10/19 Climate, Enbridge, Bainbridge sewer, Point Ruston, La Conner boardwalk, salt marshes

Oh,in case you wondered. Cliff Mass writes: “The atmospheric flow pattern is changing in a big way, developing a deep trough over the eastern Pacific, and driving much colder air south...and I mean south.  The Cascades will get its first real snowfall starting on Monday and then the white stuff will push southward towards the Sierras.  The snow level will drop sufficiently that even our lower passes could get covered with a few inches of the white stuff. “  Snow and Cold Returns to the Northwest and California

One big topic largely missing from this year’s election debate is climate change. In a year of catastrophic wildfires, record heat waves and blistering droughts, it’s unusual for candidates in any race to talk about clean energy as a solution to not only the jobs crisis but climate change. In Washington State the governor’s race gets about as close as any race to talking about the issues. Martha Baskin at Green Acre Radio reports. A Governor’s Race Where Clean Energy Is Touted As An Answer to the Jobs Crisis. The Climate Crisis? Not Much Talk About That  And from Bonnie Stewart at EarthFix: Presidential Candidates Not Focused On The Environment

B.C.'s environment minister says the company behind the proposed Northern Gateway pipeline has not yet instilled confidence in the provincial government that the project will be safe. Terry Lake said Enbridge is making lots of promises about how it would mitigate environmental risks, but is so far short on providing solid evidence and action.  Enbridge not impressing B.C. government on pipeline safety    Meanwhile: Tory MPs on pipeline route put their faith in project’s review process

The city of Bainbridge launched the design phase this week of a project to prevent sewer spills in Eagle Harbor. The City Council awarded a $300,000 contract to Carollo Engineers on Wednesday to develop a 30 percent design for replacing corroded sewer pipes along the north shore of the bay. Three sewage mains carry untreated sewage beneath the beach to the city's wastewater treatment plant on Donald Place, east of the ferry terminal. A discharge pipe transports treated sewage to Puget Sound. Two of the 30-year-old sewage mains have failed since 2003. A leak in 2009 dumped more than 400,000 gallons of untreated sewage into the harbor. Tad Sooter reports. Bainbridge starts design work on sewer pipe replacement  

On Thursday, representatives from the Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and Point Ruston, LLC (Point Ruston) finalized an agreement to complete the cleanup and remediation of more than 18 acres of state-owned aquatic lands contaminated by nearly 100 years of industrial operations at the former American Smelting and Refining Company (Asarco) site. Point Ruston is undertaking the redevelopment of this 97-acre site, which is currently one of the state’s largest development projects with nearly one million square feet of commercial and retail space and 1,200 residential units being developed on this nearly one-mile-long waterfront property. Over the last four years, DNR and Point Ruston engaged in various aspects of the cleanup of the aquatic lands at this site, which is situated along Commencement Bay at the southern end of Puget Sound.  DNR and Point Ruston Reach Agreement to Help Clean Up Puget Sound

Some children don't have the opportunity to take an autumnal hike in the forest. So Thursday, staff from the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest visited the students of Horizon Elementary School on W. Casino Road in south Everett. Seattle-based EarthCorps volunteers were there, too, hosting a work party for fourth- and fifth-grade students in the woods and wetlands adjacent to the school yard. Gale Fiege reports.  Hands-on approach to critical habitats  

State, county and town of La Conner officials gathered after a ceremony Thursday near Gilkey Square to kick off the start of the first phase of a project to build a 2,780-foot-long boardwalk along La Conner’s waterfront. The first phase of five will be about 700 to 750 feet long, starting at Gilkey Square and continuing south along the Swinomish Channel waterfront. The first phase is estimated to cost about $800,000, with the majority of that being paid for with $750,000 in state funding. Building the boardwalk  

Salt marshes have been disintegrating and dying over the past two decades along the U.S. Eastern seaboard and other highly developed coastlines, without anyone fully understanding why. This week in the journal Nature, MBL Ecosystems Center scientist Linda Deegan and colleagues report that nutrients -- such as nitrogen and phosphorus from septic and sewer systems and lawn fertilizers -- can cause salt-marsh loss.  Why Are U.S. Eastern Seaboard Salt Marshes Falling Apart?   

Now, your weekend tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PDT FRI OCT 19 2012
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 11 AM PDT THIS MORNING
TODAY
SW WIND 15 TO 25 KT...BECOMING W 10 TO 15 KT IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 2 TO 4 FT...SUBSIDING TO 1 TO 2 FT. W SWELL 7
 FT AT 10 SECONDS. SHOWERS LIKELY THIS MORNING...THEN A CHANCE OF SHOWERS IN THE AFTERNOON.
TONIGHT
W WIND 15 TO 25 KT. WIND WAVES 2 TO 4 FT. W SWELL 5 FT AT 9 SECONDS. A CHANCE OF SHOWERS.
SAT
W WIND 10 TO 20 KT. WIND WAVES 1 TO 3 FT. W SWELL 6 FT AT 8 SECONDS...BUILDING TO 8 FT AT 9 SECONDS IN THE AFTERNOON. A
 CHANCE OF SHOWERS.
SAT NIGHT
W WIND 10 KT...BECOMING S AFTER MIDNIGHT. WIND WAVES 1 FT. W SWELL 8 FT.
SUN
SE WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 8 FT.
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