For a compendium of upcoming featured programs, check KPTZ Spotlight for March 1-15. Many of our program hosts provide specifics about what’s planned for this half month. If you’re not already a Spotlight subscriber, you’re invited to join our Mailing List. See KPTZ’s current Weekly On-Air Schedule and Daily Program Schedule.
This Month, Willie Bence, DEM led off with an update on the fire around Spokane. Both he and Dr. Allison Berry talked about the strain this puts on the entire state including info about a VA Hospital that was evacuated there. As for smoke reports, the smoke due in Western WA will be mostly in the I-5 corridor. Sensitive groups, If smoke does arrive here, should get inside with a room that has an air purifier, but if that’s not possible, a makeshift air-filter can be made with a 20×20 box fan and a furnace filter or two, (even four!)
Dr. Berry also spoke about iceberg lettuce, fruits, and other vegetables and said cyclospora outbreaks are NOT here in Washington and offered tips on how to avoid it entirely (mostly)
Click here to see a very thorough presentation about wildfire smoke on the from the county website:
These are two YouTube links: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXya56NIaVM
or https://www.youtube.com/shorts/DwvH9PGxSoI
(Airdate July 31, 2026) A faculty member at Centrum’s Traditional Blues, gospel choir blues musician Chris Wallace joined KPTZ’s Buzzy Donahue in the KPTZ Studios. More information is available here: https://centrum.org/staff/name/chris-wallace/
(Airdate July 30, 2026) Jason Ricci, friend of the station and Blues Harpist Extraordinaire, stopped by Blues Journey where he had a lot to say. Good times!
KPTZ’s Taylor Clark did part 1 of an exit interview with Port Townsend City Manager John Mauro, reviewing his (and the city’s) accomplishments since November of 2019. Part 2 will be next week.
(Airdate: July 29, 2026) Today we are speaking with Dr. Eric Wagner about his book Seabirds as Sentinels. The Pacific coast—often called the “Blue Serengeti”—is one of the most productive ecosystems on earth and an important region for seabird research. The book’s central theme is that seabirds serve as sentinels, or early-warning indicators, of the health of our marine ecosystems. Wagner takes us to two nearby islands; Protection and Destruction as we travel into auklet burrows under the cover of night.
(Airdate: July 28, 2026) Booklovers Café host Cris Wilson welcomes Patricia Henley to the program. Patricia is an author, poet, playwright, and teacher. She is best known for her novel Hummingbird House, which was a National Book Award finalist. Today Cris is going to talk to Patricia about her new collection of stories, titled Apple and Palm. This is a strong collection of stories, reminiscent of Olive Kitteridge, with an emphasis on character and setting. Port Townsend listeners will fall in love with the artistic characters of the Tansy co-op.
(Airdate: July 28, 2026) Despite the daily arrival of a few hundred day trippers, the one thing that hasn’t changed is that the slopes surrounding Heavenly Lake are still home to the Kazakhs, who’ve been grazing their sheep here for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. To supplement their income they rent out yurts to the handful of visitors who stay past sundown…
