Jun. 1—Sound Transit boasts about creating the first "100% carbon-free light rail service" in the nation. Yet when the contractors build concrete columns and stations, they burn fossil fuels that reduce the electric trains' net climate benefit. In a tiny experiment to limit greenhouse gas, crews building the north half of Sound Transit's 2024 Northgate-to-Lynnwood extension are fueling two ... Read More

May 31—The Alaska Railroad plans to spend $80 million to replace and expand the old cruise ship dock in Seward, setting the stage to bring larger cruise ships and more tourists to Southcentral Alaska. A $25 million freight dock expansion is also in the works. The new dock will extend close to a quarter of a mile into Resurrection Bay, about 500 feet longer than the existing dock that must be ... Read More

May 31—Sound Transit boasts about creating the first "100% carbon-free light rail service" in the nation. Yet when the contractors build concrete columns and stations, they burn fossil fuels that reduce the electric trains' net climate benefit. In a tiny experiment to limit greenhouse gas, crews building the north half of Sound Transit's 2024 Northgate-to-Lynnwood extension are fueling two ... Read More

May 26—The Environmental Protection Agency has announced that it will renew its effort to prevent construction of the Pebble copper and gold mine, an action that Pebble critics have long sought as a possible fatal blow to the project. The federal agency said Wednesday that it would issue a proposal to ban the project from disposing of dredged or fill material into streams or wetlands — an ... Read More

WASHINGTON, D.C.-- A long-sought priority of U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) came closer to reality today when the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it will pursue using its Clean Water Act 404(c) authority to permanently block the Pebble Mine as proposed at Bristol Bay, Alaska. In September 2011, Senator Cantwell became the first U.S. Senator to call on the EPA to ... Read More

May 22—More time is needed to complete Puyallup's new Sound Transit garage due to delays and supply-chain issues, which will cost the agency more money. Sound Transit pushed its completion date further in the year as more time is needed to complete the project. The board voted in April to allocate an additional $3.25 million to the total cost to complete the construction phase, according to ... Read More

May 19—A Washington state council has found that the 24-mile ridge line of Horse Heaven Hills south of the Tri-Cities is an appropriate place for a wind farm. The Washington state Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council voted Tuesday to approve an order finding that Scout Clean Energy's application to build the Horse Heaven Wind Farm was consistent with Benton County land use plans and zoning ... Read More

Intel said Thursday it will build a $700 million research center at its Jones Farm campus in Hillsboro where the company will study new technologies for cooling data centers. The new “mega lab” will investigate ways to make data centers operate more efficiently, primarily by reducing their heating, cooling and water needs. The 200,000-square-foot facility, slated to open late next year, will ... Read More

Beaverton School District voters approved a $723 million bond to replace Beaverton High and Raleigh Hills K-8 school and carry out deferred maintenance and seismic upgrades throughout the district. To pay for it, property taxes will increase by 25 cents per $1,000 of assessed value, resulting in a $709 school construction-related tax bill for the owner of the typical home, assessed at ... Read More

May 17—A developer is laying plans for a major project overhauling a downtown Anchorage block, with a vision for residential and retail space, a hotel and more. Plans for the project, estimated to cost more than $200 million, also include the demolition of the historic 4th Avenue Theatre, which was built in the 1940s and some community members have long passionately advocated for preserving. ... Read More