Environment

‘On The Tipping Point’ Of The Spear: U.S. Asparagus Farmers Worry As Import Competition Grows

By Anna King
Washington asparagus is just starting to be cut, but farmers worry if their industry will hold on for the long haul. Cheaper imports from Mexico and Peru are putting pressure on Washington, California and Michigan farmers. ANNA KING / NW NEWS NETWORK
Growers in Washington, California and Michigan raise the majority of the nation’s domestic asparagus -- and Washington’s season is on. But business in U.S. spears is noticeably dwindling due to cheaper competition from foreign markets. That’s because there’s increasing amounts of cheaper asparagus from Peru and Mexico coming in: fresh, canned and frozen. And that’s Read More

Congress Passes Big Public Lands Protection Bill. Washington’s Methow And Yakima Valleys Benefit

By Jes Burns
File photo. Glacier Peak volcano Washington's central Cascades. CREDIT: Walter Siegmund/Wikimedia/Creative Commons BY-SA 3.
The Natural Resource Management Act includes a little of everything — meant to satisfy public land interests all over the country. The land-conservation measures have received a lot of attention. But there are other provisions in the bill concerning the Northwest, among them wildfire risk, research and air quality resources, hunting on public lands, water management for Read More

Canadian Regulators OK Trans Mountain Pipeline, With Impacts On Traffic Through Washington Waters

By Paige Browning
A protester holds a sign stating during a Kinder Morgan (Trans Mountain) Pipeline rally on Sept. 9, 2017 in Vancouver, Canada. CREDIT: WILLIAM CHEN/WIKIMEDIA/CREATIVE COMMONS
On Friday, Canadian regulators endorsed the long-fought oil pipeline, which would bring more oil vessels through Washington state waters. The Canadian government proposal would lengthen the Trans Mountain Pipeline, which would allow the country to ship more oil overseas and bring in higher prices. Now, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is widely expected to approve it.Read More

‘Hey Guys, How You Doin’?’ How Jay Inslee Introduces His Ambition Beyond Washington State

By Austin Jenkins
Gov. Jay Inslee enters a conference room at the New Hampshire Institute of Politics at Saint Anselm College where he spoke to students in January. CREDIT: AUSTIN JENKINS/N3
As Washington Gov. Jay Inslee inches closer to a likely run for president, he's starting to sound more and more like a candidate on the stump than a two-term incumbent, even when addressing audiences at home. At a recent legislative forum in Olympia, Inslee recounted his first foray into politics 30 years ago and told the story behind one of his first votes as a freshman Read More

Northwest Air Quality Agencies Oppose Possible Delay To Federal Wood Stove Compliance Rules

By Emily Schwing
The federal EPA is giving wood stove manufacturers more time to comply with air quality standards. CREDIT: ANDY ZIEGLER/FLICKR/CREATIVE COMMONS
The Environmental Protection Agency set new clean-air standards four years ago for wood stove and hydronic heater manufacturers. These manufacturers were told that by 2020 they would have to sell off older models of stoves and heaters that did not meet the new standards that limit fine particulate matter. Now the EPA is proposing a two-year delay to that sell-by deadline.Read More
Load More