12/19 Rising tides, baitfish, spill plans, BC coal, Columbia gillnets, tsunami dock, energy efficiency, coal futures

West Seattle (Nick Adams/Seattle Times)

Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus: SANTA JOINS IN SUPPORT FOR SAN JUAN ISLANDS NATIONAL MONUMENT

Following Monday's highest tides ever recorded in Seattle, which sent waves spilling onto 100 properties in West Seattle, city climate-change watchers say the area could be in for more of the same — or worse — in years to come. That's a scary thought for West Seattle resident Robert Porter, who said his property on Beach Drive Southwest was inundated with more waves Monday than when the so-called Hanukkah Eve storm hit in 2006.  Jack Broom and Alexa Vaughn report. Record-high tides wash in prospects for more in future  See also: Metro Vancouver storm surge a climate-change preview, expert says (with video)

If you like to watch: Laura James reports, “We have big schools of baitfish all winter in Puget Sound, and it is often very hard to capture the ‘feeling’ of diving with them on film, because they are extremely skittish. This dive was done with a rebreather (so no bubbles), which allowed me to be much less ‘scary’ to the fishes.” Afternoon wildlife break: Baitfish swirling off Seacrest  

The Washington Department of Ecology has formally adopted changes to two state rules protecting against the impacts of a potential major spill. The spill contingency plan rule sets requirements for oil spill readiness planning for oil tankers and tank vessels, commercial cargo and fish-processing vessels, passenger ships, refineries, liquid fuel pipelines and large oil-handling facilities operating in Washington.   Ecology adopts new rules enhancing protection from major oil spills

Pressure continues to mount on Port Metro Vancouver's plans to expand the region's capacity to ship coal with health care professionals joining an opposition movement spearheaded by climate activists. The B.C. Lung Association, the Public Health Association of B.C. and the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment have delivered a letter to the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority outlining their objections to coal port expansion, citing increased risk of cardiovascular disease associated with diesel fumes and coal dust generated by coal transport through local communities. Opposition to Port Metro Vancouver's coal shipping expansion grows

Washington Fish and Wildlife is considering an Oregon plan that would ban gillnetting on the main part of the Columbia and allow more fish to be allocated to recreational fishers. Wash. Officials Consider Gillnets On The Columbia River

State officials say a Coast Guard helicopter has spotted a large dock that has washed ashore in a remote section of Olympic National Park on the northwest Washington coast. Coast Guard: large dock washes ashore on WA coast

From federal gas mileage standards to Department of Energy Retrofit Ramp Up grants, the US is seeing a renaissance in energy efficiency. A 20 million grant to the City of Seattle is delivering energy solutions to residential and business communities, one of many programs in the region, leveraging rebates, incentives and funding programs. Whether 20 million is enough to wean the city off of fossil fuels is another story. Martha Baskin reports. Home for the Holidays with Energy Efficiency 365 Days a Year

The proportion of global energy supplied by coal is approaching that for oil. China and India see unabated growth in coal burning through the next five years. The surge in exports of coal from the United States to Europe should peak soon. Andy Revkin blogs: Energy Agency Sees Global Coal Boom Unabated, Europe’s Binge Temporary 


Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PST WED DEC 19 2012
GALE WARNING IN EFFECT THROUGH THIS AFTERNOON
TODAY
SE WIND 25 TO 35 KT BECOMING S 15 TO 25 KT. COMBINED SEAS 8 TO 10 FT WITH A DOMINANT PERIOD OF 13 SECONDS. SNOW IN THE
 MORNING...THEN RAIN.
TONIGHT
S WIND 10 TO 20 KT. WIND WAVES 1 TO 3 FT. W SWELL 11 FT AT 11 SECONDS. RAIN.

--
"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