Mountain Home Police is asking the public for assistance in locating a suspect that was involved in an altercation a Charlie's Place in Mountain Home this morning.

The incident was reported to police at approximately 1:45 AM on Sunday morning, February 5th, 2012. The incident resulted in five victims being stabbed, four were life flighted to Boise area hospitals and remain in stable condition at this time.

The suspect is described as being a male subject in his mid to late twenties, dark skinned, short black hair, clean shaven, 5’8" and a skinny build. He was last scene leaving Charlie's Place on foot and was wearing blue jeans, black or dark blue shirt, black and white checkered shoes.

The Mountain Home Police is asking for your help in identifying the suspect in this case. Please contact the Mountain Home Police Department, Detective Melanie Broughton at 208-587-2101 with information about this case, or you may remain anonymous by visiting our website, http://www.mhpd.net/silentwitness.htm .

###

An Oregon State Police (OSP) traffic stop Wednesday afternoon on Interstate 84 near Ontario led to the arrest of an Aloha, Oregon man after a trooper discovered over 10 lbs of marijuana inside the vehicle. OSP Drug Enforcement Section is continuing the investigation.

On February 1, 2012 at approximately 2:03 p.m. an OSP senior trooper stopped a 1996 Cadillac displaying Oregon license plates for a speed violation eastbound on Interstate 84 near milepost 376. The driver was identified as ANDREW DOUGLAS ROSE-GONZALEZ, age 26, from Aloha.

Subsequent investigation during the traffic stop led to the discovery of over 10 lbs of marijuana concealed inside the car’s trunk. Estimated value of the seized marijuana is $25,000.

ROSE-GONZALEZ was arrested and lodged in the Malheur County Jail for Unlawful Possession, Distribution, and Manufacture of a Controlled Substance – Marijuana.

Photograph Sources:
Rose-Gonzalez photo – Malheur County Sheriff’s Office
Marijuana photo – Oregon State Police

### www.oregon.gov/OSP ###


Attached Media Files: 2012-02/1002/51367/Rose-Gonzalez.JPG , 2012-02/1002/51367/020112.i84mp376.mj.JPG

Note: Change to show "OHA Josephine Chapter"

***

The Oregon State Police (OSP) Fish & Wildlife Division is continuing to ask for the public's help to identify the suspect(s) responsible related to an investigation into the illegal killing and waste of a Bighorn Sheep Ram in Baker County during late December 2011. With help of several organizations, the reward increased from $3,000 to $5,600 for information leading to an arrest and conviction in this case.

On December 28, 2011, OSP Senior Trooper Kris Davis responded to a report of a headless carcass, determined to be a Bighorn Sheep Ram, on Conner Creek Road approximately a quarter mile from the Snake River Road. This location is between the towns of Huntington and Richland along Brownlee Reservoir in the Lookout Mountain Wildlife Management Unit. Based on statements and condition of the carcass, Davis believes the ram was killed on approximately December 22, 2011. The ram's head was removed and the remains left to waste.

Bighorn Sheep hunting is lawful in the Lookout Mountain Unit with the proper tag; however, the season for Bighorn Sheep closed in that area on September 25. Only two Bighorn Sheep tags are issued in this unit each year.

The reward increase was made possible through contributions from:

* Oregon Hunters Association (OHA) TIP reward
* OHA Ochoco Chapter
* OHA Josephine Chapter
* OHA Bend Chapter
* OHA Redmond Chapter
* OHA Baker Chapter
* OHA Union County Chapter
* Oregon Foundation for North American Wild Sheep
* The Humane Society of the United States

Anyone with information related to this investigation is asked to call the Turn-in-Poacher TIP line at 1-800-452-7888 or Senior Trooper Davis at (541) 805-4757.

Photograph Source: Oregon State Police

### www.oregon.gov/OSP ###


Attached Media Files: 2011-12/1002/50325/LOBighorn.JPG

As thousands of Oregonians join millions across the country planning to gather and watch America’s most popular sporting event, the Super Bowl, law enforcement and traffic safety partners urge everyone not to let drunk driving penalize your plans. The U.S. Department of Transportation and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), with support from the National Football League (NFL) and Techniques for Effective Alcohol Management (TEAM), have joined forces with state and local highway safety and law enforcement officials to spread an important safety message about designating a sober driver on Super Bowl Sunday – Fans Don’t Let Fans Drive Drunk.

