BOISE, Idaho (AP) — A small business owner in southwestern Idaho says he plans on selling oil extracted from marijuana despite operating in a state with strict drug laws.

Mike Larsen, who co-owns Welcomed Science, tells KTVB-TV (http://bit.ly/2qw1reJ ) that he believes Idaho law allows businesses to sell the mature stalk of a marijuana plant. Larsen says that his oil is made from that matured stalk and will be tested in a lab to ensure it is does not have the hallucinogenic chemical found in marijuana.

However, Elisha Figueroa with the Idaho Office of Drug Policy says that the extract, also known as cannaboid oil, is illegal under state and federal law. She declined to talk specifically about Larsen’s business.

Larsen says that the law is on his side and will open his store soon in Garden City.

RICHLAND, Wash. (AP) — A new report says Congress should consider authorizing the Department of Energy to use grout to stabilize some of Hanford’s radioactive waste, rather than a more expensive plan to turn it into glass.

The Government Accountability Office report was released Wednesday.

The Tri-City Herald says the report argues that grouting is less expensive than turning the waste into glass logs, and might allow the waste to be treated sooner.

But the state of Washington has long insisted that any waste disposed of at Hanford be turned into glass to best protect the environment.

The waste is left over from the production of plutonium for nuclear weapons.

The Hanford Nuclear Reservation contains the nation’s highest volume of waste, about 56 million gallons stored in underground tanks. Some tanks are leaking.

The Canadian company behind the Jordan Cove liquefied natural gas project is getting bigger. A larger Canadian energy company announced plans to buy it for nearly $7 billion U.S. dollars.

 In a deal announced this week, Pembina Pipeline Corp will acquire Veresen.  Veresen is the energy company that wants to build the export terminal near Coos Bay in southern Oregon. Veresen is also proposing a 235-mile-long pipeline that would tie the terminal to natural gas supplies in the inland West. The pipeline route runs across public and private land in four Oregon counties.

In a media call Monday announcing the merger, the companies indicated that their combined financial strength puts them in a better position to get the Jordan Cove project done.     

 Federal energy regulators blocked Veresen’s bid to build the terminal and pipeline last year, but the company has re-applied and hopes to get a better reception from the Trump Administration. An administration official voiced support last month for the project.

 Local efforts to block the Jordan Cove project continue.  Landowners along the pipeline route have been outspoken in their opposition to the use of eminent domain.  Climate activists oppose further fossil fuel development.  And some community members have argued that Oregon is taking on all the safety risk for the pipeline and terminal, but most of the reward will be reaped in Canada.   

 The merger of Pembina and Veresen will create one of the largest energy infrastructures in Canada. Pembina expects the merger to be finalized by the end of the year.

The USDA’s agreement to kill wolves on behalf of Oregon wildlife regulators isn’t a “major federal action” warranting environmental review, according to a federal judge.

Even if USDA’s Wildlife Services was required to study the impact of killing wolves in Oregon, the agency properly concluded it would have no significant environmental impact, U.S. District Judge Michael McShane ruled.

Several environmental groups filed a lawsuit last year arguing that USDA’s Wildlife Services insufficiently studied the effects of its contract to kill wolves with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.

The plaintiffs — Cascadia Wildlands, Center for Biological Diversity, Wildearth Guardians, Predator Defense and Project Coyote — claimed the agency’s decision violated the National Environmental Policy Act, or NEPA.

Wolf management is governed by state wildlife officials in Eastern Oregon, where the predators aren’t protected under the Endangered Species Act.

In 2009, ODFW directed USDA Wildlife Services to kill two wolves, bringing about a lawsuit from environmental groups.

The resulting settlement obligated USDA to conduct an environmental assessment of the agreement, but the analysis found the federal agency’s involvement didn’t have significant environmental consequences.

McShane has now rejected the plaintiffs’ argument that USDA should have conducted a more extensive “environmental impact statement,” or EIS, due to the controversy and unknown risks of killing wolves.

The agency took a “hard look” at the issue and allowably concluded that “due to the high reproductive rates of wolves and the ample prey and territory in eastern Oregon, wolf populations are expected to grow despite wolf removal, regardless of the source,” the judge said.

Some of the studies submitted by the environmental plaintiffs supported the concept that killing wolves eliminates “genetic or behavioral traits” linked to livestock depredation, McShane said.

However, the USDA wasn’t even mandated by NEPA to perform this environmental analysis, he said.

The decision to kill wolves ultimately rested with ODFW, not USDA Wildlife Services, so the action doesn’t trigger an environmental review by the federal agency, the judge ruled.

“Because Wildlife Services provided only marginal federal funding and lacks the requisite discretionary control, Wildlife Services’ actions in assisting with wolf removal as part of Oregon’s Wolf Plan does not constitute ‘major federal action’ and NEPA does not apply,” he said.

