Mar 09, 1999

Environmental Services Directory is out...

SEATTLE -- The 1999 Environmental Services Directory for Washington State is now available. A business-to-business directory of environmental services, products and information resources, the directory lists more than 600 companies, organizations and individuals in over 100 categories. Free copies of the directory are available from state Department of Ecology offices in Bellevue, Lacey, Spokane and Yakima. Otherwise, order a copy by mail from Environmental Services Directory, P.O. Box 99486, Seattle, WA 98199-0486. Enclose $5 per copy for shipping and handling. For more information, call (206) 282-2591.

...so is Streambank Stabilization Handbook

VICKSBURG, Mo. -- The U.S. Army Engineer Waterways Experiment Station has compiled a unique reference CD-ROM on streambank stabilization techniques. Covering geomorphology, geology, geotechnical engineering, hydrology and hydrodynamics, the compendium is intended for consulting firms, libraries, universities, government agencies and construction contractors. The disc is published by Veri-Tech, Inc. (http://www.veritechinc.com). It is written in Visual C++. Cost of the disc is $149 for U.S. federal government agencies and U.S. universities, and $199 for everyone else. For more information, call (601) 638-5641 or email veritech@magnolia.net.

Ship's lost cargo may hold erosion clues

WILLAPA BAY (AP) -- Numerous logs which have been appearing on Washington's ocean beaches the past two months may help map erosion patterns in the area. Knowing the location of the beached logs would determine the movement of sand and sediments, where erosion may occur, said Vladimir Shepsis, principal engineer with Pacific International Engineering of Edmonds. The logs, 20 to 40 feet long and square cut at 24-by-24 inches, have been appearing on beaches from Westport to Grayland, in Willapa Bay and on Long Beach. They are believed to be from the cargo steamship Canadian Explorer, which ran into the sand bar at Willapa Bay in the fog and sank in 1919 while on its way to Portland from British Columbia. The logs are believed to have been preserved by sand in the bay, which is shifted significantly by currents. Shepsis suspects a $17 million underwater dike project he and his firm designed for the state Department of Transportation may have changed the dynamics of the currents and movement of sediments in the bay. DOT officials hope the dike will save state Route 105 at what is called Washaway Beach on Willapa Bay. Shepsis said the project may have scoured sand from the buried Canadian Explorer, releasing the logs, the first of which appeared on a beach in mid-January. On the end of each one is stamped the letters: HRM, the same as on the logs on the sunken ship.

Urban forestry grants are in bloom

SEATTLE -- Community forestry projects are eligible to apply for grants of up to $7,500 from Washington's Urban and Community Forestry Program and the Washington Community Forest Council. All grant dollars must be matched, either in dollars or in kind. To obtain an application, call the TreeLink Hotline at 1-800-523-8733.

UW profs: divest in global warming

SEATTLE -- More than 50 University of Washington faculty members have joined students in their efforts to get the UW to divest from corporations that contribute to global warming. The faculty members announced their action yesterday. Led by chemist Richard Gammon, they say the corporations, as part of the Global Climate Coalition, are fighting the Kyoto Protocol, an international treaty to stop global warming. Among the corporations are Chevron, Exxon, Ford, General Motors, Mobil, Southern Co., Texaco and Allegheny Energy, Inc. The UW has investments in Chevron, GM and Ford. A statement drafted by the faculty group calls on the UW to "exclude from its corporate investment portfolio companies that actively oppose limits on emissions of greenhouse gases." Besides Gammon, the statement was signed by Robert Fleagle and Conway Leovy of the Department of Atmospheric Sciences.

A crust grows in nukewaste

RICHLAND (AP) -- Plans are being made to pump out and dilute 100,000 gallons of highly concentrated radioactive waste from tank SY-101, the once-notorious "burping" tank at Hanford nuclear reservation. The waste level in the 1.16-million gallon, double-shell underground storage tank has risen more than 2 feet to almost 36 feet in the last two years. Tank SY-101 will be pumped out into another nearby double-shell tank this fall, Fluor Daniel Hanford, which manages the U.S. Department of Energy site, said last week. The rising waste level in the tank had puzzled Hanford scientists and engineers. They have now determined that the increase was caused by growth of the 6-foot-thick crust atop the liquid waste, said Rick Raymond, a project manager with Lockheed Martin Hanford Corp., one of Fluor's subcontractors. Gas bubbles from the liquid waste are being trapped in the meringue-like crust, causing it to swell. The tank contains decaying organic materials that generate such gases as hydrogen, nitrogen, nitrous oxide and ammonia. In the 1980s and early 1990s, the flammable gases would build up in the tank and escape in periodic "burps." A mixer pump installed in 1993 took care of the problem by allowing the continuous release of small amounts of gas.

