4/3 Absalon tulip, BC mineral rights, WA lege, climate disasters, SRKW grants, Snake dams, island farming, BS detection, Edmonds debris, two islands, boat birding

 

Absalon tulip

Absalon tulip (1780)
18th-century ‘Absalon’ is intricately patterned with swirling flames of dark chocolate and chestnut on gold. It’s a true broken tulip, a Dutch Bizarre from the Hortus Bulborum.  (Old House Gardens)

First Nations' court challenge to B.C.'s mineral rights system begins today
A challenge by two First Nations against the way British Columbia grants mineral claims begins in B.C. Supreme Court on Monday morning, marking the first legal test of the province's Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act.  The Gitxaała and Ehattesaht First Nations have sued the province over its Mineral Tenures Act, which currently grants mineral claims for a nominal fee via an online system and does not include initial consultation with Indigenous people. (CBC)

Housing funds, public safety on negotiating table in final weeks of WA's legislative session
As Washington's legislative session enters its final weeks, key debates remain unsettled on public safety and health policies – as well as how much new funding the state will put toward affordable housing. Jeanie Lindsay reports. (KUOW)

Bracing for Disasters
Climate calamities will increase in BC. What can we learn from survivors? What must be done to help evacuees and save lives? A special Tyee series. Francesca Fionda reports. (The Tyee)

Another Casualty of Climate Change: Dissolved Oxygen
Vast oxygen-depleted deserts are an expected feature of our warming oceans. Lance Frazer reports. (Hakai Magazine)

NFWF Announces $1.1 Million in Grants from the Killer Whale Research and Conservation Program
The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF), together with program partners SeaWorld, BNSF Railway, the U.S. Navy, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and NOAA today announced $1,129,000 in grants to increase the availability of priority prey (Chinook salmon), reduce sound and vessel disturbance in killer whale habitat, and to monitor the health of Southern Resident killer whales in the coastal waters of Washington. The grants will generate $1,327,000 in matching contributions for a total conservation impact of more than $2.4 million. (News release)

U.S. House Republicans halt plans to breach WA's Snake River dams
Previous plans to help endangered salmon by removing four dams are likely on hold with Republicans in the majority. Nicholas K. Geranios reports. (Crosscut)

Back to the land in the islands — Part 2: Women who farm
Island farming is an experiment in sustaining a lifestyle — but much more, as young farmers look for ways to support and feed the community. Kathryn Wheeler reports. (Salish Current)

Review: The art and science of bullshit detection — skepticism in a data-driven world
A “badly needed” field guide and the subject of a free local presentation on April 13, “Calling Bullshit” primes readers with attitude and insights to help recognize what’s true and what’s not. Dean Kahn writes. (Salish Current)

Divers brave briny Edmonds entanglements to collect marine debris
Discarded fishing line, squid jigs and bait traps threaten underwater ecosystems. But this group of volunteers dove in to help. Kayla J. Dunn reports. (Everett Herald)

A tale of two islands
Eric Wagner writes: "Destruction Island in the California Current off Washington’s outer coast, and Protection Island in the Salish Sea off the north coast of the Olympic peninsula — and the thousands of rhinoceros auklets that bred on each island — roughly 13,000 on Destruction, and more than 70,000 on Protection — had indeed responded in their own ways to the northeast Pacific marine heatwave, known colloquially as The Blob." (Puget Sound Institute)

How to go birding by boat in Western Washington
...(Take) a boat birding trip from Anacortes to Vendovi Island, an island preserve located in Washington’s northeastern Salish Sea, between Lummi and Guemes islands. Naturalist and guide Stephanie Fernandez of Skagit Guided Adventures had planned our day and, over seven hours, would lead us birding while en route to Vendovi, where we could spend two hours traversing the woods, beaches and meadows across the 217 acres of this island gem.  Bryony Angell writes. (Seattle Times)

Kelp Farming: Promises, Pitfalls, and What We Still Don’t Know
Seaweed farmers promise to feed people, combat climate change, support coastal communities, and restore ocean habitat. Can kelp do it all? On April 11, join Rebecca Martone, marine ecologist and executive director of the Ocean Decade Collaborative Center for the Northeast Pacific, and expert panelists for a free, engaging discussion online on kelp farming, its promises and pitfalls. (Hakai Magazine)

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Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  332 AM PDT Mon Apr 3 2023   
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 1 PM PDT THIS AFTERNOON  THROUGH LATE TONIGHT   
TODAY  NW wind to 10 kt becoming W 15 to 25 kt in the  afternoon. Wind waves 1 ft or less building to 2 to 4 ft in the  afternoon. W swell 8 ft at 5 seconds. 
TONIGHT  NW wind 15 to 25 kt. Wind waves 2 to 4 ft. W swell  9 ft at 5 seconds. A chance of showers.

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