Oregon State Police (OSP), Oregon State Sheriff’s Association, Oregon Association Chiefs of Police and ODOT ask fans to huddle up now and make plans to ensure you don’t make a critical mistake that affects you and others on Oregon roads.

"Make the right call and have the keys in the hands of your designated driver so everyone can get home safely," said Captain Mike Dingeman, director of the OSP Patrol Services Division.

According to NHTSA, Super Bowl Sunday has become one of the nation’s most dangerous days on the road due to impaired driving. Forty-eight (48) percent of fatalities nationwide on Super Bowl Sunday involve a driver or motorcycle with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08 percent or higher. In 2010, alcohol-impaired driving fatalities accounted for 31 percent of the total motor vehicle traffic fatalities in the United States.

Last year, two people died on Oregon roads following crashes after the conclusion of the Super Bowl football game. Both were in alcohol-involved traffic crashes. Over the last five years on Super Bowl weekend, 11 people have died in traffic crashes on Oregon roads.

The following statistics reflect DUII arrests by OSP troopers and traffic fatalities reported between 12:01 a.m., Saturday, through 5:59 a.m., Monday, during the previous five Super Bowl weekends:

* 2011 Super Bowl weekend - 2 traffic fatalities and OSP troopers reported 59 DUII arrests
* 2010 Super Bowl weekend - 0 traffic fatalities and OSP troopers reported 58 DUII arrests
* 2009 Super Bowl weekend - 2 traffic fatalities and OSP troopers reported 50 DUII arrests
* 2008 Super Bowl weekend - 5 traffic fatalities and OSP troopers reported 23 DUII arrests
* 2007 Super Bowl weekend - 2 traffic fatalities and OSP troopers reported 42 DUII arrests

Oregon State Police, Oregon State Sheriff's Association, Oregon Association of Chiefs of Police, ODOT and MADD stress that designating a sober driver should be on the top of everyone's Super Bowl party list. Join their team and report possible intoxicated drivers to 9-1-1 or Oregon State Police dispatch at 1-800-24DRUNK (800-243-7856).

"Just as the players on the field prepare for the game, you can prepare for a safe celebration as well," said Troy Costales, ODOT’s Safety Division administrator.

If you are hosting a Super Bowl party:

* Make sure all of your guests designate their sober drivers before kick-off or help arrange ride-sharing with other sober drivers.
* Serve lots of food and include lots of non-alcoholic beverages at the party.
* Determine ahead of time when you’ll stop serving alcohol, such as one hour before the party ends or at the end of the third quarter (just like NFL stadiums) and begin serving coffee and dessert.
* Keep the numbers for local cab companies handy, and take the keys away from anyone who is thinking of driving while impaired.
* Be prepared for guests to spend the night if an alternative way home is not available.
* Remember, you can be held liable if someone you served ends up in a drunk-driving crash.

If you are attending a Super Bowl party or watching at a sports bar or restaurant:

* Designate your sober driver before the party begins and give that person your car keys.
* Avoid drinking too much alcohol too fast. Pace yourself—eat enough food, take breaks and alternate with non-alcoholic drinks.
* If you don't have a designated driver, ask a sober friend for a ride home; call a cab, friend or family member to come and get you; or just stay where you are and sleep it off until you are sober.
* Use your community's sober ride programs.
* Never let a friend leave your sight if you think they are about to drive while impaired.

Remember, Fans Don't Let Fans Drive Drunk, and always buckle up – it's still your best defense against other impaired drivers.

Additional tips and more information are also available at www.StopImpairedDriving.org.

### www.oregon.gov/OSP ###


Attached Media Files: 2012-01/1002/51268/FansDontLetFansDriveDrunk.jpg

Oregon State Police (OSP) troopers are continuing the investigation into Tuesday afternoon’s single vehicle fatal traffic crash along westbound Interstate 84 north of Baker City. The crash resulted in the death of an Emmett, Idaho woman whose name is released following confirmation of next of kin notification.

According to Lieutenant Dave MacManiman, on January 24, 2012 at approximately 12:36 p.m. a pickup driven by CHRISTINE E. McALLISTER, age 61, from Emmett, Idaho was westbound on Interstate 84 at the Baker City rest area near milepost 295. McALLISTER lost control of the pickup, traveled off the right shoulder and rolled coming to rest on the off ramp. Conditions at the time of the crash were snowing hard with snow and ice on the roadway.

