ABSTRACT
The Pacific Northwest is a region of remarkable geographic diversity, scenic beauty, and varied land use, both commercial and recreational. With great forests, rivers, and lakes, and rich agriculture, it has an abundance of natural resources. East of the mountain ranges, the remote areas far from major population centers have been selected for a variety of purposes military and commercial, including nuclear weapons research and development (Hanford, Washington), disposal sites for chemical weapons (Umatilla, Oregon), and toxic waste disposal in southern Idaho. Logging, hydroelectric projects, warming water temperatures in lakes and rivers, and melting glaciers have altered ecosystems and reconfigured the landscape.
