KWSO News 7/31/19

Warm Springs Public Utilities workers have been doing mock simulations for the pressure reducing valve stations this week. Residents may have encountered no or low water pressure at times. The actual construction and replacement work is scheduled to start at 5am on August 5^th. They are anticipating a full twelve hours of work for the completion of each PRV station in these areas:  George Street, Catholic Church, Forestry & Industrial Park, West Hills Vault and Greeley Heights. There will be rolling outages bringing low water pressure and at times no water in these areas.

The Fish and Wildlife Committee has planned a meeting for all hunters to cover the 2019 off-reservation hunting regulations. The meeting is on Thursday, August 8^th at 5:30pm at the Agency Longhouse.

Five John Day River restoration projects will receive $489,100 in funding from the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board. The North Fork and South Fork watershed councils will use the funding to enhance fish and wildlife habitat for chinook salmon, steelhead and bull trout, restore clean water, increase water quality and reduce fire risk.  One of the projects, with additional funding and assistance from the Forest Service and Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, will work to reduce stream temperatures in Camp and Lick creeks, which enter the Middle Fork of the John Day River just north of Galena. Willow, cottonwood and dogwood will be planted along the streambanks to provide shade, and large logs or other natural structures will be placed in streams to create pools. The two-phase project should be completed by next year. The Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board was established 20 years ago. Its funding primarily comes from Oregon Lottery receipts.

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Rural Alaska Native villages will receive nearly $5 million from the U.S. Justice Department to combat numerous public safety problems, including no law enforcement presence in some communities, the agency announced Tuesday. The award comes nearly two months after Attorney General William Barr met with tribal representatives who told him about slow emergency responses by authorities, violence against women and abuse of alcohol and drugs, including opioids, in remote communities. The money is for hiring additional village and tribal officers and to pay for equipment and training. In June, Barr declared a law enforcement emergency in Alaska. The declaration cleared the way for the Justice Department to award more than $10 million to fight crime in rural Alaska communities. That includes the award announced Tuesday. Barr’s visit and funding came as Congress and advocates have renewed a focus on violence against Native American and Alaska Native women.

Leaders from Northwest Indian tribes are holding a own climate change summit this week at the Northern Quest Casino, just west of Spokane. Members of the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians are sharing information about how they’re adapting their homelands for the changes brought on by climate change. They include the Swinomish Tribe, whose reservation is on an island in Puget Sound, about an hour north of Seattle. Chairman Brian Cladoosby [CLADDIS-bee] says his tribe is the first federally-recognized tribe to have a climate mitigation plan approved by the national government. That planning, he says, began a dozen years ago, when it became clear that flooding on the reservation was getting worse and more frequent. He says other tribes are experiencing their own unique problems related to climate change. Cladoosby is one of the co-chairs of the climate action task force of the National Congress of American Indians. He and many others at this week’s meeting are also participating in national and international climate change discussions.