McALLISTER was pronounced deceased at the scene. She was using safety restraints.

OSP troopers from the Baker City office are continuing the investigation.

Photograph Source: Oregon State Police

### www.oregon.gov/OSP ###


Attached Media Files: 2012-01/1002/51128/012412.fatal.i84mp295.1.JPG , 2012-01/1002/51128/012412.fatal.i84mp295.2.JPG

Three Utah men are facing marijuana-related charges in Lake County, Oregon following a Tuesday night traffic stop west of Lakeview during which an Oregon State Police (OSP) trooper seized approximately 26 pounds of marijuana.

According to Sergeant Steve Yates, on January 10, 2012 at approximately 9:25 p.m. an OSP trooper stopped a rented 2012 Chevrolet Suburban displaying Utah license plates for a speed violation on Highway 140W near milepost 95. The three Utah resident occupants were identified as NOAH D. CARTER, age 29, from West Valley, NICHOLAS JAMES PETERSEN, age 28, from West Jordan, and ISAIAS GARCIA, age 26, from Midvale.

Subsequent investigation during the traffic stop led to the discovery of approximately 26 pounds of marijuana in the rear area of the vehicle. Estimated value of the seized marijuana is $65,000.

The three men were later cited and released to appear in Lake County Circuit Court for Unlawful Possession and Delivery of a Controlled Substance – Marijuana.

Photograph Source: Oregon State Police

### www.oregon.gov/OSP ###


Attached Media Files: 2012-01/1002/50713/011012.hwy140wmp95.mj.JPG

The following is a news release from Lincoln City Police Department:

This January 23rd will mark one year since Lincoln City (LCPD) Police Officer Steven Dodds was shot and seriously wounded during a late evening traffic stop in 2011. Officer Dodds has demonstrated remarkable resilience and courage in overcoming life threatening injuries and has recently returned to his patrol duties. His reactions that night combined with the valiant and professional efforts of his Patrol Sergeant, the other on-duty LCPD members, and the outstanding emergency medical personnel in Lincoln City and Portland not only saved his life but also paved the way for his recovery. Officer Dodds and LCPD remain ever grateful for those efforts.

Officer Dodds has worked tirelessly to recover and get back on patrol, performing the duties and doing the work he loves serving the Lincoln City community. He has been recognized for his valor and courage by several organizations, including receiving the Purple Heart from the Oregon Peace Officers Association. When asked how he felt when this happened, he responded by saying "I was a victim for thirty seconds and I have been a survivor since." He has no desire to be in the limelight and is trying to put this event behind him while getting back to as normal of a life as possible. He has been very humbled by the overwhelming support of his community and fellow officers.

Officer Dodds was shot by the driver of a vehicle that he had stopped on Highway 101 at the south end of Lincoln City for a speed violation. The shooter, who has been identified as David Durham, fled the scene shooting at bystanders as he continued southbound on Highway 101. Durham led officers from Newport Police Department and Lincoln County Sheriff’s Department on a high speed chase through Newport, continuing to shoot at trailing police vehicles as he fled until his vehicle was disabled by spike strips deployed by an off-duty Lincoln County deputy near Waldport. Durham fled on foot and allegedly shot at boaters on Alsea Bay as he tried to escape. Durham is suspected of shooting at nine other people besides Officer Dodds. An extensive manhunt was conducted with the help of numerous agencies, but Durham has never been found.

LCPD, OSP and the FBI continue the investigation and all three agencies followed up on separate tips this past week. The FBI has a $10,000 reward posted for information leading to Durham’s arrest.

Every month, LCPD receives tips from all over Lincoln County. Tips come from multiple sources that include direct calls to our office from possible witnesses, calls from other law enforcement agencies, and tips from America's Most Wanted. Each are followed up on as they come in. Tips and information received from local sources are followed up primarily by the lead investigators assigned to the case from LCPD and the OSP Newport office. Tips from other states have been followed up on by the F.B.I. These tips have been from all over the country, from Hawaii to the East Coast. LCPD and OSP investigators are in touch with the FBI weekly continuing to work on this case.

Approximately one hundred tips have been received since the manhunt started, and between 3 to 5 tips still come in each month. LCPD appreciates each and every one, not only from the general public but also from law enforcement officers who call with information.

