FOR A SMARTER ENERGY FUTURE—OSPIRG’s Laura Etherton appears at Sen. Gordon Smith’s office to urge his continued opposition to drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Photo credit: Annie Douglass.

Gov. Speaks Out For Roadless Forests
In his Jan. 10 State of the State address, and again in May 2005, Gov. Ted Kulongoski reiterated his opposition to the Bush administration’s repeal of the popular Roadless Area Conservation Rule.

The rule protected the last remaining pristine areas of our National Forests, including nearly 2 million acres in Oregon, such as parts of Mount Hood, the Columbia Gorge and the McKenzie River Basin.

The Bush administration repealed the protections in May, requiring state governors to petition if they want to preserve roadless national forests in their states.

OSPIRG’s Laura Etherton applauded Gov. Kulongoski for speaking out against the repeal.

Etherton urged the governor to petition to restore roadless protections to save Oregon’s last wild forests and the clean water, recreation opportunities and habitat they provide.

“Oregon’s wild forests provide opportunities for families to enjoy the outdoors, and a home to bald eagles, elk and salmon. Oregon communities also depend on our remaining roadless wild forests for clean drinking water,” said Etherton.

“The Bush administration has repealed protection for parts of the Clackamas, Santiam and McKenzie watersheds—drinking water sources for hundreds of thousands of Oregonians,” she concluded.

Victory For Energy Efficiency In Oregon
On July 29, Gov. Ted Kulongoski signed into law an OSPIRG-backed bill increasing energy efficiency for eleven commercial and residential products.

“Our legislators chose a win for the environment and a win for the economy,” said OSPIRG’s Clean Energy Advocate Jeremiah Baumann.

Commercial appliances such as clothes washers and traffic signals as well as residential appliances like “torchiere” lamps will be more efficient as a result.

By 2020, these standards will make cuts in global warming pollution that are the equivalent of taking tens of thousands of cars off the road. They will save Oregonians nearly $250 million on their energy bills.

OSPIRG worked with the Citizens’ Utility Board to advocate passage of this program.

OSPIRG Advocates Identity Theft Protection
As news of more corporate security breaches hit home for Oregonians, OSPIRG advocated a state bill to combat identity theft.

The bill, sponsored by Sen. Floyd Prozanski, aimed to give consumers in Oregon the most important tool to protect themselves if the security of their financial information was breached—the option to place a security freeze on their credit reports.

When a consumer who has been a victim of identity theft puts a security freeze on their credit report, it means that no one can access the credit report without the consumer’s specific permission. This keeps fraudulent credit accounts from being opened in the victim’s name.

OSPIRG Staff Attorney Shannon Callahan expressed disappointment that the security freeze legislation did not pass. “The legislature failed to protect consumers and has left them at risk,” she said. Additionally, Callahan released a new consumer guide, “Ten Tips to Reduce Your Risk of Identity Theft”.

Legislators Explore Threats To Ore.’s Ocean
On Apr. 9, members of the Oregon Senate Environment and Land Use committee convened a legislative hearing to address threats that Oregon’s ocean faces.

OSPIRG’s Jeremy Wright, along with coalition partners, invited the committee to screen a groundbreaking documentary highlighting the dangers that Oregon’s oceans face.

Entitled “Common Ground—Oregon’s Ocean,” the documentary film features footage from the underwater world off Oregon’s coast and explores the threats posed to our ocean by rampant overfishing and other problematic practices.

OSPIRG worked with coastal legislators, fishing interests, state agencies and coalition members to craft a bill calling for the implementation of a limited system of marine reserves along the Oregon coast. Unfortunately, the bill never received a formal Senate vote, but the groundwork has been laid for future efforts to create sustainable fisheries.