Although 40 years have passed since the eruption of Mount St. Helens devastated the Lower Columbia Region in a landmark geological event, Cowlitz County continues to feel the effects, both literal and symbolic, of the blast.
In a year of another lifechanging crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic, the Daily News top five environmental stories fittingly cover fish, fires and two developments in the ongoing response to sediment and flooding woes that are a consequence of the 1980 eruption.
The year opened on a light note for smelt dippers, who received the approval to dip for the thin silvery fish for the first time since 2017. The recreational fishery opened on Valentineâs Day, long before most Cowlitz County residents had heard of the novel coronavirus.