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THE VOICE OF PEND OREILLE COUNT Y SINCE 1901
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
www.pendoreillerivervalley.com
PUD power from Boundary left out of license
BY JANELLE ATYEO OF THE MINER
NEWPORT – When the new license was issued for Boundary Dam last month it came without one major provision that directly affects how much Pend Oreille County residents pay for power. The Pend Oreille Public Utility District has filed for a rehearing with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on the license provision that allows the PUD to purchase 48 megawatts of power from Boundary at the price it costs to produce it. This is the majority of power used by Pend Oreille County residents and is why they enjoy one of the lowest rates in the country. Because the Boundary Project is so much larger than the PUD’s Box Canyon
OF THE MINER
SANDPOINT – Attorneys representing leaseholders at Priest Lake have filed suit in 1st District Court seeking review of rate increases on leases for state-owned lakefront property at Priest Lake. The average amount of the rate increases over last year is 84 percent. Leases for some properties cost as much as $35,000 annually. All 353 leases at Priest Lake expire at the end of this year, the end of a 10-year lease. The new
75¢
project, power costs are lower. “It would have a very significant impact on rates,” said Mark Cauchy, Pend Oreille PUD’s Director of Regulatory and Environmental Affairs. Because the district has agreements in place with Boundary Dam owners Seattle City Light, the 48 MW exchange will continue through the new license – for the next 42 years. “We know there’s going to be different players at the table in the 42 years so we really want to get that thing in writing,” said Curt Knapp, president of the PUD board of commissioners. Cauchy said it’s a pretty unique agreement, something that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission MINER PHOTO|DON GRONNING
SEE PUD, 2A
Lease increases prompt lawsuits at Priest Lake BY DON GRONNING
Volume 110, Number 12 | 2 Sections, 16 Pages
leases will be staggered, and be for shorter time periods. The state had the properties appraised and increased the leases in most cases. The annual leases for 2014 range from about $7,200 a year to $35,000, according to the Idaho Department of Lands. The lease money goes into an endowment that is used for education. The land was originally given to the state by the federal government. The lease amount is 4 percent of the appraised value annually. SEE LEASE, 2A
Learning the bases These members of the Cougars T-Ball team were getting some instruction on basic principles of baseball during practice Friday, April 12 from coach Brett Reedy at the Sadie Halstead Middle School baseball field in Newport. Here, they’re pointing out third base.
Cast your fishing lines on Saturday Fishing season opens in Washington lakes NEWPORT – Lowland lake fishing season officially opens in Washington Saturday, April 27. Several hundred lowland lakes – stocked with millions of fish – will be open for a six-month season. Fishing in Idaho is open year round, though licenses are required in both states at all times. “The start of the lowland lakes
season is the biggest fishing day of the year,” said Phil Anderson, director of the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. “Lakes in every county are wellstocked, so families can keep travel costs down by enjoying good fishing close to home.” To participate, anglers must have a current Washington freshwater fishing license valid through March 31, 2014. Licenses can be purchased online
at https://fishhunt.dfw.wa.gov; by phone at 1-866-246-9453; or at license dealers across the state. A list of vendors is online. Freshwater fishing licenses cost $29.50 for resident adults 16 to 69 years old. Fifteen-year-olds can buy a license for $10.25, and seniors 70 and older can buy an annual freshwater fishing license for $7.50. Children 14 years of age and younger do not need a fish-
ing license. WDFW fish hatchery crews have been stocking 17 million trout and kokanee in lakes on both sides of the Cascades. Those fish include 2.3 million catchable trout, 160,000 jumbo trout weighing up to 11 pounds apiece, 52,000 triploid trout averaging 1½ pounds apiece, and millions of smaller trout that were stocked last year that have grown to catchable size.
Hard time at the Pend Oreille County Jail Sheriff takes ‘no nonsense’ approach to incarceration BY DON GRONNING OF THE MINER
MINER PHOTO|DON GRONNING
Inmates Jacob Freuh, left, and Shane Johnson display the prepared meals that are served at the Pend Oreille County Jail. Pend Oreille County Sheriff Alan Botzheim has made several changes in the way the jail is operated, including taking away television and serving meals prepared by Washington State Correctional Industries in Airway Heights.
