KWSO News for Fri., Dec. 3, 2021

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A suspect in the Breaking and Entering and Theft case from the Warm Springs Tribal Utilities Department on October 26^th has been detained by the Warm Springs Tribal Police Department. Detectives of the Warm Springs Tribal Police Department positively identified Levi Jim of Warm Springs in the Upper Dry Creek area on November 30^th and after a short pursuit took him in to custody. Mr. Jim is wanted on two tribal warrants, one Jefferson County felony warrant and one Washington state warrant. Based on the follow-up interview with this subject and other evidence Warm Springs Tribal Police detectives determined they had enough probable cause to charge Mr. Jim with the theft at Tribal Utilities, which included an F350 pickup, a utilities locator, security system and tools all valued at over $96 thousand. Mr. Jim is currently in custody on the outstanding warrants until formal charges can be made in Tribal court and due to a federal offense this case will be forwarded to the United States Attorney’s Office for review of charges.

Officials in Oregon are asking for help locating the person or persons responsible for poisoning an entire wolf pack in the eastern part of the state earlier this year. The Oregon State Police said Thursday it has been investigating the killing of all five members of the Catherine Pack in Union County, plus three other wolves from other packs. An agency spokeswoman says all leads have been exhausted so they are reaching out to the public for assistance. Wolf advocates were stunned by the news, calling the killings horrific and egregious. Wolves once ranged most of the U.S. but were wiped out in most places by the 1930s under government-sponsored poisoning and trapping campaigns. Wildlife advocates argue that continued protections are needed for the animals to rebound.

An Australian company has started drilling at a site in southeast Oregon that could eventually host a large lithium mine. Bradley Parks reports. “BP: The company Jindalee Resources says a lithium deposit in southern Malheur County could be the largest in the country. State regulators have approved more exploratory drilling to shore up the company’s estimate of how much lithium is out there. The company says the site could potentially support a long-lasting lithium mining and processing operation near the Oregon-Nevada border town of McDermitt. Lithium is an extremely lightweight metal seen as critical to a global transition off fossil fuels to renewable energy. The Biden administration has made clear that it wants to significantly increase the amount of lithium sourced and processed in the United States. I’m Bradley Parks, reporting from Bend, Oregon.”

A Canadian energy company that sought to build a natural gas pipeline and marine export terminal in Oregon has pulled the plug on the controversial project after failing to obtain all necessary state permits. Opponents of the Jordan Cove project, which would have created the first liquefied natural gas export terminal on the West Coast in the lower 48 states, rejoiced at the news. The marine export terminal would have been located at Coos Bay, with a 230-mile (370-kilometer) feeder pipeline crossing southern Oregon. Many landowners, Indian tribes and environmentalists had objected, saying the project could spoil the environment and would have contributed to global warming by producing greenhouse gases.

Even Christmas trees aren’t immune to the pandemic-induced shortages and inflation plaguing the economy. Extreme weather and supply chain disruptions have reduced supplies of both real and artificial trees this season. Industry officials say American shoppers should expect to have fewer choices and pay up to 30% more for both types this Christmas. Record-breaking heat and wildfires in late June took a heavy toll on Christmas tree farms in Oregon and Washington state, which are two of the nation’s largest growers. Jami Warner is executive director of the American Christmas Tree Association and calls the situation a double whammy of weather and supply chain problems.

In Sports: The Madras High School Lady Buffs Basketball is in action tonight as they host Redmond. The Lady Buffs are coming off of a loss to Ridgeview and hope to start getting on the winning side of things to help kick start their season. You can catch the action on KWSO tonight starting at 7pm. Tomorrow, the Lady Buffs will be traveling to Redmond with game time at 5pm. In College Football action, the Oregon Ducks are facing off against the Utah Utes for the second time this season, this time it’s in the PAC -12 Championship tonight. The Ducks are looking for redemption following their blowout loss to the Utes two weeks ago 38-7. Kickoff is at 5pm. The winner of the game will be headed to the Rose Bowl