Pollution
Website funds UW Bothell researcher’s coal-train dust study
BOTHELL -- Ask just about any scientist. They have far more ideas for things they want to investigate than they can ever get the funding to explore.That's the conundrum that Dan Jaffe, a researcher at the University of...
Date: 05/13/2013 | Local News
Answers in bee deaths
County beekeepers respond to findings of new study
Date: 05/13/2013 | Local News
Plan to use sewage worries Lake Stevens residents
LAKE STEVENS -- A family business with a history of odor complaints is applying for a permit to mix solids left over from sewage treatment with soil, apparently to make fertilizer.Tenelco has applied for a permit from the city of Lake Stevens for the soil operation. A...
Date: 05/09/2013 | Local News
Pesticide-free is no easy goal
Cities and schools like the idea, but it takes labor -- a lot of it
Date: 05/05/2013 | Local News
Fish show harm from Gulf spill, study finds
LOS ANGELES -- Something appears to be amiss at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico's food chain.
Date: 05/03/2013 | Nation & World
Clean house and drop off drugs
Law enforcement and Bartell Drugs plan to participate in National Drug Take-Back Day this Saturday, to allow people to get rid of unused, expired and unwanted medicine.
Date: 04/24/2013 | Local News
Gregoire sided with Boeing on water quality rules
Entering her final year in office, former Gov. Chris Gregoire found herself in a difficult spot: Indian tribes, powerful supporters of the governor, wanted stricter water pollution rules. The current regulations mean tribal members, along with sport fishermen and some other Washington...
Date: 04/24/2013 | Local News
Coalition mounts effort to block coal trains
Elected representatives from Marysville, Edmonds and the Tulalip Tribes are among 15 officials from around the state who have joined forces against a plan that would bring more trains rolling through their communities carrying coal.
Date: 04/23/2013 | Local News
Costs rising for cleanup of mill site in Bellingham
BELLINGHAM -- More mercury than expected has been discovered in a small area of an old mill site in Bellingham, which could add up to $1.4 million to the environmental cleanup project's cost.
Date: 04/19/2013 | Northwest
Seattle, King County settle with feds over pollution
SEATTLE — The city of Seattle and King County have agreed to make a total of $1.46 billion in upgrades to their sewer systems to reduce the amount of polluted water that enters Puget Sound and other waterways, under settlements reached with the federal government.
Date: 04/16/2013 | Northwest
Deal reached in dispute over pulp mill pollution
CORVALLIS, Ore. -- A Halsey pulp mill and the environmental group Willamette Riverkeeper have settled a dispute over pollution in a Willamette River mixing zone.
Date: 04/13/2013 | Northwest
Lead poisoning toll revised to 1 in 38 kids
NEW YORK -- More than half a million U.S. children are now believed to have lead poisoning, roughly twice the previous high estimate, health officials reported Thursday.
Date: 04/04/2013 | Nation & World
Coal train traffic to be studied
People who oppose a plan that would bring more trains carrying coal through Snohomish County might have one more firearm in their arsenal by next year.The Puget Sound Regional Council, a regional transportation planning group, has decided...
Date: 04/04/2013 | Local News
Compost plant may lose some waste from Seattle
EVERETT -- A year from now, one particular stream of waste that flows into the Cedar Grove Composting plant in Everett could be headed elsewhere.
Date: 04/01/2013 | Local News
Odor study off to a slow start
EVERETT -- A study aimed at getting to the root of a stink that's plagued neighborhoods surrounding the Snohomish River delta in recent years is getting off to a slow start.Many who complain about the stench point the finger at Cedar...
Date: 03/30/2013 | Local News
Obama to require lower-sulfur gasoline
WASHINGTON -- The Obama administration is expected to propose new rules today that would slash the amount of sulfur in gasoline, one of the most significant steps the administration can take this term toward cutting air pollution, said people with knowledge of the announcement.
Date: 03/29/2013 | Nation & World
Prison sentence in $22M Columbia oil spill case
SEATTLE -- The owner of a derelict barge that required a $22 million cleanup after oil spilled into the Columbia River in southwest Washington has been sentenced to four months in prison.
Date: 03/19/2013 | Northwest
Tools from a bygone era
Century-old blades from shingle mill discovered in Arlington
Date: 03/07/2013 | Local News
Feds compromise on Yellowstone snowmobiles
After more than 15 years, the Yellowstone snowmobile wars may have reached an end.The National Park Service announced Friday it has a new plan for managing snowmobiles and snow coaches in Yellowstone National Park, a compromise between tour operators eager to bring tourists...
