The top map shows areas burned between 1984 and 2008 or affected by insects or disease between 1997 and 2008. The Northwest is best known for its vast Pacific coastline and rainy weather. PPN supports "Wheeler Citizens for Responsible Development" and Oregon Coast Alliance in their efforts to protect Wheeler's beautiful waterfront, the saltwater Botts Marsh, and bordering Nehalem River estuary. Do we have too many cars using too much oil? We installed over 4,000 watts of photovoltaic panels on our Bellingham roof in May 2008. The Pacific Northwest is a great place to live, which inspires many people to care about the land around them. Big score for UW -- $300 million for ocean and climate studies It was in the P … News on environmental issues affecting Seattle, the Pacific Northwest and beyond.
Concern for the environment is a hot topic in today’s world. Scientists predict global sea levels may rise between 1.6 and 3 feet by the end of the century, putting Seattle, and many other cities, at risk of developing new and unwanted beachfront properties.
Is it due to conditions in the ocean or the string of dams on the Columbia and Snake Rivers? Environmental issues may not produce images you want to hang on the wall of your living room, but they’re important.Washington state, despite its reputation for being gray and rainy west of the Cascades, is a good location for distributed solar energy production. Where will our power come from?
We have large expanses of productive conifer forests, most now in second- or third-growth. Warmer winters cause more precipitation to fall as rain instead of snow, particularly at lower elevations. Clearcutting is efficient, but leaves ugly scars and can contribute to erosion and flooding. Working through our membership, we assist in researching, educating and organizing neighbors and stakeholders to advocate to their key decision-makers. The Pacific Northwest (PNW), sometimes referred to as Cascadia, is a geographic region in western North America bounded by the Pacific Ocean to the west and (loosely) by the Rocky Mountains on the east. One of the most severe threats to the Pacific Northwest is the danger of seas rising up the Oregon and Washington coasts. Warmer waters in regional estuaries, including Puget Sound, may contribute to an increase in harmful algal blooms, which could result in beach closures and declines in recreational shellfish harvests. How do hydroelectric proejcts impact salmon? The high (50 inches) and medium (13 inches) estimates are within the range of current projections, while the highest level (88 inches) includes the effect of storm surge. Coastal wetlands, tidal flats, and beaches are likely to erode or be lost as a result of seawater inundation, which heightens the vulnerability of coastal infrastructure to coastal storms.Some coastal habitats may disappear if organisms are unable to migrate inland because of topography or human infrastructure. I tend to think long-term, wondering about the impact of my actions on future generations. Climate change threatens this natural storage by changing the timing of snowmelt and the amount of water available in streams and rivers (streamflow) throughout the year.Climate change can also lead to changes in the type of precipitation. Salmon runs have been decimated from their former bounty. Source: USGCRP 2014Under hotter, drier conditions, insects and fire can have large cumulative impacts on forests. The region is home to the Cascade Mountain Range that runs north-south through Washington and Oregon, resulting in large climatic differences on the western and eastern sides of the range. Our team has experience in both small, rural communities to the PNW’s largest cities. As the Pacific Ocean and Puget Sound absorb more carbon dioxide from fossil fuel use and deforestation, the acidification of the water negatively affects marine organisms that need strong shells and skeletons such as shellfish, plankton, and fish. This is expected to be the dominant driver of forest change in the near future. Increasing temperatures and populations could deepen demand and further stress urban water supplies that are already at risk of diminishing because of climate change.Forty percent of the nation's hydropower is generated in the Northwest.For more information on climate change impacts, please visit the Climate change is damaging the Northwest coastline. The Pacific Northwest is a great place to live, which inspires many people to care about the land around them. Get this from a library! Join for free and become part of an important network of concerned residents throughout the PNW. Since then I’ve been sensitive to my environmental footprint on the earth. Get this from a library! Public input has been sought on a regular basis (2002, 2007 and 2012) to identify major pollution sources of concern.
Other Environmental Issues . In addition to the community impacted, we outreach to and work with key stakeholder groups ranging from local labor unions, clergy members, environmental groups, and social justice advocates.