9/8 Beach sandwort, Roadless Rule rollback, WA wildfires, quake, icebreaker port, Musqueam appeal, wildlife trade, democracy watch

 Beach sandwort [Sound Water Stewards]

Beach sandwort Honkenya peploides
Beach sandwort forms low mounds about 10 in (25cm) high on the backshores of sandy beaches. It has small inconspicuous white or greenish white flowers that bloom May to September. This plant belongs to the pink family. It is native in the Pacific Northwest and its range extends from northern Oregon to Alaska, out the Aleutian chain, and along the Arctic shoreline to Greenland and Iceland. Honkenya peploides is also known as sea purslane. (Sound Water Stewards)

Today's top story in Salish Current: Surge of mountain lion sightings not unusual

What proposed rollback of Roadless Rule means here
The Mount Baker Snoqualmie National Forest is among areas where existing protection from road-building would be rolled back under a Trump administration proposal. Jacob O'Donnell reports. (Salish Current) 

14 Washington state wildfires contribute to smoky conditions, poor air quality
A total of 14 fires are still burning across the state. The largest include the 10,000-acre Bear Gulch fire, near Lake Cushman in the Olympic National Forest, the 10,000-acre Lower Sugarloaf Fire east of Lake Wenatchee, a 13,000-acre fire known as the Rattlesnake Fire near the Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area, and the 14,000-acre Crown Creek Fire along the upper Columbia River, east of the Colville National Forest. The Perry Fire, in the North Cascades, west of Ross Lake, has forced the closure of several areas, trails and camps. Tom Brock reports. (KIRO) 

Earthquake measuring 4.8 recorded north of Vancouver Island
A 4.8-magnitude earthquake struck off the B.C. coast between Haida Gwaii and Vancouver Island on Sunday morning. No damage was recorded, and no one reported feeling the quake. Hannah Link report. (Times Colonist) 

Coast Guard issues contract for major icebreaker port expansion in Seattle
The U.S. Coast Guard announced Tuesday that it has awarded a $137 million contract for the first phase of a project intended to allow its Seattle base to host two new heavy icebreakers. The contract, awarded to The Whiting-Turner Contracting Company, covers dredging of the Coast Guard’s Slip 36 and construction of two ship berths capable of hosting the new icebreakers, formally known as Polar Security Cutters. James Brooks reports. (Washington State Standard) 

Musqueam to appeal Cowichan Tribes ruling on Aboriginal title
The Musqueam Indian Band is the latest government to announce its plans to appeal the recent B.C. Supreme Court decision that found another First Nation government holds Aboriginal title for land and fishing rights in an area of Metro Vancouver. The ruling last month granted the Cowichan Tribes Aboriginal title over a portion of almost 7½ square kilometres of land they claimed in Richmond, B.C., as well as fishing rights along a stretch of the south arm of the Fraser River. Brenna Owen reports. (Canadian Press) 

Triaging the Global Wildlife Trade
Can we take a more systematic approach to protecting endangered species from international trade? Marina Wang reports. (bioGraphic) 

Democracy Watch

• Trump threatens Chicago with apocalyptic force (AP) 
• Republicans in Congress eager for Trump to use the military on US soil (AP) 
• White House’s review of Smithsonian content could reach into classrooms nationwide (AP) 
• "We've never seen this before": Trump's drug war looks like a real war (Axios) 

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Here's your tug weather—
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  237 AM PDT Mon Sep 8 2025    
TODAY  NW wind around 5 kt, rising to 5 to 10 kt late. Seas  around 2 ft or less. A slight chance of showers.  
TONIGHT  W wind 5 to 10 kt. Seas around 2 ft or less. Wave  Detail: NW 2 ft at 5 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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