There has not been one confirmed sighting of David Durham since January 24, 2011 when he was last seen running up the beach towards the Bay Shore subdivision in Waldport. While fleeing on foot it is believed Durham also shot at two men crabbing in the Alsea Bay. Due to the hard work and assistance from other law enforcement agencies, we have been able to confirm that the many reported sightings were positively not David Durham. There are some reported sightings that cannot be confirmed either way. Some tips are vague and anonymous with no way of contacting the caller for more information.

The fact there have been no sightings or confirmed information that he has been at a particular location after that night indicates there is a possibility that Durham could be deceased. However, LCPD has no evidence that he is deceased and will continue this investigation until we find him or his remains. The Oregon State Medical Examiner's office will examine the remains of any unknown human recovered along the Oregon area beaches and elsewhere for the possibility of identifying Durham. This has been done previously but none of the examinations conducted of human remains found along the Oregon beaches over the last year has resulted in a positive identification as Durham.

Durham is entered into criminal data bases as a wanted person/fugitive and as a missing and endangered person. This will help if he is deceased and his unidentified remains were located in another state, making identification possible for authorities in those jurisdictions.

Last January, Durham was put on the U.S. Border Patrol and Custom's watch list as well as the Canadian Border patrol watch list in case he tried to cross one of our borders. There have been no reported crossings or attempted crossings.

Since the night of the shooting, law enforcement has monitored Durham’s residence for several months and there is no evidence that he ever returned to that location. There is also no evidence indicating he has been at any other particular location after the night of the shooting.

After OSP SWAT and other assisting agencies ended their search of the Waldport area, the Lincoln County Search and Rescue team brought in cadaver K-9's and conducted a sweep of the vicinity. No human remains were found.

Investigators are still hopeful that Durham will be located. They will not give up the search until he is found. Investigators encourage anyone that sees David Durham or has information regarding his whereabouts to please contact the Lincoln City Police at 541-994-3636, their local police or the FBI.

Photographs:
Officer Dodds - Lincoln City Police Department
Suspect David Durham

### www.oregon.gov/OSP ###


Attached Media Files: 2012-01/1002/50680/dodds.jpg , 2012-01/1002/50680/Durham_2010.jpg

On Friday, January 13, 2012, the U.S. Department of Justice, AMBER Alert Coordinators at state, regional, tribal and local levels, state Missing Children Clearinghouses and AMBER Alert partners commemorate the anniversary of the AMBER Alert Program and the somber remembrance of the abduction of Amber Hagerman. This is the nation's sixth AMBER Alert Awareness Day. Since the program’s inception, the AMBER Alert network has helped to find and safely recover over 550 children across the country.

Sixteen years ago, Amber was abducted while riding her bicycle and brutally murdered in Arlington, Texas. The AMBER (America’s Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response) Alert network was created after her tragic death to provide emergency broadcast messages to the public when law enforcement determines a child has been abducted. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, all 50 states, territories and the District of Columbia have established AMBER Alert Plans and over 70 regional, local and tribal plans together create the most significant child recovery network in the history of the our country.

In November 2002, the State of Oregon announced implementation of a statewide AMBER Alert Plan. This plan is a voluntary partnership between law enforcement agencies and local broadcasters to send an emergency alert to the public when a child has been abducted and it is believed the child’s life is in danger.

Since implementation of Oregon’s AMBER Alert Plan there have been 16 activations and the safe recovery of eighteen children. Oregon’s last AMBER Alert activations occurred March 1, 2011 at the request of Chehalis, Washington Police Department for a child forcibly taken from his mother at a local women’s shelter. The child and suspect, the biological father, were later located in Washington State.

Oregon's AMBER Alert Plan Criteria are:

1. Law enforcement confirms a child has been abducted (*)
2. The child is 17 years or younger
3. The child may be in danger of serious bodily harm or death
4. There is enough descriptive information about the child, abductor, and/or suspect's vehicle to believe an immediate broadcast alert will help.
5. The child's name and other critical data elements - including the child abduction (CA) and AMBER Alert (AA) flags will/have been entered into the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) system.

(* This alert system is not to be used when a child runs away or involves a custodial situation.)

