A geologic tour of the lower Crooked River Basin; which includes Smith Rock State Park, Ochoco Reservoir, and the Redmond and Prineville areas; is one of the highlights of the newest issue of Oregon Geology Magazine. Published by the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries (DOGAMI), Volume 67, Number 1, Fall 2006 of Oregon Geology is available free online in PDF form at http://www.OregonGeology.com. Also of interest in Oregon Geology is a look at ... [full story]

U.S. Congressman Peter DeFazio issued the following statement on Wednesday about President Bush's proposal to escalate the war in Iraq by sending more combat troops to Iraq: "Tonight, the president announced his latest strategy for victory in Iraq. This announcement comes just over a year after he released his last strategy for victory in Iraq, in November 2005. Tonight, the president was eager to appear to be changing course in Iraq in response to the ... [full story]

WASHINGTON, DC - “This is the President’s Hail Mary pass,” U.S. Senator Gordon H. Smith (R-OR) said Tuesday night in reaction to President Bush’s new plan for Iraq.     “Iraqis need to be their own street cops, not U.S. forces,” Senator Smith said. “This is the President’s Hail Mary pass.  Now it is up to the Iraqi Army to catch the ball.  We are extending an ineffective tactic to further the status quo.  Iraqis must be the ... [full story]

Nearly half of Oregon's hospitals cannot provide on-call specialist treatment around the clock to emergency patients in at least one specialty, despite paying substantial stipends, and 13 percent of Oregon's hospitals have had their trauma designation downgraded as a result.  Researchers from Oregon Health & Science University, Sutter Emergency Medical Associates, the University of Iowa and the Office of Oregon Health Policy and Research published their findings online in the Annals of Emergency Medicine ("The ... [full story]

The Oregon Zoo broke its all-time calendar-year record in 2006, with 1,447,116 visitors -- the highest attendance in the zoo's 120-year history. This is a 7 percent increase over the previous record, set in 2004, when the zoo attracted 1,350,952 visitors. A record number of ZooLights visitors helped the zoo surpass its previous milestone. From Nov. 25 to Dec. 31, attendance for ZooLights alone reached 130,603. This trumped the previous year's ZooLights attendance by 44,849 ... [full story]

Oak Lodge Sanitary District, Milwaukie, penalized total of $24,450 for discharges of improperly disinfected effluent into Willamette The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) announced this week 18 penalties totaling $102,316 in December 2006. For the year 2006, DEQ issued 182 penalties totaling $1,566,223. That compares to a total of 169 penalties totaling $2,367,485 in 2005. The month’s largest penalty, totaling $24,450, went to the Milwaukie-based Oak Lodge Sanitary District for discharging improperly disinfected effluent ... [full story]

Senators act to require HHS Secretary to negotiate for Medicare prescription drugs Washington D.C. – U.S. Senators Olympia Snowe (R-ME) and Ron Wyden (D-OR), both members of the Senate Finance Committee, on Tuesday introduced legislation to make the Medicare program a “smarter shopper” by requiring the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to negotiate with drug companies for prices under certain circumstances. “The rapidly escalating price of prescription drugs threatens to undermine the ... [full story]

Plant marks first new biomass facility in Oregon in more than ten years This week Governor Ted Kulongoski announced that DG Energy will build a biomass power plant in Lakeview, Oregon — marking the first new biomass facility in Oregon since 1992. "Using biomass from overstocked forests, this innovative project will produce electricity while helping restore forest health, reduce fire risks, and create jobs," said Governor Kulongoski. "This project serves as a model for collaboration ... [full story]

Gov. Kulongoski  touts vision to move all of Oregon forward is shared opportunity and shared responsibility Salem–Governor Ted Kulongoski, joined by family and friends, took the oath of office for his second four-year term as Governor of Oregon on Monday, calling upon all Oregonians to work together in building a brighter future for every Oregonian based on shared opportunity and shared responsibility. “This is a great moment of opportunity for Oregon. Our economy is strong. Our confidence ... [full story]

Police officers failed in their efforts Tuesday to locate the body of a Good Samaritan motorist who is believed to have fallen off of a bridge or jumped to the icy waters of the John Day River 35-feet below in an effort to avoid being hit by a vehicle.  He had stopped to render aid to the driver of another vehicle who had crashed into the center highway divider on late Sunday afternoon. A side-scan sonar was ... [full story]

SALEM—Oregon House Speaker Jeff Merkley (D-Portland) applauded his colleagues in the House for adopting rules Monday that set strict limits on gifts to legislators. According to the new rules, Members of the House may not accept gifts of value worth more than $10. “This is an important first step toward changing the way business is done in the Legislature,” Merkley said. “Adopting these rules right off the bat sends a message that gifts serve no public ... [full story]

FBI Agents and Beaverton Police Detectives arrested a volunteer firefighter from Tualatin Dec. 28 for attempted rape and attempted sex abuse when he allegedly attempted to meet who he thought was a 14-year-old girl he had been chatting with in an online chat room. Justin Wayne Traweek, 24, was taken into custody without incident about 11:30 a.m. Thursday at a Tualatin grocery store.  He was released pending an appearance in Washington County Circuit Court in ... [full story]

As a leader in the fight to expand stem cell research, Senator Gordon H. Smith (R-OR) called on the 110th Congress to swiftly pass legislation to expand the number of stem cell lines eligible for federally funded research.  Senator Smith is an original co-sponsor of the measure, which was introduced recently in the United States Senate.  “The start of another Congress affords us the opportunity to re-evaluate stem cell legislation outside of the political cloud ... [full story]