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Environment

June 11, 2026
Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, D-Skamania, speaks during a May 27 news conference about the implosion of a Nippon Dynawave Packaging Co. tank in Longview. (Karen Ducey/The Seattle Times)

Rep. Gluesenkamp Perez advances funding chemical safety board

In the wake of a May 26 chemical tank failure at the Nippon Dynawave Packaging mill in Longview that killed 11 workers and injured eight others, U.S. Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, D-Skamania, has urged Congress to restore funding for an independent watchdog agency charged with investigating the root cause of major chemical incidents.

June 4, 2026
This July 2019 photo provided by Peter Westley shows the carcass of a chum salmon along the shore of the Koyukuk River near Huslia, Alaska. Salmon carcasses can be deadly for canines. (Associated Press files)

Experts warn dead salmon can hurt dogs

If you’ve taken a walk along the Columbia, Lewis or Washougal rivers, or any of the many tributaries that bring salmon to Clark County, you may have noticed an increase in the number of anglers and discarded salmon carcasses along the riverbanks in recent months.

June 4, 2026
Environmental educator Jamie Austin, right, leads a group of Crestline Elementary first graders on a tour May 19 at the Columbia Springs Vancouver Trout Hatchery. (Taylor Balkom/The Columbian)

Trout hatchery ‘a place of community’

Vancouver Trout Hatchery visitors can wander freely among ponds and pathways, stop to chat with staff members tending fish or watch trout grow in the water below.