ONTARIO, Ore. — EPA has approved a special local need label for an herbicide that is effective in controlling a genetically engineered creeping bentgrass that has taken root in Malheur and Jefferson counties in Oregon after escaping field trials in 2003.

The label is approved for only those counties.

The bentgrass was genetically engineered by Scotts Miracle-Gro Co. and Monsanto Corp. to resist applications of glyphosate, the active ingredient in Monsanto’s Roundup weed killer, which makes it hard to kill.

The special label will allow growers, irrigation districts and others to spot spray glufosinate over water during the growing season.

Glufosinate has proven the most effective herbicide for controlling the bentgrass but it previously could only be used over waterways such as canals during a short period at the beginning and end of the growing season.

“This is a huge tool in our tool box,” said Dan Andersen, co-chairman of a working group of farmers, irrigation district representatives and others that was developed in Malheur County to coordinate with Scott’s in its continuing efforts to control or eradicate the grass.

Some farmers worry the bentgrass could clog irrigation ditches and affect shipments of crops to nations that don’t accept traces of genetically modified organisms.

The bentgrass has proven difficult to control near canals and irrigation ditches because of the previous lack of an herbicide approved for use over water.

Malheur County farmer Bruce Corn, a member of the Owyhee Irrigation District board of directors, said having the ability to use glufosinate over waterways for the entire growing season will be a big benefit.

“It should really help efforts to eradicate it,” he said. “It’s a big deal.”

USDA in January deregulated the bentgrass and some growers have questioned Scott’s commitment to continue controlling it.

But Andersen and other members of the Malheur County working group told Capital Press the company is living up to its promise to continue helping growers and irrigation districts control it.

Les Ito, a farmer and working group member, said his biggest fear when USDA deregulated the bentgrass was that Scotts would walk away from the issue.

“I’m much more comfortable with them now than I was prior,” he said. “They’re showing that they are putting out a great deal of effort to work with us.”

Andersen said Scotts led the effort to get the special need label, which is valid through 2022, and the company has also designated an employee to coordinate with the working group and address concerns as they arise.

Andersen said no crops have been contaminated by the grass to date and he feels good about Scotts commitment to continue controlling the bentgrass.

“The relationships we have built up with Scotts are sound. I’m going to trust them to do what they say they are going to do,” he said. “And yet we are also going to keep their feet to the fire and we’re going to keep asking questions and we’re going to keep on them.”

BEND, Ore. (AP) — Deputies arrested a man following an investigation into the care of animals at a Central Oregon farm.

Court records show 40-year-old Joshua Larkly of Culver faces numerous counts of animal neglect.

Jefferson County Sheriff’s deputy Steve Keever told The Bend Bulletin the investigation began last month when four pigs got loose. Deputies went to the farm to see if they lived there.

He says they discovered 110 farm animals living in deplorable conditions, and more than a dozen animals were dead.

Keever says the chickens, cows, ducks, goats, pigs and sheep were confined to two pens. A vet called to the scene said the animals lacked water and proper food.

Keever says the suspect was taking care of the animals for a brother who’s away working as a trucker.

CANYON COUNTY, Idaho — Two major onion packing sheds are moving from Oregon’s Malheur County to Idaho.

Golden West Produce and Owyhee Produce, both located in Nyssa, Ore., have taken out building permits to construct packing sheds and several storage facilities across the Snake River in northwestern Canyon County, Idaho.

Golden West Produce is one of the largest of the 29 packing sheds in the Idaho-Oregon onion growing region and Owyhee Produce ranks in the top third.

Golden West had been planning to move its onion packing operation to Idaho in the next three to five years and Owyhee Produce had been seriously considering moving to Idaho.

Officials from both companies said the heavy damage their businesses sustained this winter was the impetus for the move happening sooner rather than later. Both companies lost main packing sheds and several storage facilities when roofs collapsed under the weight of snow and ice.

“We had some big decisions to make and we had been contemplating going to Idaho anyway,” said Owyhee Produce General Manager Shay Myers. The damage “really forced the opportunity upon us.”

Golden West built a refrigerated onion storage in Idaho last year and had planned to move its onion packing operation to Idaho within the next five years, said Troy Seward, CEO of sales.

“The impetus (for speeding up the move) was when we lost our packing facility and several storages this winter,” he said.

There are 16 onion packing sheds in Idaho and 13 in Malheur County, Oregon.

Several onion businesses have in the past told Capital Press that Oregon’s much higher minimum wage was pushing them to seriously consider moving to Idaho. But Seward and Myers said that didn’t play a major role in their decision.

“The minimum wage issue is ... definitely something we keep an eye on but it wasn’t the primary reason we moved to Idaho,” Seward said.

