LATEST NEWS

Please note effective immediately
our FAX number and address have changed

Our new FAX number is
(360) 584-9473

We are now located at
606 Columbia Street NW, Suite 211
Olympia, WA 98501

Our phone number remains the same.

Apple growers to take hit from new Mexican tariff

YAKIMA, Wash. -- Washington apple growers are going to take an estimated $44 million hit this year from a new Mexican tariff, another chapter in an ongoing trade dispute that has already hurt cherry and pear growers. Complete Story

2010 Legends of Washington Wine named

Guy W. (Bill) Powers of Badger Mountain Vineyard and Powers Winery and the late David Lake, the longtime winemaker for Columbia Winery were selected as 2010 Legends of Washington Wine and will be inducted into the Legends of Washington Wine Hall of Fame. Complete Story

New farmworker family housing complex under construction in Pasco

Bishop Topel Haven, a new 43-unit farmerworker housing complex in Pasco, is being built by Catholic Charities Spokane. The project will have apartments ready to rent in spring 2011. Complete Story

Tight ag lending puts strain on family farmers

Adolfo Alvarez is out of options. After three years of poor returns on his crops, the Grandview farmer isn’t eligible for more loans or lines of credit. He has no more equity to leverage, no government program to come to his rescue. Without a profit on this fall’s apple harvest, Alvarez said he’ll lose everything. Complete Story

Mid-Columbia farmers at odds with Ecology

By John Trumbo, Herald staff writer

Farmer Ron Reimann tries to make the most of his water right, but without using every last drop.

He's an irrigation miser, putting just enough water on his 3,500 acres at T&R Farms in Franklin County to produce quality crops while conserving as much as possible. After 29 years, he's learned intensive field monitoring of his irrigation also can mean more effective use of the region's limited water supply. Complete Story

Spokane water rights adjudications to start in 2012

County prepares for flood of claims

Spokane County commissioners saw the future this week and it looked like “Waterworld.” Court officials told commissioners the county needs to gear up for a massive adjudication of water rights that is to begin in 2012. Complete Story

Northwest wineries seek growing Chinese market

By GEORGE TIBBITS, The Associated Press

SEATTLE -- Hong Kong and mainland China are developing a strong thirst for wine, and Washington and Oregon are hoping for a taste of those growing markets. Complete Story

WINE: State awards grant to Washington foundation

CASHMERE — The Washington Wine Industry Foundation was awarded $128,250 from the Washington State Department of Agriculture’s Specialty Crop Block Grant program to build a Guide to Sustainable Winery Practices. Complete Story

Republicans Stress the Importance of Protecting and Expanding Low-Cost, Carbon-Free Hydropower

WASHINGTON, D.C., Jul 29 - Today, during a Natural Resources Water and Power Subcommittee hearing on “Investment in Small Hydropower: Prospects for Expanding Low Impact and Affordable Hydropower Generation in the West,” Republicans highlighted the necessity of protecting existing hydropower resources and making it an essential part of an all-of-the-above energy plan. Complete Story

EBID Testifies Before Congress on Small Hydropower Opportunities

Reclamation Awards $1.5 Million Contract for Modifications at Grand Coulee Dam

The Bureau of Reclamation awarded a $1.5 million contract for repairs and modifications to a wheel-mounted gate servicing chamber at Grand Coulee Dam located on the Columbia River about 90 miles west of Spokane, Wash.

Knight Construction & Supply, Inc., Deer Park, Wash., was awarded the contract on July 19. Complete Story

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