New West Network

My Page: Hollie Lund

North Wasco County Energy Grok

What do coal plants and tube tops have in common? Thirty years later, and against our better judgment, they’re both making a comeback. Why? Well, I won’t even try to explain the tube top phenomena, but the world’s renewed interest in coal is pretty clear: it’s cheap. Or so it seems.

Even here, in a region with abundant renewable resources, we’re not immune. On May 15th, customers of the North Wasco County People’s Utility District (PUD) will be asked to vote on a measure (Measure 33-59) that would authorize the PUD to obtain energy and power from a proposed coal gasification plant in Kalama, Washington.

If you skip to the last line in the measure—which is exactly what most of us do—you’ll read that “any profits [from the sale of excess energy] will be used to reduce customer rates.” Sounds great, right? Before you vote, you had better read the whole measure. [more]

Of Wildlife and Rock quarries

Don’t worry, this one does not involve the death of wildlife. Not today anyway.

My dog and I are nearly done with our run. I wasn’t feeling very adventurous this morning, so we stuck to our default route—through Mosier, along the old highway, through the tunnel, up to the next viewpoint, turn around, retrace steps.

We had passed a handful of other trail users along the way—four solo cyclists, four walkers, and two fellow joggers to be exact (okay, make that two handfuls)—but the slight threat of rain seemed to have kept the crowds away. We’ve just turned off the Twin Tunnels trail, heading back toward Mosier, when my dog—who is generally clueless—stops to look back toward the hillside that now separates us from the trail.

I instead watch in awe as two young deer exit the trail from the same point we had, as though they were also on their way home from a daily jog along the Twin Tunnels trail. (I’m quite sure I would have noticed them though.) They apparently didn’t expect us to stop and turn around, because they almost trip over each other when they realize that we’re still there, watching them from our perch in the middle of the road.

Recovering gracefully, they finish crossing the old highway and duck into the thickets of scrub oak, right at the point of the proposed access road for the Mosier rock quarry, should it be allowed to re-open. (A pending proposal would dump thirty gravel trucks per day—carrying 30,000 pounds of rock—right onto the old highway for over seven months out of the year... [more]

Mosier School Update

UPDATE, FRIDAY
A scheduled negotiation between District 21 and the Mosier Community School was canceled Thursday after the negotiation teams were advised by the Oregon Department of Education that they could not meet without public notice and public presence—per Oregon Public Meeting law. The meeting, however, did not require a quorum and therefore should not be subject to Oregon Public Meeting law. In other words, they should have been allowed to meet. The law is designed to ensure that public decisions are “arrived at openly,” not to grind the operations of public bodies to a halt.

Instead of throwing in the towel, District Superintendent Candy Armstrong and School Principal Carole Schmidt (along with their attorneys and other personnel) met anyway. According to Principal Schmidt, they spent five hours—from 3 o’clock to 8 o’clock—working their way through nearly every section of the proposed charter, and will be meeting again today (Friday) to finish their work. The negotiation team will attempt their meeting again on Monday and—if it is deemed necessary—the public will be invited. Stay tuned for more information.

• • • • •

On February 26, the school boards for District 21 (North Wasco County) and the Mosier Community School met in an executive session to discuss the District’s reasons for not renewing the school’s charter. The key words here are: executive session. In other words, it was a private meeting, closed to the public: no teachers, no parents, no students, and no community members. Unless, of course, they were a member of one of the school boards.

You'll recall that the District's board decided — apparently without prior notice — to non-renew Mosier Community School's charter last month. Since then, the District has fumbled with a list of excuses for doing so (citing, for example, Mosier's being a month tardy in presenting their annual 2005-06 report, though it was the District that scheduled the presentation). More recently, the District has entered, sort of, negotiations.

Due to the public nature of the discussion (the status and future of the Mosier school), it appears that this meeting was held in violation of Oregon Public Meeting law (ORS 192.610 to 192.690). This law, which pertains not just to school districts but to any governing body of a public agency, clearly states that “the Oregon form of government requires an informed public aware of the deliberations and decisions of governing bodies and the information upon which such decisions were made. It is the intent…that decisions of governing bodies be arrived at openly” (Italics added). Furthermore, “a quorum of a governing body may not meet in private for the purpose of deciding on or deliberating toward a decision on any matter except as otherwise provided by ORS 192.610 to 192.690.” ... [more]

Guest Opinion

By Hollie Lund

The relationship between school districts and public charter schools is inherently hostile. It all starts with a community saying that the school district is failing them, and that they can do it better. So when the legal counsel for our local charter school repeatedly assured us last week that the school district was “just as interested as we were” in making the school a success, I was immediately suspicious. Especially in light of recent events. I’m a firm believer that actions speak louder than words.

The Mosier School was built in 1920. It’s the first thing that greets you as you wind into town on the Historic Columbia River Scenic Highway, and it’s the pride of our community. Today, the school building is home to the Mosier Community School, a charter school with School District 21 in North Wasco County. The school has been in operation for just four years, but is already demonstrating tremendous success. It earned an “exceptional” rating in its 2004-05 state report card, and its students consistently exceed expectations in reading, literature and math.

Any rational person would see this as reason enough to renew the school’s charter. But not District 21. The District has decided to non-renew the Mosier Community School’s charter, and now — if the school board is unable to re-negotiate a new one — there is a very real possibility that the community of Mosier will lose its only school... [more]

The Wild Gorge

“What first caught my attention was the large imprint in the snow... Then I saw the blood, still a brilliant shade of red.”

There will always be something special about being that first person to venture out into freshly fallen snow, especially when that snow is in your own backyard. My new favorite pastime, though, comes in the days to follow, as the snow slowly collects evidence of the wilderness around us.

Last week, I followed the same set of deer tracks for three miles. It was the same route I’d taken numerous times before, but the addition of these tracks captured so perfectly in the snow made it seem new — almost magical. I found myself wondering, are the deer just as enthralled when they get to follow our tracks? I doubt it.

As we focus our attention on the rate of development and urbanization happening all around us, it’s easy to forget just how close we are to the “call of the wild.” Paving a place, however, does not take it outside the realm of the wilderness, and it certainly does not make it ours. I received a relatively gentle reminder of this today.

It was a little after 1 p.m. when I set off with my dog for the Twin Tunnels trail... [more]

Water rights and water wrongs

We’re depleting our only water source and destroying our hillsides. It’s a great day in Mosier, Oregon. If you’re a developer.

In addition to the 34 homes being constructed in a narrow strip of land between a set of freight railroad tracks and the old Columbia Highway, Mosier has recently approved a 3-phase, 28-unit hillside development, and is awaiting the re-application of yet another subdivision.

Yet at the same time that all of this construction is going up around us, we (the residents of Mosier) continue to receive notices and workshop invitations related to our diminishing water supply. According to these mailings, our one and only aquifer has been “dropping at an average rate of 4 feet per year since 1974” and other water sources “will require exploratory drilling and expensive water treatment.” Not to mention the fact that “all the aquifers in the Mosier valley are declining.” The bottom line message, typed in large bold font is “This is why we need to meter! This is why we need to conserve!” [more]