Tackling Climate Change

The carbon pollution in our atmosphere from burning fossil fuels like oil and coal is waging a direct and unchecked assault on our farming, fishing and forests – the cornerstones of Oregon’s rural economy.

When Jeff was young, his dad worked as a millwright. He spent his childhood in Southern Oregon timber communities, where timber jobs were what put food on the table and kept roofs over folks’ head. Fires and insect infestations are already killing trees at alarming rates across the Northwest, and climate change will only make these threats to our forests worse. Other iconic Oregon industries like our coastal oyster hatcheries are threatened by ocean acidification, and fishing and farming alike are facing threats from declining snowpacks and increased drought.

Congress needs to wake up. Climate change is real, and it’s bad for our economy and jobs, especially in rural Oregon and the places that most depend on our abundant natural resources.

Wyden, Merkley Announce Federal Investment to Help Fight Wildfires in Wasco County

Juniper Flats Rural Fire Protection awarded an Assistance to Firefighters Grant for $757,000 Washington D.C.—U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today announced a federal investment of $757,143 for the Juniper Flats Rural Protection District in Wasco County to aid in local firefighting efforts. “As we witnessed firsthand this summer

Wyden, Merkley Announce $1.9 Million to Promote Sustainable Forest Health for Small-Acreage Forest Landowners

Washington D.C.—U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley today announced a federal investment of $1.9 million for the Bonneville Environmental Foundation to connect underserved and small acreage forest landowners to emerging carbon markets that provide incentives to improve forest management, including reforestation and other sustainable practices, for a healthier climate.

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