WIRT Follows Port of Pasco Megaloads & Has Pre-Trial Hearing on Misdemeanors


On Sunday, April 15, two Wild Idaho Rising Tide (WIRT) activists monitored three ExxonMobil/Imperial Oil tar sands shipments from the Port of Pasco, Washington, to Idaho, noting their convoy vehicles, timing and fluctuating speeds, traffic delays and disruptions, and overpass bypass routes.  At a second pre-trial hearing on Tuesday, April 17, Helen Yost requested charges as lenient as the sentence of a megaload driver who hit a flagger-diverted vehicle on December 6, for her misdemeanors of throwing a foam board protest sign at the 415,000-pound, last Highway 95 megaload and air-kicking toward a Moscow police officer on March 6.  Her lawyer, Ben Onosko of the Northern Rockies Justice Center, will file a motion questioning the definition of a moving vehicle and has scheduled a September trial for both citations.  Listen between 9:48 and 2:34 of the April 17, 2012, KRFP Radio Free Moscow Evening Report, Earth Day Awards, to learn more about both situations.

Megaload Protesters Receive Earth Day Award as Earth Protectors


Earth Day Award for Megaload Protestors on April 16, 2012

(Tom Hansen video clip of the following minutes)

Moscow City Council Meeting Minutes 4-16-12

At the April 16, 2012, Moscow City Council meeting, Mayor Nancy Chaney announced her annual Earth Day Award recipients: Colter’s Creek Winery, Doug Wasankari, Matt Dolkas, Moscow High School Environmental Club, Moscow CommUNITY Walk, Gail DeSantis, Palouse Land Trust, and Margaret and Maynard Fosberg. She also recognized the megaload protesters as Earth Protectors. Watch between 41:08 and 45:15 of the videotaped meeting for our mayor’s remarks and community members’ acceptance of the award.

For an audio news version, listen to Mayor Chaney Hands Out Earth Day Awards between 21:28 and 16:52 of the April 17, 2012, KRFP Radio Free Moscow Evening Report, Earth Day Awards.

Corps Approves Dock Expansion


Next step is for Port of Lewiston officials to decide how to pay for project

A Port of Lewiston project cleared a significant hurdle Monday.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has approved an application for a $2.9 million expansion of the port’s container dock.

“We have granted permission for them to proceed,” said Bruce Henrickson, a spokesman for the corps’ Walla Walla District.

The corps found the 150-foot addition to the 125-foot dock wouldn’t have a significant impact on the environment, but identified precautions to protect wildlife during construction, according to a news release from the corps. Continue reading