11/21 Octopus, zero-emission cars, ocean plastics, yelloweye detox, Stikine River

Giant Pacific octopus [Ratha Grimes/Flickr]

Searching for the World's Largest Octopus in the Waters of West Seattle
On a recent Sunday, two divers at a small cove in West Seattle pulled on their suits, air tanks, and masks. With their fins in their hands, they walked slowly toward the edge of Puget Sound, ready to descend dozens of feet into the water's foggy depths in search of the largest octopus in the world—the giant Pacific octopus. Jerry Dollar, a seasoned amateur diver who organized the expedition through the Emerald Sea Dive Club, offered Andrew Creighton and Mark Newland some last-minute advice. Keep an eye out for piles of clam and crab shells, because that may indicate you're next to their den, he told them. Look carefully through piles of rocks and in the Honey Bear, a shipwrecked boat about 35 feet under water. And don't skip the shallow areas. Hallie Golden reports. (Pacific Standard)

Every new car sold in 2040 will be zero-emission, B.C. government says
All new cars and trucks sold in B.C. in the year 2040 will have to be zero-emission vehicles, the premier promised Tuesday. John Horgan said the government is planning to introduce legislation in the spring to gradually phase in targets for the sale of electric cars and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles and will take steps to make those vehicles cheaper. (CBC)

North Kitsap brothers plan an ocean-saving road trip down the Pacific Coast
For Hans Schippers, the jolting moment was paddling on a surfboard through a patch of floating plastics — a collection of fishing debris and other chunks — off Oahu. For his brother Nick, it was paddling past a Doritos bag floating in the surf at La Push. “It’s just crazy to see the amount of junk that’s in the water,” Nick said. “It’s not getting better, it just keeps getting worse and worse and worse. It takes awareness to change that.” The Ocean Conservancy estimates that every year, 8 million metric tons of plastic go into oceans. The brothers have seen that plastics problem up close — while surfing off Hawaii, or on the Washington or Oregon coasts — and they've decided to do something about it.... Within the next few weeks, they’ll pack up, board their bus and rumble out of Poulsbo in pursuit of an ambitious goal: speaking to 10,000 kids in schools about how they use plastics and how those plastics can end up in oceans and hurt the world they live in. Nathan Piling reports. (Kitsap Sun)

Dead sperm whale found in Indonesia had ingested '6kg of plastic'
A dead sperm whale that washed ashore in a national park in Indonesia had nearly 6kg (13 lbs) of plastic waste in its stomach, park officials say. Items found included 115 drinking cups, four plastic bottles, 25 plastic bags and two flip-flops. The carcass of the 9.5m (31ft) mammal was found in waters near Kapota Island in the Wakatobi National Park late on Monday. (BBC)

Fish can detox too -- but not so well, when it comes to mercury
By examining the tissues at a subcellular level, researchers discovered yelloweye rockfish were able to immobilize several potentially toxic elements within their liver tissues (cadmium, lead, and arsenic) thus preventing them from interacting with sensitive parts of the cell. But mercury was found in concentrations known to be toxic - and most of it was in sensitive sites, such as mitochondria and enzymes, within liver cells. (Science Daily)

Postcard from the boundary waters
The staggering wilderness at the mouth of the Stikine River just outside of Wrangell, Alaska, takes no time to announce itself. Samantha Larson reports. (Crosscut)


Now, your tug weather--



West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  305 AM PST Wed Nov 21 2018   

SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT THROUGH THIS AFTERNOON   

TODAY  SE wind 15 to 25 kt easing in the afternoon. Wind waves  2 to 4 ft subsiding late. W swell 5 ft at 8 seconds, building to  8 ft at 9 seconds. Rain. 

TONIGHT  S wind 10 kt or less. Wind waves 1 ft or less. W swell  8 ft at 12 seconds. A chance of rain. 

THU  SE wind rising to 20 to 30 kt, and then easing and becoming  SW late. Wind waves building to 3 to 5 ft, and then subsiding late.  W swell 8 ft at 11 seconds. Rain. 

THU NIGHT  SW wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell  8 ft at 9 seconds. 

FRI  SW wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell 9 to  10 ft at 11 seconds. 

FRI NIGHT  W wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell  9 ft at 11 seconds. 

SAT  SE wind 10 to 20 kt. Wind waves 1 to 3 ft. W swell 6 to 8  ft. 

SUN  E wind 10 to 20 kt. Wind waves 1 to 3 ft. W swell 8 ft.


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