10/12 Orcas, Lummi coal, Victoria sewage, Bainbridge stormwater

Snow geese arrive (Frank Vargas, Skagit Valley Herald)

If you like to watch: Now in their usual fall pattern, the Southern Resident orcas are happily searching for salmon down near Seattle where they entertain us as they forage and frolic (check Orca Network for the whales’ current locations) – reminding us once again how it is more relevant to observe whales in the wild than in the unnatural conditions of captivity. This new video, filmed last summer around San Juan Island by the Humane Society, captures the essence of why the orcas belong in the wild, and how very easy it is to enjoy them there. Candace Calloway Whiting blogs. The Real SeaWorld – Understanding the Captivity Controversy

“I used to travel into Bellingham and buy my sack of coal,” [Mary Helen Cagey, 94, an elder of the Lummi Indian tribe] said, standing in sensible shoes on a pebbled beach at a recent tribal news conference, talking about her girlhood of rural subsistence and occasional trips to the nearby market town. The idea that coal producers would make a comeback bid, with a huge export shipping terminal proposed at a site where she once fished, called Cherry Point, is simply wrong, she said. “It’s something that should not come about,” Ms. Cagey said. Kirk Johnson reports. Tribes Add Potent Voice Against Plan for Northwest Coal Terminals

Greater Victoria politicians are picking a fight with the provincial government over control of the sewage treatment megaproject. Mayors and councillors on the Capital Regional District's sewage committee voted Wednesday to demand additional oversight powers from the provincial government, before they pass day-to-day control of the project over to a commission of unelected experts. The cost of building the system has been estimated at $783 million. The B.C. and federal governments have promised to fund two-thirds of the cost, but only if municipal politicians move out of the way and let a seven-person panel of experts in sewage treatment, construction and financing hammer out the details. Region takes on province over controversial sewage plan  

A utility ratepayer group's fight to force the city to charge itself higher stormwater fees for its roads system has resulted in the city charging itself no stormwater fees for its roads. The City Council passed an ordinance Wednesday exempting city streets and private roads from stormwater fees. The code change was driven by a February court order, following a lawsuit by the Bainbridge Ratepayers Alliance. Tad Sooter reports. Bainbridge opts not to charge itself stormwater fees for roads

Now, your weekend tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 900 PM PDT THU OCT 11 2012
FRI
E WIND 5 TO 15 KT...BECOMING SE 10 TO 20 KT IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 1 TO 3 FT. W SWELL 3 FT AT 12 SECONDS. PATCHY FOG IN THE
 MORNING. RAIN.
FRI NIGHT
S WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 6 FT AT 12 SECONDS. SHOWERS.
SAT
S WIND 15 TO 25 KT. WIND WAVES 2 TO 4 FT. W SWELL 6 FT.
SAT NIGHT
SE WIND 10 TO 20 KT. WIND WAVES 1 TO 3 FT. W SWELL 6 FT.
SUN
SE WIND 15 TO 25 KT...BECOMING W 20 TO 25 KT IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 2 TO 4 FT. W SWELL 6 FT.

--
"Salish Sea News & Weather" is compiled as a community service by Mike Sato. To subscribe, send your name and email to: msato@salishseacom.com. Your email information is never shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Salish Sea News: Communicate, Educate, Advocate

Follow on Twitter.  

Salish Sea Communications: Truth Well Told