Oregon State Police is the designated law enforcement agency which local law enforcement agencies contact to initiate and activate an AMBER Alert in our state. When all the AMBER guidelines and criteria have been met, the AMBER Alert Plan is activated using the AMBER Web Portal. Oregon's AMBER Alert plan sends out alerts through the Emergency Alert System via radio and television, highway advisory signs, email and to wireless subscribers who opt to receive the text messages on their wireless devices. One year ago, Facebook users could also start signing up to receive AMBER Alert bulletins for their state sent through a Facebook "News Feed" feature.

While technology is one of the program’s greatest assets, it can also be a hindrance. In Oregon, and nationwide, the "AMBER Alert" name has been the subject of various hoax texts and emails. A well-intentioned public often forwards misguided, phony, unconfirmed or outdates texts, emails and/or messages via social networks which refer to AMBER Alerts. Many of these so-called AMBER Alerts that circulate by text message and e-mail involve cases that had already been resolved or were outright hoaxes.

We strongly urge the public to react only to AMBER Alerts from authorized sources such as: Oregon State Police news releases, the Oregon media via the Oregon State Police, Wireless AMBER Alerts, or Missingkids.com / National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (N.C.M.E.C.). Anyone may sign-up at no cost to be notified of Oregon's AMBER Alerts through the AMBER Alert Web Portal. Oregon also joins the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children encouraging all wireless subscribers to sign up for Wireless AMBER Alerts. More information about Wireless AMBER Alerts is available at: http://www.amberalert.gov/wireless.htm.

Information about the AMBER Alert Plan in Oregon is available at the Oregon State Police web site at http://www.oregon.gov/OSP/AMBERALERT/index.shtml.

More information about Amber Alert's is available at www.amberalert.gov.

Note: Attached with this news release is the U.S. Department of Justice "2012 National AMBER Alert Awareness Day" information.

### www.oregon.gov/OSP ###


Attached Media Files: 2012-01/1002/50667/usdoj.amber.observance.pdf , 2012-01/1002/50667/amber_alert.jpg

SALEM, Ore. - Oregon Army National Guard Brig. Gen. David Enyeart, is scheduled to be promoted to the rank of Major General, during a ceremony at 3:00 p.m. on Feb. 6.

The ceremony is scheduled to be held at the Anderson Readiness Center on the drill floor, located at 3225 State Street in Salem, Ore. Members of the public and the media are invited to attend.

Following his promotion, Enyeart will begin his new position as Chief of Staff, United States Forces Korea.

"I am honored but also very humbled with this promotion to Major General," said Enyeart, "I am looking forward to the challenges and learning experience with this new position in United Forces Korea."

Enyeart began his career in the U.S. Army in 1978. He received his commission as a 2nd Lieutenant through Officer Candidate School in June 1985 and joined the Oregon National Guard as a Mortar Platoon Leader. During his three decade career he has had three overseas deployments, two to Afghanistan and one to Sarajevo.

His military career includes commands ranging from unit level to Brigade level and then to Assistant Adjutant General (Army), Oregon National Guard, and Commander/Senior Military Representative, North Atlantic Treaty Organization, Headquarters /Sarejevo.

Enyeart recently returned from Sarajevo, Bosnia where he served with military and governmental agencies assisting in their entry into NATO.

Family, friends, and members of the media are invited to attend the promotion ceremony which marks, Enyeart’s more than 33 years of service to the military.


Attached Media Files: 2012-02/962/51361/BG_Enyeart.jpg

PR 07 12

BONNEVILLE POWER ADMINISTRATION
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, Feb. 2, 2012
CONTACT: Doug Johnson 503-230-5840
or 503-230-5131



New pilot saves customers money and reduces BPA reserve requirements
Committed Intra-Hour scheduling pilot will advance renewable energy integration



Portland, Ore. – Two Bonneville Power Administration customers have committed to faster-paced energy schedules, increasing the electric grid’s flexibility to absorb changes in wind energy generation and reducing costs for both the customers and BPA.

Portland General Electric and Snohomish PUD will schedule transmission of energy through BPA’s system every half hour – doubling the previous pace of once an hour -- in exchange for a 34 percent reduction in the rate BPA charges for balancing services. The more frequent scheduling helps the energy market better adjust to fluctuations in wind generation.

For more than a century, the Northwest’s transmission system has operated by scheduling deliveries on the hour. However, that means BPA must hold enough generating capacity in reserve to make up the difference between what wind generators expect to deliver to the grid in any 60 minute period and what their turbines actually produce. More frequent scheduling lets wind producers match their schedules more closely to output, reducing the demand on BPA’s hydroelectric capacity.

