February 17, 2004

Environmental Watch: Greenhouse tries hydrogen fuel heater

VANCOUVER -- Technology developed by Hydro Environmental Resources, a Vancouver company, could save an Oregon nursery significant dollars in heating costs.

The technology was developed when a scientist working in Australia received a grant to clean arsenic-laden water from mining operations. In the process, he discovered the efficiency of hydrogen fuel.

The device is a fuel reactor. Four hydrogen-based compounds are added to water, yielding hydrogen fuel and generous quantities of heat.

Terra Nova Nurseries, of Canby, Ore., relies on natural gas to heat its greenhouse. The area is about the size of a football field and must be kept at a constant 70 degrees. Dependence on fossil fuel is expensive.

Terra Nova recently placed an order for Hydro Environmental's fuel technology, but is still doing a cost analysis. This would be the first installation of the reactor, said James Painter, a lab technician with Hydro.

Painter said the hydrogen fuel will be more cost-effective, and heat generated as a byproduct of the combustion process will be circulated through underground pipes to heat plant roots and maintain temperature.

Clean water conference March 22-23

SEATTLE -- A clean water and stormwater conference will be held March 22 and 23 at the Renaissance Seattle Hotel.

It will cover Clean Water Act issues, targeted at lawyers, real estate professionals, government and tribal officials, consultants and engineers.

Co-chairs are Michael P. O'Connell, a partner at Stoel Rives, and James A. Tupper, Jr., of the Mentor Law Group.

Topics include permitting, environmental group perspectives, regulatory initiatives, watershed planning and endangered species and oil-spill response.

To register, e-mail registrar@lawseminars.com, mail to 800 Fifth Ave., Suite 101, Seattle, WA 98104, phone (206) 567-4490 or (800) 854-8009 or fax to (206) 567-5058. Cost is $695.

EcoBuilding Guild to hold 'movie night'

SEATTLE -- The Central Puget Sound chapter of the Northwest EcoBuilding Guild will explore the use of video as a medium to advocate responsible urban development and green building on Wednesday, Feb. 25.

The event will begin with screenings of videos about urban development, ideas for healthier homes and interviews with guild members and business owners on indoor air quality and green building materials. The filmmakers will be available afterwards to discuss their work.

Screenings begin at 7 p.m. in the basement of the Brick building at 6532 Phinney Ave N.

Program is free for guild members, $5 for non-members. For information, contact Thor Peterson at (206) 615-0731.

Rural forest commission seeks members

SEATTLE -- The King County Rural Forest Commission has four vacancies to fill. The commission advises the county executive and county council in its efforts to conserve forestland and facilitate appropriately scaled forestry.

Deadline for applying is March 15. For information, call Benj Wadsworth at (206) 296-7805.

Groups to appeal pesticide spray ban

WENATCHEE (AP) -- A coalition of nearly 40 agriculture and pesticide groups says it will appeal a federal judicial ban on spraying certain pesticides near Pacific Northwest salmon waterways this week or next, an industry spokeswoman said.

Corinne Simon of CropLife America, a pesticide trade association based in Washington, D.C., said the action will be filed in the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco.

On Jan. 22, U.S. District Judge John Coughenour of Seattle banned ground spraying of 38 pesticides within 60 feet of streams and aerial spraying within 300 feet of streams.

Heather Hansen, executive director of Washington Friends of Farms and Forests in Olympia, said she hopes the decision can be stayed in time to allow farmers to keep using the pesticides on this year's crops.She cited a federal study that estimated the economic impact to Washington farmers alone could be $31 million to $495 million annually.

Patti Goldman, attorney for the Seattle-based Washington Toxics Coalition, said the groups faced an uphill battle to get a stay.

The coalition and three other groups sued the Environmental Protection Agency for violating the Endangered Species Act by failing to consult with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries in its review of 54 pesticides.

Mule deer target of large western study

RENO, Nev. (AP) -- Wildlife biologists are mapping mule deer habitat from Mexico to Canada and identifying specific regional problems to try to stem the deer's decline across the West.

As recently as the 1960s, an estimated 2.3 million mule deer roamed the diverse landscape stretching from the Pacific Coast to the Great Plains and the deserts of the Southwest to the mountainous terrain of the Northwest Territories. But their numbers have since dropped sharply, the biologists reported.

The Mule Deer Working Group of the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies hopes to reverse the declining population trend by identifying and mapping habitat and recommending how best to manage it. The work is expected to be completed this spring.

Biologists hope the information will be used by property owners, land managers and urban planners.

Experts said fire suppression hurts deer habitat because it disrupts the natural rejuvenation of the grassy plants and shrubs called forbs that deer feed on.

Oregon pushing use of cleaner diesel

EUGENE, Ore. (AP) -- Oregon could beat federal clean air standards for diesel buses, vans and delivery vehicles by more than a year.

Federal standards for ultra-low-sulfur diesel, which reduced emissions by up to 15 percent, are set to take effect in fall 2006. When paired with engine filters and particulate traps, the combination can cut harmful exhaust by up to 95 percent.

The potential health benefits are huge, said Kevin Downing, air quality planner with the state Department of Environmental Quality.

Officials aim to steer buses and trucks toward the special diesel first, then light-duty trucks and passenger cars. Exhaust from diesel engines is one of the top air quality concerns in Lane County, pollution control officials say.

The cleaner fuel costs more than regular diesel, limiting its appeal among cash-strapped public agencies and private businesses.