Columbia River Gorge pollution may be linked to PGE plant, Boardman dairy

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BOARDMAN, Ore. -- Researchers may have pinpointed two contributors to the rising pollution and acid fog levels in the Columbia Gorge National Scenic Area: an aging Portland General Electric coal-burning power plant and an Eastern Oregon dairy complex that houses 52,300 cows.

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The PGE coal plant, constructed 30 years ago, does not have to comply with federal Clean Air Act rules that would apply to more recently-built plants. It received an exemption from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 1975 two weeks before stiffer regulations went into effect, an exemption that the EPA later admitted had been a mistake.

The power plant is now among the dirtiest in the region, lacking scrubbers that are typically standard on such plants built today, according to a report in The Oregonian newspaper.

The nearby dairy, Threemile Canyon, has expanded rapidly over the last five years and remains exempt from Oregon state air regulation because it is considered an agricultural enterprise. The dairy's decomposing manure, however, emits more ammonia than the combined releases reported by regulated industrial sources in Oregon, federal figures show.

State officials say they are concerned, but that there may not be much they can do to regulate the situation because of the exemptions.

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http://www.kgw.com/business/stories/kgw_072905_env_gorge_pollution.20d215d3.html

I think I treated cows at the big dairy in Boardman several times. Big place, lots of cows then. Must be REALLY big now. 52,000 cows????

(I am a veterinarian)

a lot of stuff worse than cow crap down to Portland and the Pacific. It's a pollution drain for large parts of the mountain northwest.:-(

so there is no earthly reason for it to be polluting the river. They need to compost the crap under plastic, or put it in lagoons to breakdown (and they could collect and use the methane genreated to power the dairy operation).

IIRC - if I recall correctly
BTW - by the way
IMHO - in my humble opinion

There are lots more

"IIRC." I'm sure I'll find it very useful!