10/3 Cornet Bay, no coal trains, Enbridge pipe, sewage test, Green Lake algae, Oly shores, Eco-Warriors

Cornet Bay (PHOTO: Jim Somers)

A long stretch of shoreline has been cordoned off at Cornet Bay in Deception Pass State Park while workers complete a project that will give the beach a more natural look. Work crews have spent a month removing the creosote-log bulkhead that lines more than 800 feet of shoreline adjacent to a marina, parking area and boat launch on Cornet Bay Road. In its place will be native plants that planners said will give the area a more natural look. Nathan Whalen reports. Bulkhead torn out, Cornet Bay beach at Deception Pass State Park enhanced

The Edmonds City Council has taken a stand against coal trains based on both environmental concerns and the length of trains. Council President Strom Peterson said last week that trains could halt traffic between downtown Edmonds and the city's waterfront for three to four minutes at a time, He said that such a traffic delay could keep fire trucks from reaching the Edmonds Senior Center, the Edmonds boat-launching area, and waterfront restaurants, motels and other businesses. Evan Smith reports. Edmonds rails against coal trains, citing traffic, environment  

British Columbia Premier Christy Clark has issued a veiled threat to withhold electricity needed to operate controversial oil sands pipelines if the projects do not meet her demands. Ms. Clark, when asked Tuesday what steps her province could take to block projects like Enbridge Inc.’s Northern Gateway, went beyond pointing to the 60 regulatory permits B.C. could deny. B.C. could withhold electricity from proposed pipelines, Premier suggests  

If Peter Maier is right, sewage treatment plants across the country are performing a crucial scientific test incorrectly, resulting in widespread pollution of lakes, rivers and streams in violation of the federal Clean Water Act. And they’re doing it with the express approval of the federal government. At the heart of the engineer’s contention: Our sewage-treatment plants fail to clean up urine. Robert McClure reports. One Man’s Crusade To Stop Water Pollution By Getting Sewage Testing Right

Add Seattle's popular Green Lake to the list of Puget Sound-area lakes hit by toxic algae blooms. Seattle Parks and Recreation Acting Superintendent Christopher Williams has closed the lake to swimming, wading and "wet-water boating" activities like sailboarding. Parks officials also cautioned dog owners Tuesday not to let dogs drink from the lake while the bloom persists. The lake remains open to fishing and boating, since people engaging in those activities are unlikely to ingest the water. The parks department says the closure will last until the algae bloom completes its life cycle - which could be weeks or months.  Toxic algae: No swimming at Seattle's Green Lake  

A Port of Olympia representative told the Olympia City Council on Tuesday that “it was clear that we weren’t listened to” by the city’s planning commission when it drafted a shoreline plan that would severely restrict development at the port. Mike Reid, the port’s senior manager for business development, objected to a proposal that would allow no new commercial development within 100 feet of the port’s shoreline along all the north and most of the east side of the port peninsula. The plan would cut through the port’s plans to expand the Swantown Marina on East Bay with a boater’s village with marine-related shops and perhaps a restaurant. The planning commission’s plan also would allow no new commercial development within 50 feet of the Budd Inlet shoreline on the isthmus, affecting the yacht club as well as Bayview Thriftway and the Oyster House. And on West Bay, no new commercial development would be allowed within 50 feet of the shoreline for some uses, 100 feet for others. No new industrial uses would be allowed. Affected property owners include Hardel Mutual Plywood Corp., Dunlap Towing Co. and the West Bay Marina. Port of Olympia officials express frustration over shoreline plan  

A Vancouver Island environmental group has set up a legal defence fund to go toward court costs arising from activism. The Eco-Warriors Legal Trust, set up by the Vancouver Island Community Forest Action Network, is a resource for those opposing tankers, pipelines and the oilsands, said spokeswoman Zoe Blunt. The trust is being administered by the law firm Underhill, Boies, Parker. The aim is to raise $5,000, Blunt said. Vancouver Island eco group gets legal aid fund

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PDT WED OCT 3 2012
TODAY
NE WIND TO 10 KT...BECOMING E 10 TO 20 KT IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 1 TO 3 FT. NW SWELL 5 FT AT 9 SECONDS.
TONIGHT
E WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. NW SWELL 3 FT AT 8 SECONDS.
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