Wyden goes to bat for Oregon's rural, coastal communities
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Aug 26
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Posted in Jobs. |
Over the last few weeks, Ron Wyden has taken swings through Eastern and Southern Oregon to highlight the work he is doing to help our state's rural and coastal communities get back on their feet.
In visits to Hood River, Pendleton, La Grande, and Baker City, Wyden touted his work to create jobs and fight for rural Eastern Oregon. And, on Oregon's coasts over the last few weeks, Wyden has been highlighting his efforts to jumpstart our coastal economy.
In Hood River, Wyden spoke of how he sees a bright future for high-tech industries in the Columbia River Gorge. This includes the hundreds of jobs he brought to the region by helping Google settle in The Dalles.
“This community is doing well in growing things, making things, adding value and shipping them out,” Wyden said. “There is great potential here.”
Moving eastward, Wyden touted his landmark Eastside Forest Plan, which will help restore badly-needed timber jobs to struggling Eastern Oregon mills.
“We’ve got the first ever agreement between timber and environmental interests to end these timber wars,” Wyden said in La Grande while touring the city's Boise Cascade’s Island City particleboard plant.
Wyden also spoke on how he and others are going to bat for our rural communities by working to reauthorize his "county payments" legislation, which keeps police officers on the street and teachers in the classroom in cash-strapped counties.
“We tried to convey the urgency that these programs are a lifeline for the people of Oregon. On our watch, we are going to prosecute the case relentlessly to insure that a historical compact is honored. This is the No. 1 priority for Oregon’s Congressional delegation,” Wyden told the Burns Times Herald.
And finally, Wyden is fighting to create lasting jobs for our coastal communities. He is working to bring advanced wave energy projects to Reedsport, and is calling for federal funds to support the efforts in Astoria and across the coast to repair jetties, as without them "there would be no coastal economy."
Posted on August 26, 2010 in Jobs.