BPA manages 75 percent of the Pacific Northwest’s high voltage electric transmission system.

"During our most recent rate case, we worked with our customers to create a pilot that would save them money and help us find options other than the hydro system to balance increasing amounts of wind," said Elliot Mainzer, executive vice president, BPA Strategic Planning. "We continue to look for innovative ways to integrate renewable energy sources and stretch the value of the hydro system."

"We feel BPA's advancement of intra-hour scheduling will facilitate additional renewable energy on the grid, benefiting rate payers, the regional economy and the environment," said Rachel Shimshak, executive director, Renewable Northwest Project. "As our region adopts a resource mix that includes more new renewables and less fossil fuel, intra-hour scheduling will play a key role within the suite of solutions necessary to accommodate clean energy."

PGE will employ intra-hour schedules for 450 megawatts of wind it operates within the BPA grid. Snohomish PUD will do the same for 97 megawatts of its wind energy. Because of these commitments, BPA will reduce by 23 megawatts the balancing reserves it holds in case wind facilities generate less energy than scheduled and 34 megawatts of reserves it holds in case wind plants produce more energy than scheduled. Removing these reserves provides BPA with operational flexibility to meet other hydro system requirements.

"We expect our participation in this pilot will help reduce our balancing charges for wind integration," said Snohomish PUD Senior Manager of Power Scheduling Kelly Wallace. "It has provided a valuable learning opportunity in committed intra hour scheduling in large part due to our successful collaboration with our pilot partners and BPA."

"It is important that all of us in the region work collaboratively to find fair, efficient, cost-effective ways to integrate the increasing amounts of variable, renewable power our customers want on the electric grid," said Jim Lobdell, PGE’s vice president of power operations and resource strategy. "Intra-hour scheduling is one tool that can help make the system more resilient, and we’re pleased to work with BPA to move this forward."

During this two-year rate period from Oct. 1, 2011 to Sept. 30, 2013, BPA is inviting participation in the pilot for up to 1,200 megawatts of wind energy. The amount of wind identified for participation to date accounts for just less than half the available space in the pilot.

Voluntary intra-hour scheduling has increased steadily over the past three years. However, because the practice was voluntary BPA could not discount its variable energy integration rate because it could not predict how often certain utilities would use the tool and at which wind plants.

BPA customers have pursued intra-hour scheduling even without discounts, though. A two-phase voluntary intra-hour scheduling pilot began in 2009. Under this initial pilot, BPA allowed only increases to schedules, which did somewhat limit participation.

Between January and September 2011, voluntary intra-hour schedules averaged about 5,440 megawatt hours per month. But that amount swelled to an average of approximately 17,240 megawatt hours per month between October and December 2011, when BPA opened the pilot to decreases in schedules and initiated a pilot with the California ISO opening intra-hour scheduling for Northwest generators who send power to California.

BPA is a non-profit federal agency that markets renewable hydropower from federal Columbia River dams, operates three-quarters of high-voltage transmission lines in the Northwest and funds one of the largest wildlife protection and restoration programs in the world. BPA and its partners have also saved enough electricity through energy efficiency projects to power four large American cities. For more information, contact us at 503-230-5131 or visit our website at www.bpa.gov.



###

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2012
CONTACT: Glenn Lamb, Columbia Land Trust, 360-606-6071
Dan Cook, Columbia Land Trust, 503-442-1839
Michael Milstein, BPA, 503-230-4215
Diana Fredlund, Corps, 503-808-4510


(EDITORS: Maps, photos and video available at http://bit.ly/y6i8Ms or on request.)


The Columbia Land Trust, Bonneville Power Administration and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers today announced the largest purchase of riverside habitat in the Columbia River estuary in nearly 40 years, permanently protecting essential refuge for salmon, steelhead and other wildlife.

The acquisition, which will benefit salmon from Oregon, Idaho and Washington as they migrate to the ocean, is the largest step yet in the estuary to mitigate the impacts of federal dams on the Columbia and Snake river systems.

The Columbia Land Trust on Monday completed the purchase of the 920-acre Columbia Stock Ranch on the south shore of the Columbia River near Goble, Ore., with $5.3 million in BPA funding. The purchase sets the stage for the Corps of Engineers to restore hundreds of acres of historic wetlands in the next few years to provide food and shelter for salmon migrating to and from the ocean.

