KWSO News for Tue., Dec. 26, 2017

A bill, passed by the Senate last Thursday (12/21/17), will move forward – allowing development of about 100 acres near Government Camp on Mt Hood.  The Mt Hood/Cooper Spur Land Exchange Clarification Act would also protect 700 acres of forest land in Hood River County.  The Hood River News reports that a broad public lands bill passed in 2009 included the land exchange as part of the Mt. Hood Wilderness designation but multiple delays stalled the effort.   The bipartisan legislation was written by Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley and Representatives Greg Walden  and Earl Blumenauer.  The bill, that will protect and enhance Oregon’s land conservation – while allowing recreational economic development on Mt Hood, now goes to President Trump for signature

With Christmas 2017 in the books – our attention now turns to New Year’s Eve and 2018.  If perhaps health and fitness is on your list of resolutions – then you might be interested in the Moving Mountains Slim Down challenge.   This is the 8^th year for the Jefferson County Event.  Featuring 16 weeks of Health & Fitness efforts.  Folks can sign up as individuals or teams with a $25/person fee for each entry.  Carolyn Harvey is the Community Health Educator for the Jefferson County Health Department where they will be doing sign ups on January 19^th and 20^th.  You can sign up for Moving Mountains and do measurements in Warm Springs on Thursday January 18^th at the Warm Springs health and Wellness Center in the Kitchen Conference Room from 8am – 5pm.  The Challenge is for anyone who lives or works in Jefferson County or on the Warm Springs Reservation.

It was a White Christmas for much of the Northeast and Midwest. A blizzard swept into parts of New England Monday and bitter cold enveloped much of the West. Forecasters expected up to 10 inches of snow for parts of Maine and New Hampshire, with wind gusts up to 50 mph. The National Weather Service says it’s only the sixth time since 1884 that downtown Portland, Oregon had measurable snow – only an inch or two – on a Dec. 25.  The rare Christmas snowstorm left roads treacherous in some parts of the usually rainy Pacific Northwest. The snow wasn’t particularly deep, only an inch or two, but it created havoc when mixed with freezing rain on Sunday.   Yesterday afternoon a multi vehicle crash closed Highway 26 just west of the Warm Springs reservation boundary.  Detours using Highway 216 for westbound traffic and Hwy 35 for eastbound vehicles were in place well into the evening.