Date: 02/23/2013 | Nation & World
6 underground Hanford nuclear tanks leaking, Inslee says
YAKIMA -- Six underground radioactive waste tanks at the nation's most contaminated nuclear site are leaking, Gov. Jay Inslee said Friday.
Date: 02/22/2013 | Northwest
State to geese: Shoo!
Deception Pass State Park tries to haze Canada geese
Date: 02/15/2013 | Local News
Class-action lawsuits filed against Cedar Grove
EVERETT -- A stinky dispute between neighbors and an Everett composting facility is headed toward court.
Date: 02/13/2013 | Local News
Mukilteo, Edmonds to fight Paine Field flights
MUKILTEO -- The staunchest opponent of commercial air service at Paine Field has followed through on a promise to fight the plan in court.The cities of Mukilteo and Edmonds, along with an activist group and two individuals, have filed a notice with the 9th
Date: 02/05/2013 | Local News
'Puffers' break state law, invite car thieves
Turning on your car's engine and then going back into the house for a few minutes to let it warm up is not just bad for gas mileage and the environment. It's offering your car up to a thief on a silver platter.And it's illegal.
Date: 02/04/2013 | Street Smarts
Entire industry in jeopardy
Rising ocean acidification is killing marine life
Date: 02/01/2013 | Local News
Rain to chase string of foggy days by Tuesday
EVERETT -- A thick fog that settled in Snohomish County like a stubborn squatter for nearly a week should take its leave Tuesday afternoon.The soupy mist arrived on Thursday and refused to leave the lowlands.It earlier spent four days blanketing the area between...
Date: 01/21/2013 | Local News
14,000 weigh in on coal trains
A few people have put in their two cents' worth on a plan to build an export terminal near Bellingham that would mean more trains carrying coal through Western Washington.A few people, as in 14,000.
Date: 01/21/2013 | Local News
A culture at stake
Viewpoints: Ocean acidification puts more than sea life at risk
Date: 01/20/2013 | Commentary
Panel to discuss acid levels in state waters
Leading experts who are helping the state study and counteract rising ocean acidity levels are scheduled to speak at a free seminar Jan. 24 at Everett Station.
Date: 01/17/2013 | Local News
Front Porch: County burn ban downgraded
OK to burn againA burn ban imposed by the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency has been downgraded.
Date: 01/16/2013 | Local News
Blanket of stagnant air over state
SEATTLE -- A high pressure ridge over the Northwest is likely to leave a blanket of stagnant air over Washington state until next week, leading to more burn bans and possible problems for people who already have trouble breathing, officials say.
Date: 01/15/2013 | Northwest
Burn ban downgraded; use of most stoves now allowed
A burn ban imposed by the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency has been downgraded to a less restrictive level.
Date: 01/15/2013 | Local News
Contaminated material to be removed from Bellingham shore
BELLINGHAM -- Workers are preparing to remove a section of contaminated shoreline near downtown Bellingham.The Bellingham Herald reported that the petroleum contamination is from an old bulk fuel storage facility that operated from 1904 to 1987.
Date: 01/05/2013 | Northwest
EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson to step down
WASHINGTON — EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, the Obama administration's chief environmental watchdog, is stepping down after a nearly four years marked by high-profile brawls over global warming pollution, the Keystone XL oil pipeline, new controls on coal-fired plants and several other...
Date: 12/27/2012 | Nation & World
Idling car engines waste gas, money
About a year-and-a-half ago, I wrote about engine idling and how most of the time it's simply a waste of gas and money and pumps unnecessary pollution into the air.
Date: 12/24/2012 | Street Smarts
Coal trains draw debate
County residents, for and against, speak at Seattle hearing
Date: 12/13/2012 | Local News
Everett seeks help in drafting coal train position
EVERETT -- Everett city leaders are seeking answers about the environmental consequences of running more coal trains through town, if a proposed coal-export terminal gets built in Whatcom County.
Date: 12/13/2012 | Local News
Life expectancy rises as fine particle air pollution drops
LOS ANGELES -- A new study links even small reductions in fine particle air pollution to increased life expectancy.
Date: 12/06/2012 | Nation & World
Alaska Railroad curtails idling locomotives
FAIRBANKS, Alaska -- With fall and winter temperatures routinely below zero -- a high temperature of minus-20 was forecast for Saturday -- it is common for drivers in Fairbanks to idle their vehicles to keep them somewhat warm.
