6/9 Beach knotweed, tribal salmon, I-5 billboard, Skagit dams, DNR logging, grain silos, GBH hatch, crow dive-bombing, 'magnificent frigatebird,' dolphin birth, democracy watch

Beach knotweed [Sound Water Stewards]

Beach knotweed Polygonum paronychia
Beach knotweed has a low lying form with woody stems, tiny white or pale pink flowers that bloom from April to September, and 1–inch-long leaves with margins that roll under. Beach knotweed is found on coastal dunes and sandy beaches from northern California to southern Vancouver Island. It is native in the Pacific Northwest. Other common names for it are black knotweed and smartweed. (Sound Water Stewards)

Today's top story in Salish Current: Food for thought: Indian grocers stir taste buds, serve community

Northwest tribes: Treaties mean Trump can’t ax salmon funding
Northwest tribal officials say the Trump administration’s latest budget proposal would violate their treaty rights to catch salmon. Among other cutbacks, the White House’s proposed 2026 budget for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) would eliminate the Pacific Coast Salmon Recovery Fund, the leading source of money for restoring the Northwest’s struggling salmon runs. John Ryan reports. (KUOW)

WA tribe buys controversial Uncle Sam billboard off I-5
The highly contentious Uncle Sam billboard off Interstate 5 in Lewis County has a new owner: the Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Reservation. The tribe intends to take down the right-wing messages that have lingered on the 40-foot-by-13-foot sign for years. The tribe closed on the 3.5-acre property hosting the billboard for $2.5 million in cash Friday morning. Kai Uyehara reports. (Seattle Times) 

Skagit River dams relicensing process again granted extension
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission recently issued a temporary annual license to Seattle city Light to operate the dams from May 2025 until April 2026. The approved extension pushes back the date the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission will issue its notice that Seattle City Light’s application is Ready for Environmental Analysis, which is called an REA notice. The utility has requested and been approved for extensions in February 2024, January 2025 and June 2025. Emma Fletcher-Fraser reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Judge hears oral arguments in case that centers on DNR logging
Clallam Superior Court Judge Elizabeth Stanley on Friday heard oral arguments by attorneys for the Earth Law Center, the Center for Whale Research and the Orca Network and for the state Department of National Resources regarding an injunction to halt logging and related activities, specifically road construction, on DNR forest lands within the Elwha River watershed. Pamela Hunt reports. (Peninsula Daily News)

‘It’s Like Gambling’: Union Sounds Alarm on Grain Silo Explosions
Workers say safety protocols at Vancouver export terminals have slipped. ‘It will be devastating.’ Isaac Phan Nay reports. (The Tyee)

It’s hatching season for the great blue herons in downtown Olympia
Listen closely next time you’re in downtown Olympia. The downtown heronry, or nesting colony, is back. Perched high in the trees next to the Fish and Wildlife building and across from Percival Plaza, a small kingdom of nests have formed among the branches. Ann Duan reports. (Olympian)

‘Angry birds', B.C. edition: Crows dive-bomb in fierce nesting defence
It’s not malice – it’s parenting; experts explain how to avoid getting dive-bombed. Tony Trozzo reports. (100 Mile Free Press) 

Tropical bird spotted at Trial Island, far from its range in northern Mexico
A juvenile “magnificent frigatebird,” whose typical range is between northern Mexico and Peru, was photographed by Trial Island lighthouse keeper John Gillivet on the evening of May 31. Darron Kloster reports. (Times Colonist)

Video shows dolphin calf's birth and first breath at Chicago zoo, with mom's friend helping
A bottlenose dolphin at the Brookfield Zoo Chicago gave birth to a calf early Saturday morning with the help of a fellow mom. (Associated Press)

Democracy Watch

• Supreme Court allows DOGE team to access Social Security systems with data on millions of Americans (AP)
  
• Appeals court hands AP an incremental loss in its attempt to regain its access to Trump events (AP)
  
• Trump administration races to fix a big mistake: DOGE fired too many people (Washington Post)
  
• NIH scientists go public with criticism over Trump cuts (AP)
  
• DHS memo details how National Guard troops will be used for immigration enforcement (NPR)
  

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Here's your tug weather—
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  201 AM PDT Mon Jun 9 2025    
TODAY  W wind around 5 kt, rising to 5 to 10 kt this afternoon.  Seas 4 to 6 ft. Wave Detail: W 6 ft at 11 seconds.  
TONIGHT  W wind 5 to 10 kt. Seas 5 to 7 ft. Wave Detail: W 7 ft  at 11 seconds.

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"Salish Sea News & Weather" is compiled as a community service by Mike Sato. It is included as a daily feature in the Salish Current newsletter. Click here to subscribe. Questions? Email msato(at)salishseacom.com. Your email information is never shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.



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