Your voice: June 19, 2024

By criticizing land trusts that have stopped natural areas from being converted into multi-million-dollar mansions, Director Howsley-Glover is missing the forest for the trees. The Dalles completed a housing study last year to determine the potential for residential development within the city limits. The study found that the city has a capacity for 3,337 additional dwellings today, more than enough to address the anticipated need of 505 units.

Every Gorge community is facing the challenges of rising housing costs and more middle- and lower-income families scrambling for shelter. The recent efforts of the Mid-Columbia Community Action Council to convert an old motel into transitional housing is a shining example of how to use existing resources to create greater opportunities. Within the communities of The Dalles and Dallesport are numerous similar opportunities to expand housing options.

Friends of the Columbia Gorge Land Trust owns 166 acres in Wasco County, which represents just 0.375% of National Scenic Area lands in Wasco County. Of those acres, only 34 are zoned residential. Some of our land trust’s properties have homes with tenants, these homes will remain there into the future. We’ve chosen not to develop other properties, such as the Mosier Plateau, a recreation asset for the entire region. In short, we exercise the same private property rights that all Wasco County landowners do when we choose to develop or not develop our lands. Friends also voluntarily pays property taxes on all our lands in Wasco County despite our nonprofit status. We paid more than $20,000 in property taxes this year alone. 

Considering the benefits that conserved lands bring to Gorge communities in terms of habitat protection, climate resilience, recreation opportunities, and reduction of catastrophic wildfire risks, it’s easy to recognize and appreciate the value that conservation brings to Gorge communities.

Rudy Salakory

Conservation director

Friends of the Columbia Gorge

Support healthcare

June 24 marks the two-year anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling overturning the long-standing Roe v Wade, 1973 decision, thus ending a nationwide constitutional protection of abortion care.

In the two years following this decision, two dozen states have implemented laws banning or limiting access to abortion. Some states have eliminated access to other reproductive health care such as use of IUDs and emergency contraception, gender-affirming healthcare, and infertility treatment including IVF [in vitro fertilization]. Seven states allow pharmacists to refuse to dispense contraception.

Upwards of 60 clinics formerly offering abortion care have closed or stopped abortion services. The impact of such closures decreases women’s access to other reproductive healthcare including STI [sexually transmitted infections] testing and treatment, cancer screenings and annual health checkups.

States with abortion bans or restrictions have experienced limitations on maternity care and high rates of maternal mortality and infant deaths. Women of color are disproportionately impacted due to their reliance on healthcare services through such clinics.

Oregon has a strong history of supporting reproductive healthcare for all. Your 2024 vote will affect future healthcare access for our families, friends, neighbors and coworkers. May we continue our long-standing history of support for those making personal, and sometimes difficult, healthcare decisions.

Margie Stovall and Widge Johnson (both mothers of four)

The Dalles

Roads are terrible

What a shame the road conditions are within the forest. Try driving on the 62 road towards Goose Lake. It has so many potholes that your vehicle might survive if it is a truck or a 4x4, but I would not suggest a car. I have a Jeep and it took me more than a half hour to go 6 miles to the lake from the end of the pavement past Peterson Prairie as it is. It's impossible to miss the massive amount of holes some so deep I even bottomed out numerous times, or the 60 road down towards South Prairie/Willard, it's not any better, or 8851 road past Big Tire on the way to Mosquito Lake. All are well traveled roads by many visitors throughout the season. Why is there NO maintenance on any of the roads now? They say because of budget cuts. Where is the funds for maintenance going? Who really knows! Gee, the Forest Service just paid Twin Creeks Forestry/ Silver Creek International investment fund $14 million to TCF to not sell those acreage for development after they have already clearcut them. Seems kind of strange that the Forest Service just paid a multi-billion dollar company not to sell those acreage for development? Wonder what amount of that acreage is even worth developing, or WHY the Forest Service is doing that when our forest roads are going to crap. I guess multi-billion dollar companies have priority over what funds are suppose to be used lands for Americans to use. It's our forests that are being neglected and the American people are being neglected again and again while corporations are getting massive tax cuts and record profits and their CEO are making millions. Is there a problem somewhere? Contact your elected representatives in Congress and ask why.

Robert Davidson

Trout Lake

Landfill complaint

Waste Connections is requesting a 10-year permit extension to operate Wasco County Landfill. Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) sent a Public Notice for comments and supporting information to just a few adjacent landowners.

Wasco County landfill used to be just a local landfill. Now Waste Connections, with agreements from the land owner, Wasco County, has turned the landfill into a regional landfill for communities across the Pacific Northwest. The amount of waste received at the landfill has doubled or even tripled compared to amounts received 15-20 years ago. Anyone who lives nearby, or just passes the landfill regularly sees the mountain of garbage that is accumulating there. Waste Connections claims that there is 30 years of space left in the landfill, but there is no information or analysis provided to support those claims. DEQ does not have the authority to limit the amount of garbage received by the landfill, but Wasco County does. The commissioners need to know what you think of the idea that soon Wasco County residents may have to pay more to send their garbage to someone else’s county for disposal. Using the landfill for regional garbage only benefits Waste Connections, whose net profit in 2023 was more than $762 million, not the residents of the county.

Besides the huge increase in garbage, there are other problems with the landfill as operated. The horrible stench at times, the number of birds attracted to the landfill and their negative effects on nearby orchards, potential fires, and large increases in the amount of truck traffic in the area.

We believe that most Wasco County residents know nothing of what is happening at their landfill. They should be informed of the potential consequences of operating the landfill as a regional dump, have an opportunity to comment on the permit extension, and have their comments taken seriously.

Here is the website to access the information and provide comments to DEQ at www.oregon.gov/deq/get-involved/documents/061424PNWascoLF.pdf.

Comments to Wasco County likely should be made to the county commissioners.

Gary Wade and Marlis Rufener

The Dalles

Editor's Note: DEQ, not Wasco County, has jurisdiction over this landfill. While county commissioners encourage citizen comment, they have no authority in this matter.

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