Date: 12/02/2012 | Nation & World
Smoke levels are risky at some airports
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- As you travel through out-of-state airports this holiday season, you may want to make a wide detour around those haze-filled fishbowl smoking lounges.
Date: 11/24/2012 | Nation & World
Tsunami debris is late, but it's still on its way
An onslaught of debris believed to be from the 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan has yet to hit Washington beaches as predicted, but that doesn't mean it's not coming, according to one local expert.
Date: 11/19/2012 | Local News
Feds outline Silver Valley cleanup in N. Idaho
COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho -- The federal government has released its implementation plan for the first 10 years of a massive cleanup of a century's worth of mining pollution in Idaho's Silver Valley.
Date: 11/11/2012 | Northwest
State pollution case tests international law
SPOKANE -- The glistening waters and sandy beaches of the Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area have drawn millions of tourists over the years.
Date: 10/22/2012 | Northwest
Groups send letters warning of lawsuit over water
SPOKANE -- Public interest groups sent letters Thursday telling five big Yakima Valley farms that a lawsuit would be filed unless they stop contaminating groundwater with runoff from their operations.
Date: 10/18/2012 | Northwest
Experts to discuss mill cleanup
EVERETT -- Anybody who's interested in what it'll take to clean up toxic leftovers at Kimberly-Clark's former waterfront mill can check in with the City Council tonight.
Date: 10/10/2012 | Local News
Pollution tax constitutional, state Supreme Court rules
OLYMPIA -- The state Supreme Court unanimously ruled Thursday that the state's hazardous substances tax is constitutional.
Date: 10/05/2012 | Business
Longview vessel leaks diesel into Columbia River
LONGVIEW -- The Coast Guard and state Ecology Department responded to a diesel leak from a ship moored near Longview that caused a half-mile long sheen on the Oregon side of the Columbia River.
Date: 09/27/2012 | Northwest
County Council backs extension of garbage contract
EVERETT -- The Snohomish County Council voted unanimously Wednesday to support a contract extension of up to five years with Allied Waste to export the county's trash to Eastern Washington.
Date: 09/26/2012 | Local News
GM offers big discounts to boost Volt sales
DETROIT — General Motors rolled out the Chevrolet Volt two years ago with lofty sales goals and the promise of a new technology that someday would help end America's dependence on oil.
Date: 09/22/2012 | Business
Tour rain gardens then learn how to make one
Take a walk, probably not in the rain, to tour seven rain gardens in Everett's Northwest Neighborhood on Tuesday night.The Twilight Rain Garden Tour, from 6 to 7:30 p.m., begins with a short presentation at Everett Community College's Senate Room, 2206 Tower St., Everett.
Date: 09/22/2012 | Life
County close to $20M-a-year deal with trash hauler
EVERETT -- Wrangling over the future of Snohomish County's $20-million-a-year trash contract could be nearing an end -- at least for the short term.
Date: 09/18/2012 | Local News
What the miners left behind
Undoing Monte Cristo's toxic legacy could forever change area
Date: 09/16/2012 | Local News
Arlington's natural wonder
Old farm is now a park and wetland that cleans stormwater
Date: 09/15/2012 | Local News
Airlines at Paine Field would have little impact, report says
Two and a half years and more than $600,000 later, the final environmental review of passenger airline service at Paine Field says the same thing it said before: that adding up to 23 flights per day at the airport by 2018 would not...
Date: 09/14/2012 | Business
North Creek sewage spill will cost Everett $4 million
EVERETT -- A major sewer spill that sullied North Creek with untreated waste last spring is likely to cost the city at least $4 million to replace nearly a mile of faulty sewer pipe.
Date: 09/14/2012 | Local News
Noses trained on Cedar Grove
MARYSVILLE -- Jo Newland is welcoming the chance to put her nose where her mouth is.Newland, 60, has been voicing her displeasure for several years with the bad smell that's been permeating her north Everett neighborhood.
Date: 09/13/2012 | Local News
Cedar Grove study seeks a few good noses
MARYSVILLE -- Anyone who lives in Marysville, Tulalip or north Everett, is going to be around home for most of the next year and has a good sense of smell is a potential participant in an upcoming odor study.
Date: 09/12/2012 | Local News
FAA analysis due on airline flights at Paine Field
EVERETT -- An analysis that addresses hundreds of concerns about passenger flights out of Paine Field is expected to be released as soon as Tuesday.