The acquisition protects more estuary habitat for conservation than any other single purchase since the early 1970s.

"The size and ecological importance of this habitat set a new benchmark for habitat protection and is a key piece in an extensive fish refuge system in the lower Columbia River," said Glenn Lamb, executive director of the Columbia Land Trust. "In the last 10 years we have worked with about 60 landowners to conserve 9,100 acres of estuarine and tributary spawning and rearing habitat. BPA has been an important partner in many of these projects. The estuary is a particularly vital nursery for young salmon, and this project is the best demonstration yet of conserving and restoring the lands that make the estuary so valuable."

An independent panel of biologists identified the parcel as an especially valuable swath of historic tidal wetlands that if restored would boost survival of young salmon as they transition to saltwater. Some two-thirds of estuary wetlands have been lost over the last century, but recognition of their biological significance has encouraged restoration.

"Everything we learn tells us more and more that the estuary is very important to juvenile fish," said Ron Thom, a Pacific Northwest National Laboratory scientist specializing in ecosystem restoration who helps assess potential projects. "Restoration can create more habitat to support them. In general, the more opportunities for fish to access large, productive rearing and feeding habitats, the better the chances of young salmon gaining strength and ultimately surviving."

"I applaud the collaboration between the parties – the local landowners, the Estuary Partnership, the Land Trust and the federal agencies – in bringing this project into our Fish and Wildlife Program to help mitigate for the hydro system’s effects on salmon and steelhead. Estuary projects benefit multiple populations and increase the benefits for the ratepayer dollars spent," said Joan Dukes, chair of the Northwest Power and Conservation Council.

"The Columbia Stock Ranch site offers a large area for contiguous restoration," said Elvon Childs, the Corps’ Columbia Stock Ranch project manager. "We are designing the project so it maximizes benefits for salmonid habitat restoration with direct tidal connections to the Columbia River."

"Not since the early 1970s when the two lower Columbia River wildlife refuges were established has there been a single purchase of this magnitude purely for conservation," said Debrah Marriott, executive director of the Lower Columbia River Estuary Partnership. "The Deer Island area was once a rich network of forests, shrub scrub, wetlands, sloughs and floodplain lakes that provide critical shallow water areas for juvenile salmon resting and rearing as they make their way to the ocean. With this purchase and the restoration of this property, these essential habitats will once again become available to Endangered Species Act listed fish and other species."

Federal agencies are responsible for mitigating the impacts of federal hydroelectric dams on salmon as outlined by NOAA Fisheries’ Biological Opinion. The mitigation includes new technology ensuring more fish pass dams safely and habitat restoration, with increasing focus on the estuary below Bonneville Dam.

"We’ve seen fish returning to other restored habitat within days, so large, contiguous properties such as this one should boost salmon survival even more," said Lorri Bodi, BPA vice president of Environment, Fish and Wildlife. "Healthy estuary habitat is like a Head Start program for salmon that makes them that much more likely to return to the Northwest to spawn as adults."

Management and restoration plans for the property will be developed with public input. Restoration work will also support the local economy and jobs. The restored habitat will benefit coho, chinook and chum salmon; steelhead; and cutthroat trout, as well as terrestrial wildlife such as black bear, elk and river otter.

###


Attached Media Files: Newly protected salmon habitat in Columbia River estuary, purchased Jan. 23 by the Columbia Land Trust with Bonneville Power Administration funds. , Newly protected salmon habitat in the Columbia River estuary, purchased Jan. 23 by the Columbia Land Trust with Bonneville Power Administration funds. , Newly protected salmon habitat in Columbia River estuary.

On February 2, 2012 at 10:00 a.m., Complex Two at Snake River Correctional Institution (SRCI) was put on lockdown status after an inmate was found unresponsive in his cell. The inmate, Michael Clarence Hagen (SID # 18040458), was taken to a local hospital.

The housing unit 2A remains on lockdown status to ensure the safety of all staff and inmates. Approximately, 80 inmates live in that unit. Normal operations continue throughout the rest of the institution.

The Oregon State Police are investigating.

Inmate Hagen came to the Department of Corrections (DOC) on 5/21/2010. He was convicted of robbery I, two counts of burglary I, assault I and three counts of attempted aggravated murder out of Multnomah County. He earliest release date is 1/7/2027.