5/16 Hood Canal easement, fish in warming oceans, Jpod, TMDL vs PIC, BC pipes, BP fears

PHOTO: Laurie MacBride

Laurie MacBride in Eye on Environment writes: "When life hands us lemons, we’re told to make lemonade. So what do you do when nature knocks down your beloved lilac tree? You fill the house with flowers, make photographs, and feed your friends! We awoke last Sunday morning to a changed view from our living room window: an open vista where the lilac tree had stood. Overly tall and top heavy with blossoms, its two largest trunks had fallen over during the night in the heavy rain and wind..." Lilac Lemonade  

The Navy has proposed a conservation easement on state lands in Hood Canal, a proposal that could kill the controversial pit-to-pier project. The conservation easement, which would apply to subtidal lands in Jefferson County, would effectively preclude new commercial or industrial construction that would extend from the shoreline, according to information provided by the Navy and Washington Department of Natural Resources.... The easement will be a strip of underwater area from the Hood Canal bridge south to a point just south of the Jefferson-Mason County line near Eldon. In most areas, the protected bedlands will be defined by their depths, from 18 feet below the average low tide to 70 feet down. More than 4,000 acres are covered by the easement. Commercial projects that require the use of subtidal lands — such as a new industrial pier or marina — would be unable to acquire the necessary leases as a result of the agreement. Dan Baskins, spokesman for a group hoping to develop a 1,000-foot pier near Shine in Jefferson County, said the group had not been informed about the proposed easement....  Baskins said he expects that the pit-to-pier project can still move forward, because Public Lands Commissioner Peter Goldmark, who heads the DNR, has a duty to balance public and private interests. Goldmark must recognize that the company, Thorndyke Resource, has followed the required approval process in good faith, he said, and the rules cannot be changed at the end.  Chris Dunagan reports. Navy easement could end controversial pit-to-pier project

Climate change is gradually altering the fish that end up on ice in seafood counters around the world, according to a new study. "The composition of the [global] fish catch includes more and more fish from the warmer areas, and cold-water fish are getting more rare, because the temperatures are increasing," says Daniel Pauly at the University of British Columbia, a co-author of the study. As oceans warm — a result of climate change — fish maintain their preferred water temperature by moving away from the equator and toward the poles. Richard Harris reports. Go fish (somewhere else): Warming oceans altering catches  

From Howie Garrett and Susan Berta at Orca Network: "J pod appeared off Victoria [Wednesday]. They looked around and headed east, then north along San Juan Island. They shuffled between Lime Kiln and Henry Island all afternoon, and were last seen heading north up Haro Strait. None were missing since they were seen last more than two months ago, and no new babies were seen. It's a relief to know they are back, although about a month later than normal." Orca Network http://orcanetwork.org/

When it comes to cleaning up bacterial pollution in Puget Sound, we seem to have a clash — or at least some redundancy — in the methods we use. In Kitsap County, water-quality officials are saying studies conducted by the Washington Department of Ecology, which allocated total maximum daily loads (TMDLs), have not been much help in attacking the local pollution problem. That’s because the approach developed by Kitsap County, called the Pollution Identification and Correction (PIC) Program, has been highly successful in tracking down and cleaning up bacterial pollution. Chris Dunagan blogs. Embracing a new approach to nonpoint pollution?  

Christy Clark’s stunning election victory has raised the likelihood that one or both of the oilsands pipeline projects to the B.C. coast will be built, supporters and opponents of the proposals said Wednesday. While Clark set five tough conditions for the projects involving environmental protection, aboriginal rights and financial benefits, the New Democratic Party’s Adrian Dix was a clear opponent. Kennedy Stewart, NDP MP for Burnaby Douglas, called the election result a “big game changer.” Peter O'Neil and Scott Simpson report.  Even opponents think B.C. oil pipelines more likely after Liberal victory

BBC business editor Robert Peston has learned that BP feels its financial recovery is in jeopardy because the compensation system is being abused. The financial burden of paying fictitious and inflated claims may even make BP a takeover target, it fears. BP wants Prime Minister David Cameron to intervene over the escalating cost of compensating US companies for the Gulf of Mexico oil disaster in 2010. BP to ask for Cameron's help as oil spill costs escalate

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 244 AM PDT THU MAY 16 2013
TODAY
SE WIND TO 10 KT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 5 FT AT 9 SECONDS. A CHANCE OF SHOWERS.
TONIGHT
W WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 4 FT AT 10 SECONDS. SLIGHT CHANCE OF SHOWERS.
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