6/4 BC spill response, state budget, PS recovery, sewage sludge, ecosystem values, mill toxins, farm bill

New blog: “Last month the Kitsap Sun set up their paywall and cut Puget Sound readers off from reporting by Christopher Dunagan, one of the few remaining environmental journalists covering Puget Sound water quality and habitat issues...” My Newsroom Lies Over The Paywall

Internal government audits of the Canadian Coast Guard's capacity to monitor and respond to a marine oil spill found a system that was outdated, disorganized and in need of an overhaul. But many of the substantial recommendations in the reports have languished, despite pressure on Ottawa to deal with concerns over a potential increase in oil tanker traffic off the British Columbia coast. Two 2010 audits "each found a number of significant deficiencies in the program's preparedness capability, and questioned the capacity of the [Canadian Coast Guard] to respond to a significant marine pollution event," said a March 2012 draft report for the federal Fisheries department. Canada's offshore oil spill response outdated, audits found  

With just over a week left in an overtime legislative session, negotiations on the state budget continue, but without a deal in sight and limited activity at the Capitol, one lawmaker on Monday said the possibility of a second overtime session was more and more likely.... Lawmakers are in the midst of a 30-day special session that began May 13 and is set to end next Tuesday. They face a $1.2 billion budget shortfall for the two-year cycle that ends in the middle of 2015. That doesn’t count an additional approximate $1 billion that lawmakers are seeking in response to a court-ordered requirement that the state spend more on its basic education system. Rachel La Corte reports. State lawmakers still talking and working

Representatives Denny Heck and Derek Kilmer have co-founded the Congressional Puget Sound Recovery Caucus. The caucus is the only Congressional working group devoted exclusively to promoting Puget Sound cleanup efforts, and will build on the legacy left by former Congressman Norm Dicks, a longtime advocate for the health of the Puget Sound....In the immediate future, the caucus will focus on promoting the three region-wide Puget Sound recovery priorities: preventing pollution from urban stormwater runoff, protecting and restoring habitat, and restoring and re-opening shellfish beds. Representatives Jim McDermott, Adam Smith, Rick Larsen, and Suzan DelBene have also signed up as charter members of the Puget Sound Recovery Caucus. Heck and Kilmer Announce Launch of Congressional Puget Sound Recovery Caucus  

A ban on using sewage sludge as fertilizer could soon be overturned, as Greater Victoria politicians wrestle with how to handle the leftover waste from the planned sewage treatment megaproject. The Capital Regional District’s committee of the whole will debate the issue Wednesday, as it votes on whether to authorize an economic, social and environmental review on biosolid sludge. Rob Shaw reports. CRD might budge on sludge; fertilizer ban reconsidered  

Clallam County has somewhere between $12 billion and $45 billion worth of non-tangible ecosystem services, a economic consultant told the three county commissioners Monday. Ecosystem services include such aspects as flood protection, recreational value, aesthetic value, storm prevention, waste treatment, climate stability, water filtration and other natural systems.... The ecosystem services analysis is part of a broader effort to study marine bluff erosion between Port Angeles and Sequim. The Port Angeles-based Coastal Watershed Institute received a $320,000 grant from the Environmental Protection Agency last year to study the bluffs under a Puget Sound Marine and Nearshore Protection and Restoration grant program. Rob Ollikainen reports. Clallam commissioners briefed on concept of ecosystem valuation  

The buildings being demolished at the former Kimberly-Clark Mill site have higher than expected levels of contamination and the toxic debris is being ground into the dirt on the site, a City Council member found. A state Department of Ecology official confirmed last week that the mill buildings have significantly more contamination than what is acceptable by state law. Kimberly-Clark’s demolition team is spreading some of the contaminated debris over the site. Furthermore, the city has known about the issue since early April, said the official, Andy Kallus, Ecology’s toxics cleanup manager for the site. Michael Whitney reports. Mill site toxin levels higher than expected  

Local farmers and agricultural advocates largely supported the newest versions of the 2013 farm bill on Wednesday at a round-table discussion with U.S. Rep. Suzan DelBene. But some had major concerns over specific portions of the proposed bill, which include major changes for the dairy industry, cuts to the food stamp program and more cuts to a program that helps preserve farmland. The five-year bill reauthorizes federal farm and nutrition programs, including crop insurance, research, conservation and energy programs and supplemental nutrition programs. Mark Stayton reports. Skagit farmers weigh in on Farm Bill  

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PDT TUE JUN 4 2013
TODAY
NW WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 1 TO 2 FT. W SWELL 3 FT AT 9 SECONDS. PATCHY FOG THIS MORNING.
TONIGHT
W WIND 10 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 1 TO 3 FT. W SWELL 4 FT AT 11 SECONDS.
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