He said Golden West is experiencing growth and a lack of room for expansion at their Nyssa premises is what ultimately drove the company’s packing operation to Idaho.

Myers said Oregon’s rules and regulations are more onerous to businesses than Idaho’s and that is ultimately what drove Owyhee Produce across the river.

Paul Skeen, president of the Malheur County Onion Growers Association, said Oregon has not been as friendly toward agriculture as Idaho has in the past but he’s hopeful that could be changing somewhat.

After visiting the region in February to view this winter’s heavy damage, Gov. Kate Brown ordered state agencies to cut through red tape as much as possible to speed the rebuilding process for onion businesses and others who suffered heavy damage, Skeen said.

And a proposed bill co-sponsored by House Speaker Tina Kotek, D-Portland, who visited the area last summer at Skeen’s request, would create a special economic development region in Eastern Oregon with the goal of helping Oregon businesses there compete fairly with their Idaho counterparts.

“At least they are trying to help,” Skeen said. “They ... are trying now to change this around and I am hoping we can keep the number of businesses moving from Oregon to Idaho to a minimum.”

NAMPA, Idaho (AP) — On a recent slightly chilly, sun-soaked morning, Canyon County Mosquito Abatement larvicide technicians Scott Arbon and Jaron Lakey suit up with long wader boots, small plastic sample baggies and long poles with ladles attached on one end.

They hop a fence surrounding Deer Flat Wildlife Refuge near Lake Lowell and begin scooping up marsh water.

Tiny worm-like creatures squirm in the murky water, along with small beetles and shrimp. But on this day, Arbon and Lakey found only a few samples of what they were looking for: mosquito larvae. For now, that’s good news.

But unfortunately, other areas in Canyon County may not be so clear of mosquito larvae. Due to flooding from the Boise River that have left pools of standing water, many tracts of the county have become prime habitat for mosquito larvae, and larvicide technicians like Arbon and Lakey are canvassing the county in hopes of keeping a looming mosquito threat at bay.

Ed Burnett, director of the Canyon County Mosquito Abatement District, said the high water this spring is creating perfect conditions for a big mosquito summer. Since taking over as director in 2005, Burnett says 2017 is setting up to be the worst year he has seen so far and he’s cautioning county residents to prepare for the potential of large swarms of the pesky bugs in coming months.

“We are treating areas now while the temperatures are low,” he said. “But if temperatures get warm quickly, we could have a problem.”

Burnett said eggs from mosquitoes laid in dirt as long as seven years ago have likely been activated by floodwaters and can thrive in stagnant water. Larvicide technicians have found such high numbers of mosquito larvae in spots along the Boise River and at Deer Flat Wildlife Refuge that in April, Burnett issued a press release warning of the threat.

“We are seeing extremely high concentrated numbers of mosquito larvae and as temperatures warm up, the mosquito larvae found in many of the flooded areas around the county may turn into swarms of adult biting mosquitoes,” he said.

Luckily, the mosquitoes that appear early in the spring and summer seasons don’t harbor West Nile Virus, but as Burnett said, they are “very aggressive and will swarm in very high numbers.”

BATTLING CANYON COUNTY’S MOSQUITOES

Mosquito abatement efforts in Canyon County first began in 1997. Those early efforts focused on controlling the mosquito population around the Deer Flat National Wildlife Refuge near Lake Lowell. Called the Lake Lowell Mosquito Abatement District, it had no funding and relied on the work of volunteers.

“Home and landowners near Lake Lowell got together to address the mosquito problem,” Burnett said.

That first year’s efforts were considered a success and showed area residents that mosquito abatement meant they could enjoy a backyard barbecue without being eaten alive by the winged pests.

Then the mosquito threat became more serious in 2000 after cattle grazing in private pastures adjacent to the wildlife refuge tested positive for Western Equine Encephalitis, a mosquito-borne virus that can affect the nervous systems of horses and humans.

Infants and small children are most vulnerable to infection and can suffer permanent brain damage or death.

Also, another mosquito-borne disease was looming on the horizon: West Nile Virus.

In 2005, the first mosquito in Idaho tested positive for the virus and 21 people in the state died from infection in 2006, prompting the Canyon County Mosquito Abatement District to expand its reach from 24 square miles around Deer Flat Refuge to 80 square miles. At the time, Nampa and Caldwell were annexed into the district.

Canyon County Commissioners issued emergency declarations due to West Nile Virus in 2006 and 2007, then signed a resolution to make mosquito abatement a county-wide effort after Canyon County residents overwhelmingly approved the measure at the polls.

According to the Center for Disease Control, the first West Nile Virus case in Idaho was reported in 2003. That number spiked to 996 in 2006 but then dropped significantly in following years with only 13 cases reported in 2015.

Between 1999 and 2015, roughly 44,000 cases of the virus have been reported nationwide with about 2,000 deaths.

