11/30 Vic sewer, climate summit, orcas, BNSF spill, BC LNG, karst, fishers, water trade, pay-to-read

Mr. Floatie is engaged (KCTS9)

Victoria's Royal Flush: Lack of Sewage Treatment Still Creating a Cross-Border Stink
After three decades of promises, Victoria, British Columbia, is still pumping raw sewage into shared waters and is nowhere near a treatment solution. In November, heavy rains hit Vancouver Island, and the beaches in and around Victoria, British Columbia, became health hazards. Storm water and sewage overflowed, which happens in Seattle, too. But in Victoria, it’s a more urgent situation because the metropolitan area of 340,000 citizens doesn’t treat its sewage. This is not the vision that people have of Victoria, the elegant and proper capital of British Columbia. “Most people, when they visit Victoria and they are told we don’t have sewage treatment, are shocked,” says Jim McIssac, who heads up the T Buck Suzuki Environmental Foundation. Jenny Cunningham reports. (KCTS)

Bill Gates to commit billions for clean energy
Bill Gates will announce the creation of a multibillion-dollar clean-energy fund Monday at the opening of a Paris summit intended to forge a global accord to cut planet-warming emissions, according to people with knowledge of the plans. The fund, which one of the sources described as the largest such effort in history, is meant to pay for research and development of new clean-energy technologies. It will include contributions from other billionaires and philanthropies, and a commitment by the United States to double its budget for clean-energy research and development, according to the sources, who asked not to be identified. Coral Davenport reports. (NY Times) See also: Gov. Inslee takes climate-change campaign to Paris conference  Hal Bernton reports. (Seattle Times) And: Olympia mayor headed to Paris for climate summit  (Olympian)

Vancouver's Climate March takes over downtown with thousands
British Columbians turned out in the thousands to walk in Vancouver's Global Climate March. The grassroots movement was led by various environmental groups and First Nations. (CBC) See also: Gregor Robertson talks climate change strategy with Justin Trudeau in Paris  (CBC)

Killer whale salmon catches all in the family, B.C. study finds
A single salmon may represent a mere morsel to a killer whale, but it is still worth sharing with the family, according to a federal Fisheries study of B.C.’s northern resident orcas. “We watched these animals take salmon, break them apart and then share them with one another,” said Brianna Wright, a federal fisheries technician with the Pacific Biological Station in Nanaimo. “That increases your overall fitness because your DNA is shared with everyone and is being passed on. You’re helping your relatives to reproduce and survive.” Speaking at a weekend marine mammal symposium at the University of B.C., Wright noted that neither sex of the killer whales leaves the matriarchical line into which they are born. “It’s highly unusual,” she said. “They’re one of the most … stay-with-family groups of animals that exist.” Larry Pynn reports. (Vancouver Sun)

Deal cuts BNSF’s potential hazardous spill fines by 90 percent
Burlington Northern Santa Fe would be fined $71,700 for failing to timely report several hazardous materials spills, including two in Everett, under a settlement reached with Utilities and Transportation Commission staff. Under the proposed deal, commissioners would suspend $40,000 of the penalty as long as the company commits no new violations of the statewide accident reporting rules in the next year. A final order accepting the agreement and imposing the penalty could be issued by the commission before the end of the year. The proposed penalty would be a fraction of the $700,000 in potential fines the company originally faced following an investigation of 14 spills which occurred between Nov. 1, 2014 and Feb. 24, 2015. Jerry Cornfield reports. (Everett Herald)

Malahat First Nation's new leadership mulls LNG plant
It is still unclear what a new Malahat First Nation chief and council will mean for a contentious floating liquefied natural gas plant proposed for its land on Saanich Inlet. A few weeks after electing Caroline Harry as chief, the First Nation isn’t saying much about any new direction or concern it has about the project that was undertaken in partnership with Steelhead LNG by the previous leadership. Malahat chief executive officer Lawrence Lewis said the new chief and council are being briefed. Andrew Duffy reports. (Times Colonist) See also: B.C. LNG sector opposes fast increase in carbon tax Gordon Hoekstra reports. (Vancouver Sun)

Inside a fragile landscape
A network of magnificent canyons of marble and limestone known as karst dot B.C.’s coastline — and advocates worry logging is putting them in danger. Justine Hunter reports. (Globe and Mail)

Endangered fisher to be reintroduced into Cascade Mountains
A weasel-like predator that disappeared from Washington state decades ago will soon be reintroduced to the Cascade Mountains. State and federal wildlife officials are preparing to re-establish fishers into Mount Rainier and North Cascades national parks and surrounding areas as part of an effort to restore the state-listed endangered animals to their previous range. The dark brown forest-dwelling mammals historically were found throughout much of the forested areas of the state. Phuong Le reports. (Associated Press)

Cantwell measure allows more irrigation in return for fish, land protections
Getting U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell’s bill through committee was definitely a milestone — but whether it marked progress forward toward a more rational and cooperative future or back toward a discredited past will get you an argument. Either way, S. 1694, the Yakima Basin Water Enhancement Project Phase III Act of 2015, sponsored by Cantwell and co-sponsored by Sen. Patty Murray, has been passed by the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, a significant step toward enactment. Daniel Jack Chasan reports. (Crosscut)

