KWSO News 3/18/19

Warm Springs Sanitation is currently down to one trash truck and a full-time staff of three-instead of a full-time staff of four–to cover all residential and commercial customers throughout the reservation service area.  In many cases, unplowed roads and buildup of heavy snow and ice has prevented the sanitation technicians and trucks from reaching some customers. The weather has also severely impacted the sanitation equipment and caused damage to a truck. The Sanitarian expects full recovery of services by next week.  There may be some delays on paper recycling routes for commercial customers.

The Oregon Ducks are headed to the NCAA Tournament for the sixth time in the last seven years. Oregon (23-12) is the No. 12 seed in the South Region and will open against No. 5 seed Wisconsin (23-10) in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday (approx. 1:30 p.m. PT, TBS) at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif.

Oregon Senator Bill Hansell wants to make health care professions in rural, tribal areas more accessible to aspiring Native American students. If passed, Senate Bill 293 would establish an Indian Health Scholarship Program that provides free tuition and fees for qualifying students through Oregon Health and Science University. In exchange, students would commit to working at tribal service sites after graduation for at least the same number of years they used the scholarships. Hansell, R-Athena, said he wants to incentivize students who are pursuing medical careers to be able to go back to their tribe and practice their profession. The bill passed out of the Senate Committee on Education last week with a do-pass recommendation and is headed to the Joint Committee on Ways and Means.

The Spring Whale Watch Week event returns to the coast March 23-31 to celebrate the more than 20,000 Gray whales expected to migrate north past Oregon over the next few months. Trained volunteers from the Whale Watching Spoken Here program will be stationed at 24 sites along the coast to help visitors spot the migrating mammals. Gray whales are visible from Oregon’s shore nearly year-round, but two weeks every year are special. The winter and spring Whale Watch Weeks along the Oregon coast are recognized as some of the best opportunities to view the annual gray whale migration anywhere in the world.