FINDING BALANCE WITH NATURE

At Deer Flat Wildlife Preserve, Arbon said the county doesn’t use standard insecticides to combat mosquito larvae. Instead, they’re relying solely on the bacteria bacillus thuringiensis israelensis, or Bti, which only affects the pH levels in the gut of mosquito, black fly and midge larvae.

Once ingested, the bacteria kills the mosquito larvae by using toxins to break down cell walls in the larval gut. The bacteria, discovered in Israel in 1976, is considered safe for humans, animals and crops by the Environmental Protection Agency.

Arbon said Mother Nature helps kill off many mosquitoes before they reach maturity, as the larvae are an essential link in the food chain.

“We are trying to protect a lot of organisms here because it is a refuge,” he said. “There are helpful bugs that kill the mosquitoes. Damselflies, dragonflies, whirligig beetles, predaceous diving beetles and a lot of other organisms out there that help with integrated pest management.”

Arbon said he and fellow larvicide technicians spot-treat areas with Bti granules that they spray with a device that operates like a leaf blower.

“We come out as a team and treat the area,” Arbon said. “But if we find lots of mosquitoes in a large area, we’ll have a pilot come in and do a low passover.”

KEEPING FLYING INSECTS AT BAY

Frankie’s Aerial Application is one of the two air service companies that help with mosquito mitigation in Canyon County.

Frank Amen, the company’s owner, has been distributing Bti larvicide over waterways in Canyon County in his 1100 horsepower M-18 Dromader turboprop plane for a decade. He is a crucial component of Canyon County’s mosquito abatement program because he can cover large, hard-to-reach areas of shallow larvae infested water.

He spreads 8 to 10 pounds of dry Bti material per acre. His plane, used for agricultural application of pesticides and fertilizers, is already equipped with a dry spreader, which is controlled by the pilot and monitored by electronic equipment.

Using a GPS system, he programs the coordinates of application areas, which are determined in the field by technicians like Arbon and Lakey.

“Ed (Burnett) gives us a Google map with the coordinates, and the boundaries are outlined so the pilot knows where to spread the granules,” he said.

Amen has been flying for 36 years, since he was 17 years old. He said spreading Bti on problem areas is much like crop dusting dry fertilizer.

“The hazards for the pilot are still significant because obstacles such as towers and guy wires penetrate the airspace he flies in,” Amen said. “There are also large birds like pelicans and eagles to avoid around the waterways.”

Clear, sunny weather is ideal for flying, Amen said, but he can also apply Bti granules in a light rain. He said his company is on call with the Mosquito Abatement District from March through November.

Amen said he is thankful to be able to serve the people in his community by helping keep mosquito-caused infections like West Nile Virus to a minimum.

“My wife is a nurse and has taken care of people who were sickened by West Nile virus. It can be a very mild or very devastating illness,” he said. “So when Ed tells us that the application was effective, we are happy.”

HOW THE COUNTY FINDS THE VIRUS

Burnett said that mosquito abatement employees place mosquito traps filled with 2 to 3 pounds of dry ice in areas throughout the county. The carbon dioxide released by the dry ice attracts mosquitoes, as does a light in the traps. Once mosquitoes are drawn into the trap, a small fan keeps them from escaping.

Those trapped mosquitoes are then collected by county employees and separated by species. About 50 mosquitoes of each variety are crushed, then tested for West Nile virus at a lab at the Canyon County Mosquito Abatement headquarters on Booker Lane in Nampa.

“We can set traps in the evening, retrieve them in the morning, and we can know if we have West Nile virus by that evening,” Burnett said.

If West Nile is detected in mosquitoes, the district immediately issues a press release informing the public of the infected area. Officials also create a Facebook post informing county residents where night spraying will occur.

Burnett said the “fogging trucks,” used to spray, are calibrated by a private company to ensure they are putting out a safe amount of the insecticide as required by federal law, which for the trucks is about three-quarters of an ounce per acre.

He said roughly 313 acres of the Boise River in Canyon County has been treated with Bti via airplane this year. He said another 264 acres of the Boise River, between south Notus and Highway 95, was scheduled for treatment at the end of April.

In 2016, 2,725 acres of Deer Flat Wildlife Refuge were treated with Bti, with most of that area treated by air. The total cost of mosquito abatement efforts last year was roughly $136,000.

Burnett said that even though the mosquito problem is especially bad this year, the abatement district should still be on track with its budget.

“We are prepared to handle an above normal outbreak,” he said.

Wheat farmers in the Walla Walla Valley are experiencing more soilborne wheat mosaic virus this year, a researcher says.

Researchers have identified 16 fields that tested positive for the disease since March 5, said Christina Hagerty, assistant professor of cereal pathology at Oregon State University.

