Ali Brown juggles a home in Portland, a job in Forest Grove and graduate school that takes her to Bainbridge Graduate School, near Seattle, once a month.

The Conservation Registry, created by the environmental advocacy group Defenders of Wildlife, features an online portal with project-mapping tools, dashboard displays and filter/search functions. Metro transferred its Regional Environmental Information Network data to the nationwide registry last month at a cost of $13,000.  

News and blogosphere mentions for the week of Feb. 20-27, 2012.

Construction salvage and recycling are good for business and for the environment. Salvaging Commercial Construction Debris, a new professional training designed by and for commercial and demolition contractors, will help participants learn how they can save money and build more sustainably by reusing and recycling construction and demolition debris.

The East Metro Connections Plan will consider increasing bus service, adding sidewalks, coordinating traffic signals, changing road widths, and re-designating freight routes.

Humboldt Bay Energy, a corporation registered in Nevada but operating out of Eureka, Calif., has come forward as interested in buying the site, and the bankruptcy court trustee charged with selling Blue Heron's assets said the company is furthest along in the process of buying the property.

Commuters in the Portland metro region who ride public transportation instead of drive vehicles save an average of $844 each month, which adds up to $10,131 annually.

Thick with shrubs and grasses, a low-lying swale near Gaston hardly looks like Metro’s most majestic natural area. But, nestled among a rural byway, farm fields and the Tualatin River, it has revealed some of the rarest and most spectacular treasures – thanks to a bit of scientific sleuthing.

Endangered birds produce sixth egg of season at zoo’s off-site facility.

Metro provides free safety kits to ensure proper measurements and easy training for staff.