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LONGVIEW, Washington — The Washington Department of Ecology issued two penalties totaling $145,000 to Weyerhaeuser for stormwater violations at the company’s Longview lumber mill. The penalties include 36 stormwater discharge violations, 15 monitoring requirements violations, and 16 reporting requirement violations, all of which occurred between July 2022 and May 2024. Weyerhaeuser found that the mill’s stormwater contained low oxygen levels, which can harm aquatic plants and animals. The stormwater also had solids (which could include copper and other metals) above the permitted limits. Solid Waste Program Manager Peter Lyon said the company reported these violations, but not within the time that the permit required. …Other violations stemmed from changes Weyerhaeuser made to their stormwater system… however, the company didn’t get required approvals from Ecology, and the changes have the potential to worsen pollution problems at the mill. …Weyerhaeuser has 30 days to appeal the penalties.

OREGON — As temperatures are expected to climb to nearly 100 degrees in the Willamette Valley on Thursday, the Eugene Springfield Fire Department is urging residents to do their part in preventing wildfires. Local firefighters had a busy night on Tuesday after responding to vegetation fires in both Eugene and Springfield. Just after 8 p.m., the Department was alerted to a vegetation fire at a local milling facility near West 1st Ave. and South Bertelsen Road. …Crews arrived at the scene to find the fire burning at two log piles at the milling facility and were able to contain the fire before it damaged the logs. According to ESFD, the fire is “suspicious” and is under investigation by the Fire Marshal’s Office.

JOHN DAY, Oregon — The news that Malheur Lumber will be shutting its doors permanently has hit this community of 1,700 people like a freight train, prompting locals and lawmakers to search for solutions that could keep Grant County’s last lumber mill operating. …Blue Mountains Forest Partners and the Harney County Restoration Collaborative, a pair of stakeholder groups that include representatives of conservation and timber industry interests, worked with the Malheur National Forest to hammer out a deal that ensured a steady stream of logs for Malheur Lumber. That contract, which was criticized by some of Iron Triangle’s competitors, expired in March 2023. Now many are wondering what, if anything, can be done to prevent the mill’s closure this time around. …The key to keeping Malheur Lumber’s doors open, Ward said, is resolving the company’s workforce issues.

Malheur Lumber announced last week it is closing for good, marking the fifth closure of a timber mill in Oregon this year. …The company employed 76 full and part time workers, according to the Blue Mountain Eagle, which first reported the closure. It was Grant County’s last remaining sawmill. …The mill was the fifth sawmill or timber operation in Oregon to close this year following the shuttering of: C&D Lumber Co. in Douglas County; Interfor’s Philomath sawmill shut down in February, Rosboro temporarily closed its Springfield mill; and Hampton Lumber closed its Banks mill and laid off 58 in January. The loss of rural timber mills is a problem for a number of reasons, including for thinning overstocked forests, said Nick Smith with the American Forest Resource Council. Just about every timber company that has closed referenced the inability to get the timber required to keep the business going.