“It really seems as though we have an increase of the virus this season,” Hagerty said. “Growers who have not dealt with this disease in the past, it has shown up in their fields this year. Growers who have dealt with this disease in small patches of their fields are now seeing it in much larger areas.”

Hagerty blames wet conditions and the likely transportation of infected soil for the increase in the disease, which causes severe stunting in wheat.

“We think about equipment sanitation and boot sanitation, and while those things are crucial, this can be picked up in a dust storm by wind,” she said. “I think about the elk tracks in my plots in Walla Walla County.”

The disease was first identified in 2005 in the Hermiston, Ore., area, and in the Walla Walla, Wash., area in 2008.

Hagerty credits OSU professor emeritus Dick Smiley and Washington State University professor and extension plant pathologist Tim Murray for leading research efforts. In a moderate infestation, Murray estimated the virus would reduce yields by four bushels an acre. In a severe infestation, it can cause a 20-bushel reduction in yield.

“Some locations are quite severe, some are moderate,” Hagerty said.

Planting a resistant wheat variety is the best option for growers, Hagerty said.

Breeding programs are screening for resistance to the virus, she said.

Hagerty recommends understanding conditions favorable for the disease. OSU is studying possible effects of an extra nitrogen application to boost the plant.

Farmers who suspect they have the virus need to send their wheat to a plant clinic for molecular analysis, Hagerty said.

Growers whose neighbors are dealing with the disease should also be on the lookout, she said.

SALEM, Ore. — A record–breaking crowd attended the 30th annual Ag Fest April 29-30 at the Oregon State Fairgrounds.

Tami Kerr, executive director of Oregon Dairy Farmers Association and 2017 Ag Fest chair, was enthusiastic about the record-breaking results of this year’s event.

“It was a record-breaking year in every way,” Kerr said. “The trade show filled faster this year than ever before, we had more local food producers selling cheese, salsa, pies and meat ... new cooking demonstrations from Bob’s Red Mill and there were more hands-on experiences than ever in both Ag Country and the animal barns.”

When she first joined the board 17 years ago, the even drew 7,000 and 8,000 attendees.

“This year,” Kerr said, “we nearly hit 22,000 — 21,964 to be exact. No other state that I know of has a premier agriculture education event that matches this one, and it is a thrill to see entire families learning together about where their food comes from.”

Part of the event was the presentation of the Oregon Ag Fest Agricultural Education Awards. Top award winners were members of the Echo, Ore., FFA, the Henley FFA near Klamath Falls and the Oregon Dairy Women.

To extend their mission beyond the annual two-day event, Ag Fest organizers decided to award student organizations, nonprofit groups and others who promote agriculture and educate Oregonians about it.

Echo FFA members — Echo is a small town 8 miles south of Hermiston in Eastern Oregon — took home the first place prize of $1,000 for their 2,333 “agricultural learning moments” they advocated between January 2016 and March 2017.

Those projects included presenting Ag in the Classroom lessons to elementary classrooms in the Echo School District, hosting a petting zoo for elementary- through high school-age students, teaching a lesson at Rocky Heights Elementary School in Hermiston and taking part in work stations at the Eastern Oregon Agriculture Field Day at the Sustainable Agriculture and Energy Center in Boardman.

The 10 Echo FFA members who attended Ag Fest to accept their award also spent the morning assisting with pedal tractor races, parking cars and the Ag Challenge scavenger hunt.

Henley FFA took home the second place prize of $600 for working with the local Klamath Falls Farm Expo, hosting an Ag Field Day for students at a local elementary school, participating in the Oregon Ag in the Classroom Spring Literacy Project, as well as other community service efforts that included working with PLAY — Promoting Lifelong Activities for Youth — and the Klamath County Forestry Tour.

Accepting the $400 prize for third place was 2017 State Dairy Princess Ambassador Kiara Single and Jessica Kliewer, state director of the Dairy Princess Ambassador Program for the Oregon Dairy Women. Since 1959, the volunteer organization has been telling dairy’s story to the public through the princess ambassador program and other efforts.

Capital Bureau

SALEM — In an expression of solidarity on a day honoring the world’s workers, supporters of Oregon’s immigrants rallied and marched Monday at the state Capitol.

The rally reflected the current attitude of resistance from the left in the wake of the election of President Donald J. Trump, who pledged during his campaign to “build a wall” along the U.S.-Mexico border, and whose administration has reportedly stepped up federal immigration enforcement efforts.

For decades, Oregon has had a sanctuary law that prevents state and local officials from enforcing federal immigration laws if a person’s only crime is being in the country illegally.

Advocates say that immigrant communities in Oregon are seeing heightened enforcement of immigration laws, including arrests of people who are recipients of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, an Obama-era policy that allowed some undocumented immigrants who came here as children to receive temporary relief from deportation and a two-year work permit.

