3/29 State budget, BC Chinook, BLM, pipe poll, coal, shellfish poison, Swinomish habitat, decaying pigs

Minnie's Beach, Patos Island (Linda Hudson)

If you like to watch: Sh*t Bureaucrats Say

For weeks, the main sticking points to a state budget solution have been a Democratic plan to delay a payment to schools by a day, and a Republican plan to skip a pension payment. Gov. Chris Gregoire recently said those issues are off the negotiating table, but there’s still no sign that lawmakers will reach an agreement before the 30-day special session ends April 10. Another special session?

First Nations from Vancouver Island and around the Fraser River want to meet with sports fishers to decide how best to protect the diminishing stocks of Fraser River-bound chinook salmon. First Nations don't want a chinook fight

“They’re loved by the people. They’re loved by the tourists that come and what we’re asking is that these lands remain natural and accessible and the local community should have a leading role in managing these lands,” said Asha Lela, chair of the Committee of Islanders for the San Juan National Conservation Area. Local groups and state representatives are pushing to put 1,000 acres of federal Bureau of Land Management property in the San Juan Islands into conservation—as either a National Conservation Area or a National Monument.  Ashley Ahearn at EarthFix reports. 1,000 Acres Up For Conservation In The San Juan Islands

A slim majority of British Columbians support a proposed $5.5-billion oilsands pipeline from Alberta to the B.C. coast, but opposition to the megaproject is growing, according to a new poll. The telephone poll of 518 British Columbians, done March 5 to 19 by Mustel Group, found 50.1 per cent were in favour and 41.7 per cent opposed. The margin of error for a poll of that size is 4.4 percentage points.  Half of B.C. residents back proposed pipeline, but opposition growing

China is expected to shape the Pacific Northwest coal export market for years to come. While a few factors could dent its demand for U.S. coal, the reality is clear: China — and other Asian nations — will be hungry for coal and could easily consume the coal shipped through the proposed Millennium Bulk Terminals export dock in Longview and two proposed terminals at Port Westward near Clatskanie. Erik Olsen in the Longview Daily News reports. Rising Chinese demand could mean coal export boom for West Coast  

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration scientists are working to prevent outbreaks of paralytic shellfish poisoning by tracking when and where red tides of toxic will happen next. The toxic algae sleep nestled in the muck at the bottom of Puget Sound so the scientists target areas where blooms have occurred in the past. Ashley Ahearn on NPR’s food blog reports. Battling 'Red Tide,' Scientists Map Toxic Algae To Prevent Shellfish Poisoning  

The Swinomish Indian Tribal Community has received a federal conservation grant it plans to use for habitat research on the “relatively untouched” Kukutali Preserve on the west side of the reservation. The tribe netted about $200,000 of the $4.2 million distributed across the U.S. The habitat research will help determine future public access to the 118 acres of tidelands, uplands and old growth forests, which includes Kiket Island and surrounding areas, and inform restoration projects to come.  Tribe receives grant for habitat research on preserve  

Pig carcasses were lowered into 300 metres of water in the Strait of Georgia as part of an experiment, using cameras in an underwater observatory, looking at the speed at which ocean animals reduce the bodies to picked-clean bones. Verena Tunnicliffe, Canada research chairwoman in deep-ocean research at the University of Victoria, is looking at differences between pig carcasses dropped in Saanich Inlet's low oxygen water and the higher oxygen water of the Strait of Georgia - vital research at a time when ocean oxygen levels are dropping. Dead pigs in a sea of science

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PDT THU MAR 29 2012
GALE WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 11 AM PDT THIS MORNING
TODAY
SW WIND 25 TO 35 KT...BECOMING S 10 TO 20 KT IN THE AFTERNOON. COMBINED SEAS 11 TO 14 FT WITH A DOMINANT PERIOD OF 11 SECONDS. RAIN IN THE MORNING...THEN SHOWERS LIKELY IN THE AFTERNOON.
TONIGHT
W SWELL 12 FT AT 11 SECONDS. S WIND 10 TO 20 KT. WIND WAVES 1 TO 3 FT. SHOWERS LIKELY.

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