Rethinking levees to reduce flood risk

By Lauren Gallup
The Calistoga Reach Levee Set Back in Pierce County is an engineered levee set back to help the river flow in a more natural way. The project was part of a larger Floodplains by Design grant. // Courtesy the Washington State Department of Ecology
Washington Rep. Steve Tharinger of the 24th district became intimately acquainted with levee setbacks when he discovered the levee protecting his house on the lower Dungeness River was not only not protecting his house, but harming the ecosystem too. “I sold my house and the five acres in a barn we had, so that we'd have more room to move that levee back and give the Read More

Tales of the forests through which we tromp

By Lauren Gallup
Olympic National Park, summertime, sun cascading through trees. // CREDIT: Lauren Gallup NWPB
Moss drapes over trees in Olympic National Park like the table dressings of fairies and the blankets of sprites. This place inspires writers — from amateurs to poets to public radio reporters — and welcomes visitors each year into its majesty. Our national parks tend to do that; be places of awe-inspiring beauty, great adventures through bushwhacking and overnights Read More

Collision on northbound I-5 causes massive back-ups

By Lauren Gallup
A crane had to be used to life the semi-truck, which was heavy with cargo. // Credit: WSDOT Tacoma, @wsdot_tacoma on Twitter
A major collision on northbound Interstate 5 Wednesday morning caused day-long backups across much of Thurston County. The incident, between a semi-truck and passenger vehicle, closed all but one of the northbound lanes just past the exit to Mounts Road in DuPont, as crews worked to investigate the collision and then clear the debris and vehicles. Read More

Bringing Indigenous languages into public schools

By Lauren Gallup
a teacher showing a book to students
A number of Washington state public schools are partnering with tribes to bring Indigenous languages into classrooms in an effort to rectify the marred history of Native American boarding schools. Rachael Barger is a teacher on special assignment with Bethel School District, one of the districts partnering with the Nisqually Tribe to bring its Southern Lushootseed Read More
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