State Rep. Teresa Alonso Leon, D-Woodburn, also cited a ballot measure proposal from three state lawmakers filed April 25 to repeal the state’s decades-old sanctuary law by amending the state constitution.

That proposal, Initiative Petition 22, was filed by three Republican state Reps. Greg Barreto, of Cove; Mike Nearman, of Independence; and Sal Esquivel, of Medford.

Alonso Leon, who argues that the president’s enforcement actions threatens public safety by undermining relationships between police and immigrant communities, said the petition would “divide our state and amplify Donald Trump’s harmful and hateful policies.”

The petition will need 88,184 signatures to qualify for the ballot, according to the Secretary of State’s Office.

Andrea Williams, executive director of Causa Oregon, said immigrants need to learn their rights and “fight back” when those rights are violated.

“We need to continue to advocate for better protections here in our own state,” Williams said.

Suad Elmi, a mother of five who emigrated from Somalia, described her harrowing journey by boat and on foot from her war-torn home to a refugee camp in Kenya.

“We should be united,” Elmi said. “Our president should be a uniter, not a divider. We should use that money he’s trying to build a wall and build houses, you know?”

Oregon Gov. Kate Brown, who has been a prominent voice advocating for progressive social issues since Trump’s election, reaffirmed her support for immigrants in a brief speech at the event.

In February, the governor signed an executive order barring the use of state resources to enforce federal immigration policy; she’s also advocated for expanding Medicaid to children who are also undocumented immigrants, an initiative called Cover All Kids.

“I know that this is an uncertain and scary time for Oregon’s immigrant and refugee families,” Brown said. “I want you to know that my support for you is unwavering.”

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Wildfires this summer are expected to be most severe in southwestern U.S. states, Florida, Georgia and in some parts of California and Nevada, forecasters said Monday.

The summer 2017 fire outlook issued by the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise also said heavy winter snow and spring rains that flooded many Western states will probably delay the onset of this season’s worst wildfires.

“In the broadest sense, some parts of the country with higher elevation could see a lighter fire year,” said Ed Delgado, the office’s head of predictive services. “In other parts, there may not be a huge risk right now but things could dry out really quickly.”

The threat of wildfires is expected to be normal or below normal for northwestern states, Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Wyoming and most of Utah.

The forecast could change if temperatures soar late in the summer and grasses and other vegetation that grew due to wet weather and flooding dries, turning it into fuel for wildfires.

“There is concern regarding elevated fire potential in July and August across the lower elevations of much of western and northern Nevada and possibly into southwest Idaho,” the report said.

Forecasters noted that south-central Alaska could see a burst of intense fire activity sometime this summer due to ongoing drought conditions. In the northwestern U.S. states, fire risks could also surge if temperatures rise in July and particularly in August — forcing the state’s fire season to stretch into the fall.

In California, infestations of bark beetles that kill trees in forests in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada could cause the wildfire risk to increase in May and June.

“Drought is a two-sided coin,” Delgado said. “You tend to get a lot of finer fuel growth in lower elevation areas during wet years. But adding that lower level fuel has the potential to help carry fires to stressed forests, areas that have a lot of dead or dying trees already from the dry years.”

Wildfires have already broken out in Florida, southeastern Georgia, Arizona and New Mexico. Ten new large wildfires were reported as of last week, burning more than 300 square miles (780 square kilometers). Eight of those fires are currently burning in Florida.

“Heavy growth of fine fuels across southern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico have led to above normal fire potential along the Mexican border that should persist through June before the monsoonal rains arrive in early July,” forecasters wrote in the report.

Delgado said too many factors are involved in predicting fire seasons to make direct comparisons to various years.

Last year, 8,600 square miles (22,300 square kilometers) were scorched across the U.S., mostly in western states. Six fires burned more than 156 square miles (400 square kilometers) each.

The cost suppressing last year’s wildfire season was $1.97 billion.

The Willamette Valley Agriculture Association has extended the application deadline for its college scholarships until the end of May.

Each year the association, producers of the Willamette Valley Ag Expo in Albany, awards several scholarships to students in Oregon. The award amounts range from $1,500 to $3,000. Proceeds from the annual event help to fund this scholarship.

The purpose of the scholarship is to support students pursuing a career in agriculture production. Students must possess a 3.0 grade point average or higher. The Willamette Valley Ag Expo scholarship is open to students who are sophomores and above majoring in the field of agriculture.

Potential applicants must read the scholarship application and fill it out in its entirety. The application can be found online at http://wvaexpo.com/scholarships/.

Please send completed applications and required materials to: WVAA at P.O. Box 307, Albany OR 97321.

The Columbia-Snake River System will be celebrated at an upcoming festival.