NEWPORT – It’s lunchtime at the Pend Oreille County Jail and inmates Jacob Frueh and Shane Johnson are helping out. They are trustees – inmates who have proven themselves trustworthy to the jailers and are allowed out of their cells to help out with things such as serving meals. It is a break from the monotony of jail time. Prisoners are locked in cells 23 of 24 hours a day. All trustees have been sentenced. Frueh is serving time for driving while license suspended, Johnson for felony eluding.
|| Corps, Kalispels study if dam operations can cool downstream waters OLDTOWN – In an effort to improve water temperature for threatened bull trout and other species, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Kalispel Tribe of Indians are studying the effects of Albeni Falls Dam operations on downstream water temperatures. Corps scientists are evaluating data and refining models for possible operational adjustments. In the future, they may schedule an experimental release of water from the dam at Oldtown, which would occur after Labor Day. A date has not been set and may not occur in 2013. The water temperature study is focused on late summer operations in August and September when river temperatures can be lethal for some aquatic species, particularly bull trout
B R I E F LY
and native westslope cutthroat trout. The study is part of the July 2012 agreement between the tribe, Bonneville Power Administration, Bureau of Reclamation and the corps. While the corps is also working to understand the potential effects of a release of water before Labor Day, there aren’t currently plans to start a summertime release. Changing operations before Labor Day – should it be considered in the future – would require analysis to ensure it meets environmental regulations. The process would also call for additional public input.
County jobless rates down to 13 percent OLYMPIA – It’s still one of the highest in the state, but the Pend Oreille County unemployment rate dropped to 13 percent in March from 14 percent the month before. Ferry County had the highest rate at 14.2 percent. Grays
Prisoners eat meals that are prepared at the prison in Airway Heights. That’s a change. Meals used to be prepared at the jail in Newport. Now they come frozen. On Friday, breakfast consisted of a butterhorn pastry, cereal with powdered milk and applesauce; lunch was sandwiches, chips and a muffin; and dinner was breaded chicken fritters, beans and rice. “Sometimes it seems like the amount of calories is low,” Frueh says. The chicken fritters dinner had 430 calories and breakfast had 540 calories. Jail officials say the diet is approved by a state nutritionist and meets state standards.
Food policy saves money The frozen food is far less expensive than the food that was prepared on site before
Pend Oreille County Sheriff Alan Botzheim ordered the change. The Airway Heights meals cost $1.62 a day per prisoner, instead of the $3.34 a day per prisoner the jail used to pay. There is less food wasted, and it saves the county money – although not as much as Botzheim originally thought, because the number of prisoners has increased from an average of 26 per day to 29. It is still a substantial amount of money. Botzheim says the county saved nearly $10,000 on what it has spent since the first of the year. He says the county spent $20,804 through April 16 on food. Under the old menu, the county would have spent more than $30,000, he said. SEE JAIL, 2A
||
Harbor was the next highest at 13.1 percent, and Stevens tied Pend Oreille at 13. Spokane County has a rate of 9.1 percent as of March. In Washington, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 7.3 percent, just lower than the nationwide rate of 7.6 percent. County rates are not seasonally adjusted.
Legislators connect with telephone town hall OLYMPIA – Seventh Legislative District residents are encouraged to participate in an upcoming telephone town hall hosted by their legislators: Sen. John Smith and Reps. Shelly Short and Joel Kretz. The hour-long community conversation will take place Tuesday, April 30, at 7 p.m. Individuals wishing to participate should call 1-877-2298493 and enter pin number 15429 when prompted.
Kretz, a 10-year veteran of the House of Representatives, explained the feedback received from constituents during the calls is invaluable. “Telephone town halls offer residents the chance to ask questions, voice their opinions and share their ideas with us – and the best part is that they don’t even have to leave their houses to participate,” Kretz, R-Wauconda. The 7th District team hosted a tele-town hall a few weeks after this year’s legislative session began in January. With the regular session set to adjourn April 28, Short, R-Addy, said this teleforum will give residents a review of the past four months and get their feedback on how they want to be represented. “In order to best represent northeast Washington, we need to hear what’s working and what’s not working,” Short said. “We’ve made some good progress this session, but there is always more work that needs to be done.”
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