eagle Creek Fire was spreading quickly through the Columbia River Gorge. The fire ravaged many popular hiking trails, burning footbridges, toppling trees and creating hazardous landslides.Read More

Oregon Launches First Statewide Refillable Bottle System In US

By Cassandra Profita August 29, 2018

Double Mountain Brewery founder Matt Swihart grabs freshly bottled pale ale from the bottling line in Hood River. The brewery's new beer is among the first to be sold in Oregon's new refillable beer bottles. CREDIT: CASSANDRA PROFITA

The next time you’re shopping for beer in Oregon, take a close look at the bottle. A select few will be thicker and heavier than usual with the word “refillable” stamped into the glass.Read More

When It Comes To Wildfire, Politics Lag Behind Science

By Cassandra Profita August 6, 2018

In this May 23, 2017 photo provided by Chelan County Fire District 3, logs burn near Leavenworth, Wash. The wildfire prompted evacuation orders for homes and cabins at a popular Washington state hiking and skiing destination. CREDIT: BEN TORKELSON

A variety of forest experts say that one of the best ways to reduce the threat of these mega-blazes is to use fire itself. They say we need to increase the pace of prescribed fire and let some wildfires continue to burn when it’s safe to do so. Of course, there’s not nearly as much political support for letting fires burn as there is for putting fires out.Read More

Washington Scientists Study ‘Singing Fish’ For Ways To Improve Human Hearing

By Cassandra Profita July 10, 2018

Neuroscientists Joe Sisneros and Allison Coffin search for midshipman fish, also known as 'singing fish,' underneath large rocks on the rocky shores of Hood Canal. CREDIT: CASSANDRA PROFITA

Somewhere under the rocks in Hood Canal, neuroscientist Allison Coffin may find the secret to protecting people’s hearing cells or even regenerating the ones we’ve lost.Read More

A Baby Boom Is Helping West Coast Starfish Recover After Die-Off

By Cassandra Profita June 27, 2018

Malformed juvenile starfish in Puget Sound. CREDIT: KATIE CAMPBELL

Scientists say a starfish populations are recovering from a devastating die-off with help from a massive baby boom.Read More

Salem Tests A New Way To Remove Toxins From Drinking Water

By Cassandra Profita June 20, 2018

The city of Salem's drinking water intake on the North Santiam River. CREDIT: CASSANDRA PROFITA

After issuing two drinking water advisories for toxins produced by a harmful algae bloom, the city of Salem is testing out a possible solution.Read More

This Is Why A Lot Of Our Recycling Is Going To Landfills

By Cassandra Profita June 13, 2018

Rogue Waste System’s Scott Fowler (left) and Laura Leebrick (center) have nowhere to send about 2,000 tons of baled and stacked of co-mingled recycling. CREDIT: JES BURNS

Over the past year, more than 10,000 tons of Oregon’s recycling has been dumped in landfills because there was nowhere else for it to go. It’s one of the consequences of new restrictions on shipping recyclables to China.Read More

Oregon Reverses Course On Increasing Protections For An Imperiled Seabird

By Cassandra Profita June 12, 2018

Marbled murrelets are seabirds that nest in older forests along the West Coast. CREDIT: RICH MCINTOSH

The Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission has decided not to elevate the endangered species status of the marbled murrelet after all.Read More

You Thought The Eagle Creek Fire Was Out? Think Again.

By Cassandra Profita May 29, 2018

A hot spot in the Eagle Creek Fire was spotted at 2 a.m. Tuesday near the Herman Creek Trailhead. CREDIT: U.S. FOREST SERVICE

A small hot spot flared up early Tuesday morning about a half-mile east of the Herman Creek Trailhead. It’s less than a quarter of an acre with little chance that it will spread. Firefighters are using nearby creek water to extinguish it.Read More

The Refillable Beer Bottle Is Making A Comeback In Oregon

By Cassandra Profita May 8, 2018

Reusable beer bottles for a new statewide program are being made at Owens-Illinois Glass Plant in Portland. CREDIT: OREGON BEVERAGE RECYCLING COOPERATIVE

In July, seven Oregon craft breweries will start selling beer in reusable glass bottles in the country’s first statewide refillable beer bottle program.Read More

Forest Service Says Disaster Funding Bill Will Help Fight Wildfires This Year

By Cassandra Profita May 2, 2018

The Chetco Bar Fire remained relatively quiet for its first month before exploding into Oregon's largest wildfire. Courtesy of Chetco Bar Fire incident command team

The U.S. Forest Service says it will have more money to fight wildfires and more tools to prevent them thanks to the new wildfire funding bill Congress recently approved.Read More

Some Columbia River Gorge Trails Closed By Eagle Creek Fire To Reopen This Summer

By Cassandra Profita April 30, 2018

"Closed" signs mark off parts of Multnomah Falls, April 13, 2018. CREDIT: BRADLEY PARKS

The U.S. Forest Service plans soon to reopen some of the trails in the Columbia River Gorge that have been closed since the Eagle Creek Fire last year.Read More

What Are Mini Versions Of Northwest Dams Doing In Mississippi? (Hint: Salmon, Of Course)

By Cassandra Profita April 3, 2018

Sean Milligan of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Walla Walla District sends hot pink dye through the spill bay of the Little Goose Dam model in Vicksburg, Mississippi. CREDIT: CASSANDRA PROFITA

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is gearing up for its biggest-ever planned spill of water over dams on the Columbia and Snake rivers. It’s a move ordered by a federal court to help endangered fish. To make sure it’s done right, dam managers tested options first using miniature models of Northwest dams way down in Vicksburg, Mississippi.Read More

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