The Snake River Family Festival is 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. May 20 at Boyer Park and Marina, 1753 Granite Park Road in Colfax, Wash.

The event is hosted by a coalition of river users, including the Idaho, Oregon and Washington grain and wheat commissions.

It is designed to help the public understand and appreciate the river system and how it boosts the region’s economy, said Blaine Jacobson, executive director of the Idaho Wheat Commission.

“It’s to raise awareness of how the river contributes to quality life,” Jacobson said.

Roughly a third of Idaho’s wheat harvest and 60 percent of Washington’s wheat harvest go to overseas markets on the river system, Jacobson said.

Jacobson said the dams are also hitting a 60-year record in fish returns.

Juvenile fish downstream survival rates past each of the eight federal dams on the river system are 95 to 98 percent, according to the Pacific Northwest Waterways Association.

“Moving commodities by barge is so much more environmentally friendly than any other transportation mode,” said Tom Kammerzell, commissioner for the Port of Whitman County and a Colfax rancher.

The festival is a response to misinformation about the river system put out by groups who want to remove the dams on the river.

“Sometimes it’s said some folks don’t let the facts get in the way of a good story,” Kammerzell said. “We are trying to put out the facts along with a good story. Everybody can come up with their own conclusions, but they have to have all the information to make a good decision.”

“It’s easy to be passive, but passive doesn’t get the message out,” he said. “We need to send a good message to the rest of the country and the world that this is important to us.”

If successful, similar events could be held on the Columbia-Snake system, he said.

The system of dams is keeping the massive Columbia and Snake River system under control as rain combines with snowmelt to fill reservoirs around the Pacific Northwest.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is running the Columbia River at roughly 3 feet below flood stage to allow for extra water and reduce the risk of flooding, said Amy Gaskill, public affairs chief for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Northwestern Division in Portland.

It was the second-rainiest March in 75 years, Gaskill said.

“When we were at the height of that rain, at the Vancouver gauge we were running about 1.5 feet above flood stage,” Gaskill said. “If we hadn’t had those dams in place and managed the river and water in the way it came out of the system, it would have been about 4 to 5 feet higher than what it was.”

The corps is closely watching snowmelt coming off the mountains to adjust management decisions on the river, Gaskill said.

SEATTLE (AP) — Thousands of people are expected to attend May Day rallies for immigrants and workers in Seattle and Portland.

In Seattle multiple marches and rallies are planned throughout Monday. The 18th Annual May Day March for Workers and Immigrant Rights was to begin late in the morning, with participants walking through downtown. Anti-capitalist marches and gatherings were expected throughout the city Monday night.

In Portland, Oregon, marches were set to begin 3 p.m. in downtown. In both Seattle and Portland major traffic disruptions were expected.

Seattle traditionally sees large, disruptive May Day gatherings. Last year police used pepper spray to disperse black-clad protesters. Five officers were hurt, none seriously, and police arrested nine people. In 2015 Seattle police arrested 16 people during demonstrations and in 2014 10 people were arrested. In 2013, police arrested 18 people from a crowd that pelted them with rocks and bottles.

Increasingly massive container ships threaten the relevance of the Port of Portland’s container terminal, where cranes aren’t large enough to accommodate the behemoth vessels, experts say.

“In many ways, this is where the market is headed and what we have to contend with in Portland,” said Randy Fischer, senior analyst at the port. “It’s bigger ships coming in and smaller ships getting pulled out.”

Transportation officials painted a sobering picture of the problems facing container shipping from the port during an April 28 meeting with Northwest importers and exporters.

Container traffic at the port came to a halt in 2016 after several ocean carriers stopped calling at the facility, claiming that slow loading and unloading rendered the market unprofitable.

Productivity problems at the port were blamed on a labor dispute between the longshoremen’s union and the terminal operator, ICTSI, which began leasing the facility in 2011.

The Port of Portland regained control of the container terminal after ending its contract with ICTSI earlier this year, but carriers must still be convinced to return.

“We have a bit of a black eye in the market right now and we need to figure out how best to fit into the market,” said Fischer.

The International Longshore and Warehouse Union is still involved in a legal dispute with the port, though it’s less intense than litigation between the union and ICTSI, said Keith Leavitt, the port’s chief commercial officer.

As the port devises a plan to lure ocean carriers back to the Terminal 6 container facility, it will also seek to “reset” its relationship with ILWU, he said.

“When we start making our market pitch, they need to be with us,” Leavitt said.

Financial turmoil in the shipping industry has reduced the number of major global ocean carrier companies from 20 to 14 even as global freight capacity has surged, Fischer said.

However, the total freight capacity represented by smaller ships has shrunk while the share of new mega-vessels has grown, he said. Of the 12 carriers that service the Northwest, eight have ships small enough for Terminal 6 to handle.

