The air quality advisory means people should monitor smoke levels, which can change rapidly, either on the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality’s Air Quality Index or by downloading the free OregonAIR app for smartphones. Impact to the river’s ecology in the nearshore area, river user safety, and private property are documented by many people - from river biologists, to many river users. The Willamette River at Portland site is located at the Morrison Bridge in If you choose to leave the area, remember to take face coverings and hand sanitizer with you to help protect yourself and others from COVID-19. Before CSO control, combined sewers overflowed to the river an average of 50 times a year.

As a graduate student at Portland State University, James V. Hillegas-Elting began to unearth this nuanced story. This isn’t a time for panic, but it is a time for an abundance of caution. So far in Portland, the only official findings on the environmental impact of tear gas have come from the city’s Bureau of Environmental Services. “What we then wash off and what we don’t know, what’ve have not detected yet.”. THANK YOU to our sponsor Willamette Valley Alchemy for choosing to support a CLEAN & HEALTHY WATERSHED! A view of the mainstem Willamette near WR’s Norwood Island property. Sven-Eric Jordt, an associate professor and researcher at Duke University’s School of Medicine who has extensively studied tear gas, said the majority of data used to justify its use is outdated, having been generated in the 1950s, ‘60s and ‘70s. On October 20, Willamette Riverkeeper filed suit along with several other organizations (Cascadiawildlands, Neighbors for Clean Air, Northwest Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides and 350pdx) against the FederalDepartment of Homeland Security for violations of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Over the weekend, federal officers deployed tear gas and pepper ball munitions at nearly 100 protesters outside of the ICE building in southwest Portland late Saturday night. She can be reached at tloew@statesmanjournal.com, 503-399-6779 or on Twitter at @Tracy_Loew. 26. By the early 1900s talk of ‘harnessing the river' was spreading, and the Willamette Valley Project became a reality in … Officials told city workers to put buffers around storm drains while cleaning. On Sept. 10, Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler banned the police force from using CS gas, a form of tear gas that creates clouds of smoke filled with chemicals often used by Portland police and federal officers to disperse protesters. The area has remained the focus of current demonstrations, where continued use of pepper ball munitions and tear gas has been recently reported. Saturday, 07-Nov-2020 05:00:32 EST, Graph updated: The Willamette River at Portland site is located at the Morrison Bridge in downtown Portland, OR. “What is the effect? Willamette Riverkeeper Continues Survey of Freshwater Mussels To Understand More About River Health, Environmentalists studying Willamette River mussel populations, Massive freshwater mussel bed not reproducing in Willamette River. The Willamette River—perhaps Oregon’s miner’s canary—began producing deformed and disfigured fish in the lower stretches of the waterway. Maximum Price. It applies to all of northwest Oregon and southwest Washington. While generally it is considered safe to swim in the Willamette River, the river has a large watershed and pollutants can reach the water from many potential sources.

But the answers become much murkier when it comes to what those chemical agents do to the environment. Stay inside if possible. Be a part of it! Support local journalism by subscribing to the Statesman Journal. Graph updated: Yes, it’s safe to swim in the Willamette most times of the year.

Jordt said the detection of even low or normal concentrations of chemicals like cyanide or perchlorate in the sediment or in the Willamette River would be concerning. In August, the Bureau of Environmental Services cleaned out six storm drains in downtown Portland near Mark O. Hatfield U.S. City. This is not an action we take lightly, but we feel this lapse by the Federal Government is significant and that their lack of evaluation could potentially put people and the environment at risk.

“It’s really very distressful that the science is really so old,” Jordt said. "Unfortunately we do think that dense smoke will continue though today through tonight, and even into tomorrow. 'It's A Bit Surreal': Oregon's Air Quality Suffers As Fires Complicate COVID-19 Fight The air quality in Portland, Ore., ranks among the world's worst. By signing up you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. He said the city should be sending people in during protests to collect more samples, including air samples, in areas where the tear gas is being deployed — something that has persisted into fall. Other pollutants like cyanide were detected in the sediment from all catch basins. Some of the publicly available information indicates that common chemicals in the canisters used can be lethal to aquatic life and plant species . Page Last Modified: Monday - Feb 5, 2018 at 18:37:13 EST, Center for Coastal Margin At the end of July, federal authorities were pulled back from downtown Portland and the cleanup began. Page Contact Information: Stewart Rounds Demonstrators and city officials said agents’ use of tear gas was excessive, but U.S. authorities said it was necessary to protect federal property and officers as protesters hurled objects like cans of beans, bottles and fireworks. Here are some tips on what the levels are and what to take with you if you have to evacuate.