August 6, 2002

Environmental Watch: Air quality meeting set

SEATTLE -- The Puget Sound Regional Council is hosting a meeting to assess the air quality impacts of proposed transportation improvements in the Puget Sound region.

The projects will include those proposed for the 2003-2005 timeframe. At the meeting will be representatives of the U.S. Department of Transportation, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency. The entire draft transportation plan will be released on Sept. 12 and is expected to include about 750 projects.

The meeting will be held Aug. 20 at 9 a.m. at the Puget Sound Regional Council's offices at 1011 Western Ave., suite 500, in Seattle. More information is available at psrc.org.

Corps plans regular Snake dredging

SPOKANE (AP) -- The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has decided to dredge the Snake River for at least the next two decades, ensuring access to the inland ports of Clarkston and Lewiston, Idaho.

The corps' Walla Walla district office issued a final report on its long-studied proposal to keep navigation flowing from Idaho to the Pacific Ocean. The document for the first time authorizes regular maintenance dredging of reservoirs in the lower Snake River.

The plan covers how to manage regular dredging behind Ice Harbor, Lower Monumental, Little Goose and Lower Granite dams on the Snake River, and in the McNary reservoir on the Columbia River.

The corps maintains a 14-foot deep, 250-foot wide navigation channel between Lewiston and McNary Dam, on the Columbia River near the Tri-Cities. The reservoirs constantly fill with sediment and have required periodic dredging in the past.

In preparing its plan, the corps considered numerous scenarios, including an end to dredging.

The alternative chosen was a combination of regular maintenance dredging, the raising of levees along the river and using the dredged material to create habitat for wildlife, the agency said.

The corps may raise some levees in the Lewiston-Clarkston area 3 feet because of increasing sedimentation in the river. If the plan is signed by corps officials this fall, the first dredging is to begin this winter. It will focus on the Lewiston-Clarkston area and some recreation facilities and navigation lock approaches.

Nominations for Salmon Homecoming award

SEATTLE -- Nominations are currently being accepted for the Seventh Generation Legacy Award, honoring environmental cooperation between tribal and non-tribal groups.

The award will be presented at the Salmon Homecoming Celebration, scheduled for Sept. 5 through Sept. 8 on the Seattle waterfront.

Nomination forms, award criteria and other information are available on the Salmon Homecoming Alliance Web site, http://www.salmonhomecoming.org. The deadline for nominations is Aug. 21.

Previous winners have included the Salmon Corps program, Tulalip leader Terry Williams and King County Executive Ron Sims.

Cousteau to speak at Soundkeeper luncheon

SEATTLE -- Jean-Michel Cousteau will be the speaker at this year's annual luncheon of the Puget Soundkeeper Alliance to be held in November.

Cousteau, the son of Jacques-Yves Cousteau, is the founder of the Ocean Futures Society, an organization dedicated to marine conservation and education.

As part of Cousteau's visit to Seattle, the Soundkeeper Alliance plans to hold an evening event as well.

The luncheon will be held at the Bell Harbor International Conference Center on Thursday, Nov. 14. The evening event is to be held the night before at a location to be announced.

U.S. Green Building Council awards planned

WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Green Building Council, best known for its sustainable building ratings system called LEED, has announced the creation of an annual awards program to honor the people who are advancing the green building cause.

The 1,800-member nonprofit organization will nominate candidates during the month of August. A panel of judges will evaluate the nominations and meet in Washington in September to determine the winners in each category. Winners will then be announced on Nov. 14 during the First Annual International Green Building Conference and Exposition in Austin,Tex.

The Annual Awards program will feature awards in three major categories: the Green Business Award will honor an individual or company that has demonstrated entrepreneurial leadership in advancing the green building market through establishing a partnership, technique, product or other form of innovation.

The Green Public Service Award will be given to an individual or organization for significant contributions in advancing green building through changes in policies, codes, requirements and other means.

The USGBC Leadership Award will be awarded to an individual who has demonstrated a sustained commitment to the organization through active participation in the development and advancement of its mission.

Beluga sturgeon listing proposed

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The government is proposing to list the beluga sturgeon as an endangered species, which would make it illegal to import the highly prized beluga caviar.

The beluga sturgeon, which would be protected in the United States under the Endangered Species Act, inhabits the Caspian and Black Seas, which both border Russia.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says the species is in danger of vanishing because of overharvesting, illegal trafficking and loss of its natural habitat to dam construction and other projects.

In its proposal, the agency said Wednesday, "Sturgeon populations have continued to decline, and the population structure is increasingly skewed toward sub-adult fish, with a critical lack of spawning-age adult female fish."

The proposal is in response to legal action by three environmental groups -- the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Wildlife Conservation Society and SeaWeb -- which petitioned Fish and Wildlife in December 2000 to declare beluga sturgeon an endangered species.

The groups say that since the United States imports 80 percent of the world's beluga caviar, a ban on imports would improve its prospects for survival.

Turtles slow bridge project

MONTGOMERY TOWNSHIP, N.J. (AP) -- Work on a bridge will be delayed because it is not allowed during turtle mating season.

County officials planned to replace the Cherry Hill Bridge in the fall, but state law prevents them from disturbing the area during mating season. They have not decided when the work will begin at the Montgomery Township site.

While it was not immediately known what species was found in the area, environmentalists say they likely are wood turtles, which are protected by the state. They say the work could stir up silt, which could kill the turtles.