Traditional container exports from the Port of Portland mostly consisted of hay, other agricultural crops and wood products, which were generally of lower value than imports from Asia, such as furniture, shoes, apparel, tires and electronics.

Effectively, exporters were dependent on vessels calling on Portland to offload imported products.

Those ships then returned with lower-value agricultural goods, which was financially preferable than heading back across the Pacific with empty containers.

This dependency on imports complicates the potential for shipping hay and other farm products by rail from the facility.

Terminal 6 has an intermodal railyard that’s only been used sporadically in the past but could be used for transloading export containers from trucks onto trains, said Leavitt.

Without container service in Portland, agricultural exporters must truck products to more distant ports in Seattle and Tacoma. Shipping agricultural goods to these cities by rail, on the other hand, would allow them to avoid traffic congestion.

For the idea to work, though, exporters need access to empty containers.

Since Portland isn’t a major consumer market, importers were less likely to use Terminal 6 even when ocean carriers were still calling on the facility. That meant fewer containers were available to exporters.

The problem is now obviously worse, since container shipping has halted altogether, Leavitt said.

If there was a reason to bring more containers into Portland — such as storing empty ones returning from the Midwest — the intermodal railyard would be more viable, he said.

A study by Idaho and Oregon researchers showed that when intrusive Western juniper trees go down, r sage grouse populations go up.

Working primarily in Southeast Oregon from 2010 to 2014, researchers compared sage grouse populations in areas where juniper and other conifers had been cut or burned to bird populations in control areas where trees weren’t removed.

Juniper tree removal increased the sage grouse population growth rate by 25 percent compared to the control areas, concluded the study, whimsically named “Better Living Through Conifer Removal: A Demographic Analysis of Sage-grouse Vital Rates.”

More seriously, the work reinforces what rangeland and wildlife scientists have maintained for years: Cutting down junipers has widespread benefit for the sagebrush ecosystem and especially for sage grouse, which at one point teetered on the edge of Endangered Species Act listing.

The study is among the first to link sage grouse demographic rates to conifer removal, primarily juniper. On a landscape scale, the work showed the potential to increase female sage grouse survival and nest survival, “two of the most important demographic parameters affecting population growth,” according to the study.

An Oregon State University researcher who co-wrote the study said the early results are promising, but cautioned that “We’re in this for the long haul.”

“We hope to carry this 10 years out,” said Christian Hagen, a research faculty member with OSU’s Department of Fisheries and Wildlife. “Sage grouse is still an upland bird, it’s susceptible to the mood swings of Mother Nature.”

Hagen co-wrote the study with John Severson, who conducted the research for his doctoral dissertation at the University of Idaho. He now works for U.S. Geological Survey.

Taking out junipers primarily helps sage grouse because it deprives predators of perches from which to attack adults, chicks or eggs. Hawks, crows, ravens and jays prey on sage grouse.

Junipers are notorious for taking up water and crowding out other plants, including native sage and grasses. Removing them “preserves basic sagebrush ecosystem function” by extending water availability. Grazing cattle are among the beneficiaries, leading some ranchers to take up the motto, “What’s good for the bird is good for the herd.”

“From an agricultural producer standpoint, what we’re seeing is that maintaining rangeland and forage production for livestock can be compatible with sage grouse,” Hagen said. While the work may not necessarily increase forage, measured by the Animal Unit Month, it can make the land more resilient when the next fire or drought comes, he said.

“I know it’s cliche, but it is win-win,” Hagen said. “You’re providing sustainable rangeland, water quality and habitat for this bird. If you’re doing that, then our concerns over the species become alleviated over time.”

For the study, researchers collected data on 219 female sage-grouse and 225 nests from 2010 to 2014. The worked in an area in Southeast Oregon where western juniper was being removed and an area with no removal in Southeast Oregon, Northeast California and Northwest Nevada. Both areas involved both public and private lands.

Greater sage grouse use range in 11 Western states and was a candidate for protection under the Endangered Species Act as its numbers declined. Producers warned that habitat restrictions accompanying a listing would hamper or shut down ranching, farming, mining or energy development in wide expanses of the West. At one point, producer groups referred to the potential impact as “the Spotted Owl on steroids.”

However, ranchers, federal agencies and local organizations such as Soil and Water Conservation Districts spearheaded an effort that reversed the situation. Ranchers signed voluntary habitat conservation agreements on private land that protected them from additional regulation in return for such things as marking fences to reduce bird strikes and removing juniper trees. Meanwhile, federal agencies prepared management plans for BLM and Forest Service land.

In September 2015, then-U.S. Interior Secretary Sally Jewell announced an endangered species listing for sage grouse was not warranted.

“The truth is, we’ve never done anything like this before,” Jewell said at the time. She called it the “largest, most complex land conservation effort ever in the history of the United States of America, perhaps the world.”