Thank you for your interest in reading The Astorian. Here are a few stories that you might have missed this week:

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Dozens of people gathered in Astoria on Wednesday night to share their thoughts on the state’s draft habitat conservation plan with State Forester Cal Mukumoto — a step intended to inform his recommendation to the Oregon Board of Forestry next month.

The proposed 70-year plan was developed to help the state stay in compliance with the federal Endangered Species Act, and would designate protected habitat areas across roughly 640,000 acres of state forests, primarily in Clatsop and Tillamook counties.

While the plan aims to protect species, it has drawn concerns due to its potential consequences for communities that rely on revenue earned from logging state forests. According to results from modeling estimates released by the state Department of Forestry in December, Clatsop County could lose up to 35% of its timber revenue as a result of the plan, and stands to be the most financially impacted of any county in the state.

In light of the recent modeling estimates, Mukumoto said it was important to him to hear from people in the community before making a recommendation on the plan to the Board of Forestry in March.

See the story by Olivia Palmer by clicking here.

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Gearhart will gather public feedback on a new emergency services building by placing questions about the project on the ballot for the May election.

City Attorney Peter Watts said at a work session on Tuesday night that the questions would center around budget and location. The results would not be binding or require the City Council to take action, but would help reflect community perspectives.

“Only 50% of Gearhart residents are domiciled here,” Watts said. “So there are a lot of people that might care very much about this issue, but they’re not necessarily voting on it in the election. Whereas an advisory vote, we’re gauging the likely voters.”

Read the story by Jasmine Lewin by clicking here.

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Clyde McDonald is counting down the seconds. As the former owner of Ed’s Septic Tank Cleaning Service, he’s watched for years as disposal locations have dropped off the map in Clatsop County.

First, Astoria stopped accepting septage at its wastewater treatment facility. Then, Warrenton followed. Now, the company’s new owners — McDonald’s brother and sister-in-law, Paul and Lezlie McDonald — are sending their trucks as far as Longview, St. Helens and Rainier to keep the business going. Even at those locations, they’ve been limited to dumping as little as half a truck of septage per day — a fraction of what they need to meet their customers’ demands.

McDonald fears it’s only a matter of time before residents’ overfull septic tanks begin to contaminate the nearby groundwater.

“They’re backing up, and they’re overflowing, and we can’t get to them,” Lezlie McDonald said.

Septage haulers like the McDonalds aren’t the only ones with a problem on their hands. In the face of new restrictions, breweries and seafood processing plants in Astoria and Warrenton are facing their own waste management challenges.

To stay in compliance with the city’s pretreatment requirements, some Astoria breweries have taken on the expensive task of side-streaming wastewater — a process that leaves them with truckloads of organic materials like yeast and hops to dispose. At the same time, seafood processing plants are running up against waste management dilemmas as they navigate new restrictions from the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality.

In light of these hurdles, county leaders are moving forward with a feasibility study for a project they hope can offer a solution: an anaerobic biodigester. The study, they say, will help the county determine whether the project could bring in new infrastructure to process businesses’ waste and repurpose it for renewable energy.

Take a look at the report by Olivia Palmer by clicking here.

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— Derrick DePledge