Date: 09/11/2012 | Local News
Underground wall to contain pollution at Lynnwood site
LYNNWOOD -- An underground wall of sand and iron filings is planned as a measure to keep chemicals from spreading out from the ground beneath a closed dry cleaning business.
Date: 09/10/2012 | Local News
China faces 'notable downward pressure' on growth
BEIJING -- Chinese President Hu Jintao pledged to boost domestic demand and promote more balanced growth in the face of an export slowdown for the world's second-biggest economy.
Date: 09/09/2012 | Nation & World
Tsunami cleanup likely to fall to volunteers
EDMONDS -- The bulk of the debris from last year's earthquake and tsunami in Japan is expected to start littering Washington shores in less than a month.When it hits, cleaning up much of it likely will fall on the shoulders of volunteers, officials say.
Date: 09/07/2012 | Local News
Fecal coliform closes lake in Olympia
OLYMPIA -- Health officials say water samples that showed high levels of fecal coliform bacteria prompted an emergency closure of normally pristine Ward Lake in Olympia.
Date: 09/05/2012 | Northwest
Dog project helps reduce microbes on beach
If you spent time at the beach this summer, you probably encountered seagulls screeching overhead and eating trash. You probably also encountered their poop. Seagull droppings can carry disease-causing microbes like Escherichia coli and Enterococcus, which can contaminate beaches and water. Now...
Date: 09/02/2012 | Nation & World
Something stinks
Viewpoints: Cedar Grove's response to odor has been lacking
Date: 09/02/2012 | Commentary
Halting slide of lampreys
Tribes, biologists work to protect important fish
Date: 08/14/2012 | Local News
Small town's residents blame B.C. smelter for illness
NORTHPORT -- Rose Kalamarides was in her early 20s when she was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis. Her older brother also got the debilitating disease. So did one of her childhood friends, her third-grade teacher and a former classmate at her elementary school.
Date: 08/13/2012 | Northwest
Red dye will measure water quality in Stillaguamish
ARLINGTON -- The Stilly will briefly run red next week.A state Department of Ecology research team plans to put red dye in the Stillaguamish River on Wednesday evening as part of a water quality study.
Date: 08/09/2012 | Local News
1-year odor study met with objections in Marysville
MARYSVILLE -- A planned study of odors in the Snohomish River delta could finally get at the heart of a sour smell that's plagued Everett and Marysville neighborhoods in recent years, proponents say.
Date: 07/27/2012 | Local News
Arctic drilling close for Shell, but still elusive
ANCHORAGE -- Seven years and $4.5 billion after it bought leases to explore for oil off Alaska's Arctic coast, Royal Dutch Shell is finally close to drilling a well in the pristine Chukchi Sea, confident that it will discover a vast oil reservoir buried thousands of feet below the seafloor.
Date: 07/21/2012 | Nation & World
Toxic algae found in lake north of Tulalip
SEVEN LAKES -- People living near or visiting Lake Howard are being advised against drinking the water and asked to avoid swimming and boating in the lake.
Date: 07/20/2012 | Local News
Everett mill site may sit empty for years
EVERETT -- Buildings at the Kimberly-Clark mill are expected to start coming down by the end of the month, leaving a massive void on the city's waterfront.It could be years before something takes the mill's place.The Kimberly-Clark pulp and paper mill has been closed since April.
Date: 07/20/2012 | Local News
Cedar Grove asks to release phosphorus into slough
EVERETT -- Cedar Grove Composting is asking permission from the state to release an unlimited amount of phosphorus -- a substance that in large amounts can harm fish -- into Steamboat Slough from its plant on Smith Island.
Date: 07/02/2012 | Local News
Arsenic found at 2 parks
Warnings up about contaminated soil at Everett parks
Date: 06/20/2012 | Local News
EPA to tighten national soot standards
WASHINGTON - The Environmental Protection Agency will announce a proposal today to tighten the nation's soot standards, a move that could help deliver major health benefits by the end of the decade but force some oil refiners, manufacturers and other operations to invest in pollution abatement...
Date: 06/15/2012 | Nation & World
U.S. coal use declining
NEW YORK -- America is shoveling coal to the sidelines.The fuel that powered the U.S. from the industrial revolution into the iPhone era is being pushed aside as utilities switch to cleaner and cheaper alternatives.
Date: 06/13/2012 | Business
Cedar Grove Composting's expansion plans stalled
EVERETT -- Cedar Grove Composting will have to undergo the most thorough type of environmental study required if it wants to continue to pursue building an anaerobic digester to generate electricity, the
Date: 05/23/2012 | Local News
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