KWSO News 4/24/19

Warm Springs Public Utilities issued a boil water notice on Tuesday, advising Agency area homes and facilities served by the Water Treatment Plant to boil tap water for three minutes before using. A high turbidity reading Monday night at the Water Treatment Plant prompted the advisory as required by EPA. Water treatment plant operators said they are back-washing filters with filtered water to clear the system. Random water samples are being tested for bacteria as a precautionary measure, they said in the advisory, and some system flushing will take place. Managers expect that this boil water notice will be in effect through today and lifted on Thursday, however we will provide definite information once that is available.

Registered Oregon voters should expect ballots for the May 21^st election around May 1^st.  This election includes 2 seats on the Jefferson County 509J School Board.  To vote in Oregon elections you must be 18 or older and a resident.  You can register to vote online by going to KWSO.org and click on the voter registration box.   To participate in the May 21^st election – you must be registered by April 30^th.

What to do with the four Lower Snake River dams – and how to best protect imperiled salmon – has been a tough question for decades. At a salmon conference in Boise Tuesday, tribal representatives said it’s important to have legislative support in Washington D.C. before giving serious consideration to removing or altering the dams. Jaime Pinkham is the director of the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission. He says a lack of congressional support for removing Snake River dams could lead to trouble for salmon.

Other fish advocates and tribal members at the conference called for dam removal sooner, rather than later.

It was a particularly snowy and wet winter this year. But a fire official says that doesn’t mean it’ll alleviate the summer’s potential for wildfires. John Saltenberger [SAL-ten-bur-gur] is with the Northwest Coordination Center. His agency did find snowpack in late March was exceptionally high, owing to heavy snowfall in late February.

Saltenberger says overall, the regional forecast for wildfires appears normal, with areas west of the Cascades at higher risk this summer.