April Ehrlich
April Ehrlich is a reporter covering lands and environmental policies in Oregon and Southwest Washington at OPB, after joining as a breaking news editor in November 2021.
She previously worked at Jefferson Public Radio in Southern Oregon, where she was a reporter, show producer, and radio host. While there, she focused much of her reporting on wildfire coverage, including an investigation with NPR into federal disaster assistance programs and how they routinely fail people in marginalized groups.
April’s reporting has won numerous Public Media Journalists Association awards and regional Edward R. Murrow awards, as well as a national Murrow.
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The Northwest Forest Plan has long protected vulnerable species like spotted owls in federal forests along the West Coast. -
Winery and vineyard owners accused the electricity provider of negligence over the 2020 Labor Day weekend wildfires. -
The U.S. Forest Service plans to auction off trees in the Deschutes, Wallowa-Whitman and Umatilla national forests by the end of the month. -
The U.S. Forest Service could close its Pacific Northwest headquarters in Portland, which oversees Oregon and Washington national forests, as part of restructuring plan. -
An invasive, tree-killing pest has made its way to Portland, spelling trouble for the many native ash trees that cool residential neighborhoods on hot summer days. -
The 2020 Labor Day fires destroyed more than 1,700 manufactured homes — about 42% of all homes destroyed in Oregon that weekend. Most were in Jackson County, where the Almeda Fire burned across the towns of Talent and Phoenix, tearing through neighborhoods lining the Interstate 5 freeway. -
The federal government is asking for input on Paramount Gold’s proposal, which could bring jobs and investment to the remote region, but could also deplete groundwater reserves in a struggling aquifer and its bright lights might harm wildlife. Though unlikely, it could also leak arsenic into drinking water reserves. -
Some Oregon birdwatchers say this spring was strangely quiet – and the data backs that up. -
Outdoor recreation played a key factor in improving people’s mental health during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a survey led by Oregon State University researchers and published this spring by a major scientific journal. -
Large companies will start paying into a program to expand and unify Oregon's recycling system, helping more cities offer recycling services.
