Idaho News

BOISE, Id – Over the past few weeks, some storm drains around Boise have been fitted with what look like thick, old-fashioned welcome mats.

Cars zip by along Americana in Boise, between two city parks.  On both sides of the street, light brown fiber mats cover up the storm drains.

Jason Korn “We’re looking at a Blocksom Filter; it is a natural fiber mat that is zip-tied to the storm drain to keep pollutants from entering the storm drain system and ultimately the Boise River.”

BOISE, ID. – Idaho’s Department of Water Resources wants to find out how much groundwater is in the Wood River Valley.  There’s concern the water supply there is dwindling. 

Any Idahoan with investments, savings, loans, or a retirement plan is affected by what happens on Wall Street. They’ll see what the market does Tuesday after Monday’s sharp drop.  

BOISE, Id – Women who survive breast cancer are often left with a scar on their body and their self-esteem.  Many turn to prosthetics to recreate what they once had.  But it’s hard to build a prosthetic breast.  New 3D technology will help women in the Treasure Valley with the process.

Tessie VanHoff is a petite 47-year-old woman with spikey dark hair.  She was diagnosed with breast cancer four years ago.  At age 43, she was left with a lot of questions.

BOISE, ID. – Hispanics or Latinos account for about one in every nine Idahoans according to Census 2010.  But unemployment among Hispanics tends to run higher than the overall rate. 

BOISE, ID. – A new Veteran’s Monument will be dedicated in Cascade Saturday.  The centerpiece is a bronze statue.  It portrays Army Specialist John Borbonus who died to protect his fellow soldiers. 

Nostalgic for the days when you could fill your car for a buck and a half a gallon? Thursday a place opens where you can do just that. The catch is, it’s not gasoline but natural gas. Idaho’s first public CNG fueling station opens in Boise and later this month one in Nampa starts pumping. This comes at a time when Idaho is trying to decide what it wants to do about natural gas extraction.

BOISE, Id –The forecast in Boise Thursday calls for a high of 95.  That’s two degrees above normal.  You hear that a lot from forecasters talking about temperatures, whether they’re above normal, below normal.

Idaho’s new normal temperature has everything to do with the 1970’s.

George Skari “We just came out with new normal that began in 1981 through 2010, we got rid of the ‘70s.”

George Skari is a Meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Boise.

BOISE, ID. – Idaho astronaut Barbara Morgan and two others will be in Boise over the next week.  They’re here for Idaho Space Days which starts Friday.  Jose Hernandez is one of the astronauts.  He grew up between two cultures.  

BOISE, ID. – A federal judge has delayed Idaho Health and Welfare’s plan to use just one company to oversee a Medicaid program.  U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill’s decision Thursday affects dozens of businesses and people that provide care in their homes. 

BOISE, ID. – A judge ruled Tuesday that the Obama Administration’s plan to protect salmon in the Snake and Columbia Rivers falls short.   

BOISE, ID. –   A Washington State company wants to hire for jobs in Idaho.  Reps for Pullman-based Schweitzer Engineering will be at the Silverstone Amenity Center in Meridianon Wednesday for a career fair. 

The Treasure Valley is growing and so is its urban forest.  So, this summer, a handful of students are evaluating trees in communities across the valley.  As Boise State Public Radio’s Emily Schwing reports, the goal is to find out how much trees are worth and where we need more of them.

BOISE, ID. – The second home market has taken a dive in resort towns like McCall.  That’s bad news for home owners, but good news if you want to buy a place there. 

BOISE, ID. –   More people need food and groceries.  That’s according to the Idaho Foodbank and its non-profit partners like the Salvation Army.

The Food and Drug Administration warned people not to eat sprouts from a North Idaho farm in June because of a salmonella outbreak, but recent tests show no signs of salmonella. 

The suicide of Olympic skier Jaret “Speedy” Peterson shocked people in his native Idaho. But as Boise State Public Radio’s Adam Cotterell reports, the warning signs were there.

BOISE, Id – Sherri Wood has been the President of the Idaho Education Association and a teacher.  Now after 34 years as an educator, she’s retiring.

Sherri Wood planned to spend five years teaching first, second and third graders at Van Buren School in Caldwell.

Sherri Wood “After I was there five years, the kids and the families that attended Van Buren School, became very attached to them, very much enjoyed working with them and 28 years later, I was still there.”

Teaching, wood says, is more than just 50 minutes in a classroom.

Matt Christensen stood by Olympic silver medalist Jeret “Speedy” Peterson for more than ten years.  The freestyle aerial skier took his own life Monday night.  Christensen was Peterson’s coach, travel companion, and friend. 

The suicide of Olympic skier Jaret "Speedy" Peterson shocked people in his native Idaho. But as Boise State Public Radio’s Adam Cotterell reports, the warning signs were there.

The suicide of Olympic skier Jeret “Speedy” Peterson shocked people in his native Idaho. But Peterson had struggled with depression for years.  Boise State Public Radio’s Adam Cotterell talked with a sports psychologist about athletes and mental health.

BOISE, ID – There are lots of fun ways to stay active during the hot summer months.  Last week, in our series Let’s Get Physical, we took you pole dancing.  Today we climb into a hammock to do yoga.

Katie Ponozzo stands on a ladder.  She hangs up a bright blue piece of silk from the ceiling of Ophidia studios in Garden City.

Katie Ponozzo: “So they’re a big piece of fabric that’s made into a loop and we’re able to do different types of yoga positions and lay in the fabric and it’s like a cocoon.”