wildfire
Posted inOutside

Sustainable Fire Protection

Project Wildfire aims to cultivate fire adapted communities
Avatar photo Keely Damara

Issues pertaining to water resources, solid waste management, transportation and energy production are all quick to come to mind when thinking of sustainability issues facing communities around the globe. In Deschutes County and elsewhere in Central Oregon, planning for the long-term health of surrounding forests is also an integral part of building a sustainable future. […]

Posted inNews

Progress For Public Lands

The newly passed public lands bill helps with fuel reduction at Crooked River Ranch, but resource activists say it missed protecting some important public lands
Chris Miller

On March 12, President Trump signed the public lands bill— formally known as S. 47, or the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act, into law. The Act, formerly known as the National Resources Management Act—includes the Oregon Wildlands Act. Included in this large piece of legislation was a new wilderness designation for […]

Posted inOpinion

Letters to the Editor

The Source Staff

Wildfire Recent legislation and commentary from political figures Rep. Greg Walden appear to support more logging/thinning as a panacea for wildfire and forest health. It reminds me of the same approach that Medieval doctors took to illness. If a patient was sick, the solution was to “bleed” the “bad” blood from the individual. If the […]

Posted inNews

A New Report Highlights a Vision For Wildfire Planning

1000 Friends of Oregon releases a report on land use and wildfires
Chris Miller

California just witnessed the worst fire in the state’s recorded history: 86 confirmed deaths and nearly 14,000 homes destroyed in the Camp Fire in November. Last year in Oregon, the Columbia River Gorge burned as the result of a careless firework. Now, 1000 Friends of Oregon is trying to do something about catastrophic wildfires. Gov. […]

Posted inNews

Living on Lava

It’s no secret Central Oregon sits on and near volcanoes—but is having them erupt in our lifetime an actual threat?
Jaclyn Brandt

Dr. Julie Donnelly-Nolan has been mapping Newberry Volcano for the past 20 years, as part of her work as a geologist with the U.S. Geological Survey. She’s one of many scientists and government agents who keep their eyes on the potential for a volcanic eruption in Central Oregon. While it’s not the highest-priority threat local […]

Posted inOpinion

The View From Paradise

Patric Douglas

I am no stranger to wide ranging and complete disasters. In the late ’90s I went through a category 5 hurricane that, in a 24-hour span, turned an island I lived on upside down. The devastation was total, but it was also familiar. We grow up with storms and bad weather. Hurricanes are an unruly […]

Posted inNews

Torched Towns: Could Bend be Next?

Bend Ranks No. 8 in Pacific Northwest wildfire risk, study says
Chris Miller

While the most destructive wildfire in California’s history rages on, the U.S. Forest Service and Pyrologix—a Montana-based wildfire analysis firm—have identified the 100 communities in the Pacific Northwest with the highest cumulative risk of wildfire.  Bend ranks number 8. “The high ranking mentioned above confirms all the work that we have been doing since the […]

Posted inNews

Smoke Levels Explained

If you love the outdoors, here’s what the smoke advisory levels feel like. It’s like a sadness rainbow!
Avatar photo Nicole Vulcan

On Thursday, the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality issued an air quality advisory for a host of counties in Oregon—including Deschutes, Crook and Jefferson counties here in Central Oregon. That advisory is in effect until noon Friday. Deschutes County’s air quality has hovered in the “Red” or “Orange” category this week due to a rash […]

Posted inNews

Fire Season in Full Effect

Gov. Brown activates Operation Plan Smokey after a rash of fires
Avatar photo Nicole Vulcan

It was only a matter of time before fire season went into full beast mode in Oregon—and that moment is now. Governor Kate Brown declared a statewide wildfire emergency starting today, effectively activating the Oregon National Guard to work with the Oregon Department of Forestry, including using aviation assets to help battle wildfires in the […]

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