Western Washington Archives - Northwest Public Broadcasting

Decision upheld to remove a portion of Electron Dam on the Puyallup River

By Lauren Gallup August 22, 2024

View of Mount Rainier looking southeast up Puyallup River, Tacoma, July 10, 1899. The dam was built on the river in 1904. (Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons)

A portion of the Electron Dam on the Puyallup River has to be removed, according to a decision from the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The federal appeals court upheld the decision by the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington that a vertical metal wall portion of the dam, a temporary spillway, makes the dam a complete barrier to fish passage and Read More

Shucks! It’s been a bad year for hot shellfish

By Lauren Gallup August 7, 2024

Eric Hall, a manager for Taylor Shellfish, works his way loose after sinking into deep mud at low tide on May 1, 2015, in Willapa Bay. (Credit: Elaine Thompson / AP Photo)

Lurking within the deep, blue waters that lap along the Washington state coastline and into the Puget Sound, algal blooms burst in colorful explosions when the sun shines across the surface, giving these aquatic plants life. But these brightly colored blooms sometimes pack a dangerous punch. Read More

Snow geese winter population in Skagit on the rise, posing problems to farmers

By Lauren Gallup November 22, 2023

Snow geese flocking and flying at Fir Island in Skagit County. (Courtesy: Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife.)

In late autumn on the cusp of cool winter days, snow comes early to Washington when thousands of aloft avians, snow geese, land here in a flurry of white feathers. “We call it a snow storm, they just will move as one,” said birder Julie Hagen. “It's just this chaotic whirlwind of birds, they move like a cloud and then they just lift up in the air.” Read More

Residents near Lake Whatcom issued Level 2 Evacuation Notice

By Rachel Sun August 29, 2023

Residents on Blue Canyon Road near Lake Whatcom have been issued a Level 2 evacuation warning as crews fight a roughly 30-acre fire that likely started due to lighting Monday evening.Read More

Mega-warehouse legal battle continues over traffic, water quality

By Lauren Gallup August 2, 2023

The site where Bridge Industrial has proposed building a warehouse in South Tacoma. Photo courtesy of Michelle Mood.

In South Tacoma, there is about 150 acres of land sitting vacant where dry grasses and trees cover an area that, in part, once served as a rail-yard for Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway. Read More

‘It’s really a crisis’: Why small towns are fighting to save their local newspapers

By Northwest News Network July 21, 2023

Newspaper boxes like this one sitting outside of the La Conner Weekly News' office can be seen scattered across the two main streets of La Conner, stocked with new editions of the paper every week. It costs $1.25 for a copy.

With a stack of fresh newspapers in hand, Ken Stern is making one of his first stops of the day at La Conner's local office supply and business center.Read More

Get ready for the heat, west-siders!

By Lauren Gallup July 3, 2023

Beachgoers stay cool Monday afternoon at Owen Beach in Tacoma. (Credit: Lauren Gallup NWPB)

Just in time for the Fourth of July holiday, the west side of Washington is going to see some sunny, hot weather. The daytime highs of 80- and 90- plus degrees being predicted might still seem abnormal to those who call the Puget Sound basin home, but those temperatures are on trend with the hotter summers climatologists have been tracking. Historically, Western Read More

Two districts, the same dilemma: Not enough shelter spaces

By Lauren Gallup June 12, 2023

Schools across Washington state are dealing with increasing numbers of homeless students. Image: Lauren Gallup via Canva / NWPB

For Jami Pitman, her child’s elementary school changed their lives. Eight years ago, when she enrolled her child in Bellingham Public Schools, they were homeless. Pitman said she sought housing support from the Opportunity Council, an organization that provides a variety of wraparound services. Opportunity Council is part of the county’s coordinated entry system. The Read More

October showers bring more containment to west side wildfires

By Lauren Gallup October 24, 2022

Fire crews navigate terrain while working at the Nakia Fire on Wednesday afternoon, Oct. 19, 2022. (Amanda Cowan/The Columbian)

We’re nearing the end of October, but crews across Washington state continue to battle fires. Read More

What Happens In Our Urban Neighborhoods When There’s A Heat Wave?

By Lauren Gallup September 5, 2022

Nature Conservancy lead scientist, lead scientist Phil Levin, left, and Lowell Wyse, right, of the Tacoma Tree Foundation install a temperature logging device in South Tacoma. This will help scientists measure the impact that planting more vegetation has on temperatures in urban areas. Photo courtesy of Courtney Baxter/TNC

Heat waves are becoming more common in Western Washington. It's just one outcome of worsening climate change. With this, efforts to green-up urban areas may help keep people cool and safe. Read More

The Fight For Legacy Forests, Part Eight: What Next? A Look At The DNR’s New Carbon Project

By Lauren Gallup May 19, 2022

Hilary Franz, Commissioner of Public Lands, announcing the Department of Natural Resource's carbon offset project, April 6. Photo courtesy of DNR Communications

In the last of our series, The Fight for Legacy Forests, NWPB’s Lauren Gallup reports on reactions to the carbon project on state lands, which will protect some older forests from harvest. Read More

‘I Regret That.’ Governor Sorry For Apple Gift Mistake; Agent Tracks Down Maggot-Laden Fruit

By NWPB News September 17, 2020

Signs along highways throughout Washington mark where apple maggot quarantine areas begin. It is illegal to transport home-grown tree fruit into these areas, largely from western Washington into the state's apple-growing eastern counties. CREDIT: Washington Dept. of Agriculture

In Washington, bringing a home-grown apple from west to east is a misdemeanor. There are road signs and posters. The penalty can cost 90 days in jail. But the Washington Department of Agriculture has never enforced the law. Sources at the department say it’s more about education.Read More

Welcome To…Tac-Oly? Hunt Is On For Additional Commercial Airport To Serve Puget Sound Region

By Tom Banse October 30, 2019

The hunt is on for a second major airport to serve Western Washington after Sea-Tac Airport reaches capacity. CREDIT: Tom Banse/N3

As many travelers can attest, phenomenal growth at Sea-Tac Airport is pushing against the physical limits of the terminal and airfield. That is why Washington state legislators earlier this year voted to create a siting commission to get the ball rolling on building a new primary airport.Read More

A History Teacher, An Obsession With A Sunken Ship, And The Crew Searching For Its Wreck

By Tom Banse August 10, 2018

Shipwreck hunters Jeff Groth, right, and Scott Williams methodically towed a magnetometer back and forth over a search grid -- "mowing the lawn," as they called it. CREDIT: TOM BANSE / NW NEWS NETWORK

An Oregon-based group of shipwreck hunters wants to find the historic remains of the first steamship to provide service in the Puget Sound in the 1800's. The shipwreck search was inspired by one Port Townsend, Wash., man's obsession. Read More