ScottishPower gains enviro allies

PORTLAND (AP) -- ScottishPower, the embattled bidder for PacifiCorp, has found unlikely support from environmentalists in an attempt to buy the Portland-based utility. They support a ScottishPower proposal to boost PacifiCorp's investment in renewable resources such as wind, solar and geothermal energy. They also like the idea of a "green tariff" allowing customers to pay slightly more to support alternative energy production. Another plan that appeals to environmentalists is a proposal to boost PacifiCorp's investment in counseling low-income customers on their bills and help them weatherize their homes. "It's a lot more likely that they will do this with ScottishPower than without," said Rachel Shimshak, director of the Renewable Northwest Project, an organization that includes environmental and consumer groups as well as energy companies. "It's an encouraging first step." But other groups, including taxpayer advocates and industrial electricity customers, have doubts about the proposed $7.8 billion deal, which would be the first takeover of a large U.S. utility by a foreign company. Even the praise from environmentalists is qualified, as groups expressing approval last week noted that they were not yet taking position on the merger. Other groups said they had concerns that ScottishPower might lack plans for energy conservation programs. "That's a very serious gap," said Sara Patton, executive director of the Northwest Energy Coalition, a consumer and environmental organization. "When we talked to them about energy efficiency programs, it just didn't appear to me that they had that kind of experience." Regulators in the federal government and five Western states expect it will be September before they decide whether to approve ScottishPower's acquisition of PacifiCorp. The Oregon Public Utility Commission plans public hearings around the state in May. Jon Savelle is the Journal's environment editor. He can be contacted at (206) 622-8272.

DBM/CM

Steve Fogel and Greg Radom have been hired at Donald B. Murphy Contractors/Cooney McHugh. The drilling contractor also announced it has promoted Craig Henke to general superintendent. Fogel, a project superintendent, holds a building construction degree from the University of Florida and has 23 years of experience on a variety of specialty drilling, bridge, marine and pile driving projects. Radom, an assistant project engineer, has a two-year degree in civil and structural engineering from British Columbia Institute of Technology. Henke has been a drill superintendent for the past 15 years, working on the World Trade Center, King Street Center and KOMO office projects.

Methodologie

Laurie Lusk has been promoted to chief financial officer at Methodologie, a Seattle-based branding agency. Lusk formerly served as finance director. Nadine Stellavato has been hired as senior designer. Stellavato formerly served as senior designer at Spangler Associates. Paula Richards was recently promoted to creative director. Richards is a founding member and previously served as studio manager.

Providence Health System

Lynn Foley has been named director of marketing and communication for Providence Health System, Puget Sound. Foley formerly served as director of marketing for PacMed Clinics.

NeoPath

Ronald R. Bromfield was recently appointed president and chief executive officer of NeoPath. Bromfield will replace Dr. Alan C. Nelson, who will remain as chairman. Bromfield formerly served as senior vice president and general manager of U.S. monitoring for SpaceLabs Medical. NeoPath is a Redmond-based firm that specializes in visual intelligence technology for medical testing.

Benson & McLaughlin, P.S.

Seattle's Benson & McLaughlin, P.S. recently added Curt Ankerberg, tax manager; Tony Chang, staff/tax; Cammie Eaton, manager/firm administrator; Carl Heisdorf, senior tax manager; Debbie Kreitler, staff/business services; Lindsay Marrs, staff/accounting and auditing; Shawn Mortensen, staff/accounting and auditing; Lloyd Sandquist, accounting and auditing manager; Eilen Seeliger, staff/tax; and Mark Steffan, staff/accounting and auditing.

Click! Network

Click! Network, Tacoma Power's telecommunications service, is now offering broadband services to Tacoma businesses. Broadband services information is available on the website at http://www.click-network.com or by calling (253) 502-8900.

Multifaith Works

Shanti, a volunteer organization providing one-on-one emotional support to people affected by HIV/AIDS or other life threatening illnesses, recently merged with Multifaith AIDS Projects(MAPS), to form a new umbrella organization called Multifaith Works. MAPS brings people of diverse faiths and ethnic backgrounds together to provide group housing for low-income people disabled by AIDS. Five new members of the board have been added to Multifaith Works: April Delgado, Dennis Sargeant, Betsy Shea, Kathy Suznevich and Jane White Vulliet. Rabbi Anson Laytner is serving as director of Multifaith Works.

Preston Gates & Ellis

Preston Gates & Ellis, a Seattle-based law firm, recently ranked second in market share for the western United States in 1998 according to the Securities Data Company Municipal Market Analysis, which ranks firms acting as bond counsel for new issues of long-term municipal bonds. In 1998, Preston Gates served as bond counsel for 324 long-term municipal bond issues at a value of $4.349 billion.