Can we be persuaded to pay for online news?
Got any idea of how to make money from news in the online era? Well prepare for the media giants to beat a path to your door, as they struggle with plunging print advertising revenues and an audience that seems to think news should be free. Rory Cellan-Jones reports. (BBC)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PST MON NOV 30 2015
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT THROUGH LATE TUESDAY NIGHT
TODAY
SE WIND 15 TO 25 KT. WIND WAVES 2 TO 4 FT. W SWELL 7 FT AT 15 SECONDS. AREAS OF FOG IN THE MORNING. A CHANCE OF RAIN IN THE AFTERNOON.
TONIGHT
SE WIND 15 TO 25 KT EASING TO 10 TO 20 KT AFTER MIDNIGHT. WIND WAVES 1 TO 4 FT. W SWELL 9 FT AT 14 SECONDS BUILDING TO SW 11 FT AT 11 SECONDS. RAIN LIKELY.
--
"Salish Sea News & Weather" is compiled as a community service by Mike Sato. To subscribe, send your name and email to msato@salishseacom.com. Your email information is never shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.

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9/22 Forage fish, greenhouse gas, climate myth, El Nino, Shell train, BC fish farm, BC LNG, old growth logging

Forage fish (Paul Dabill/Pew Trusts)

How to Identify a Forage Fish — and Why We Need To
Forage fish are increasingly being recognized as an important part of the marine ecosystem. By studying and setting catch limits on forage fish, managers can reduce the risk of population crashes for commercially valuable fish. Ted Morton writes. (Pew Charitable Trusts)

New blog: Holy Father the Chemist
"There have been some strange twists and turns in religiosity the past few weeks perhaps foreshadowing Pope Francis’ visit to our country this week. No doubt Kentucky county auditor Kim Davis is both deeply religious and an upstanding civil servant but not to choose one’s religious faith and resign from one’s sworn duties as a civil servant when it comes in conflict makes a mockery of both the faith she holds and the duties of the office she had sworn to perform…."

State moves to limit greenhouse gases
The state Department of Ecology on Monday proposed capping greenhouse gases from the state’s 35 largest emitters, rolling out a new rule-making process months after Gov. Jay Inslee failed to get legislation passed on his ambitious cap-and-trade plan. The agency began writing a rule to limit — and reduce over time — the amount of heat-trapping gases from the state’s largest industrial facilities, including power plants, refineries and landfills. Ecology officials said the rule would apply to facilities emitting 100,000 metric tons of greenhouse gases a year, which would capture about 60 percent of the state’s overall carbon emissions. Those that don’t comply could face penalties like those used to enforce other regulations. Phuong Le reports. (Associated Press)

Stephen Hume: Another climate myth debunked  
Mention global warming anywhere in a column and the inbox erupts with angry, condescending and dismissive messages from readers claiming that the planet has been cooling — or, at least, not warming — since 1998. But new research by a team of scientists at Stanford University, just published in the Springer science journal Climatic Change, finds that this so-called “hiatus” in global warming over the last 17 years never happened. (Vancouver Sun)

B.C. coast should brace for ‘monster’ El Nino year: UVic professor
The “monster” El Nino weather system expected to hit Canada’s West Coast later this fall and winter could lead to higher tides, flooding and erosion in low-lying coastal areas, says a professor at the University of Victoria. Ian Walker’s warning comes out of part of a larger study by a group of researchers from five countries bordering the Pacific who looked into El Nino and La Nina weather systems. The study was published this week in the journal Nature Geoscience. Kevin Drews reports. (Canadian Press)

Public comment period opens on EIS for Shell project
Skagit County and the state Department of Ecology are seeking public comment about the scope of the upcoming environmental impact statement on Shell Puget Sound Refinery’s plans to transport crude oil by rail. Shell has proposed building a facility that would unload crude oil from up to six trains per week. The oil would be refined in Anacortes. Comments are being accepted from until Nov. 5, more than double the 21 days required for an EIS. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Protesters threaten to renew blockade in B.C. fish farm dispute
Protesters who had been attempting to block a fish farm on Vancouver Island say they will return to their camp unless the Norwegian company behind the site removes its docks and equipment, as protesters had expected. Protesters who call themselves the Yaakswiis Warriors said representatives from Cermaq, an aquaculture company with operations in Canada, Chile and Norway, recently promised to remove the installation at a site near Ahousaht, B.C., on Monday morning. A small group of opponents had been blockading the site, located north of Tofino, since Sept. 9, citing potential environmental damage that could result from the plant. Wendy Stueck reports. (Globe and Mail)

LNG exports will impede fishing rights: First Nations
The Allied Tribes of Lax Kw’alaams are claiming title to Lelu Island and Flora Bank in the Port of Prince Rupert, arguing in a court filing that a proposal to export liquefied natural gas would interfere with aboriginal fishing rights. Pacific NorthWest LNG, led by Malaysia’s state-owned Petronas, is seeking to build an $11.4-billion export terminal on Lelu Island in northwestern British Columbia. The island is located next to Flora Bank, which contains eelgrass vital for nurturing juvenile salmon in the Skeena River estuary. Brent Jang reports. (Globe and Mail)

Planned logging of old-growth B.C. forest “shameful,” could spark blockades, say environmentalists  
The B.C. government has approved a permit for logging on one of eight planned “cutblock” areas in the central Walbran Valley on Vancouver Island, which an environmental group says could reignite the war in the woods from the 1990s. “This type of old-growth forest is simply too rare to destroy, and the fact the government isn’t responding to this crisis is shameful,” Wilderness Committee campaigner Torrance Coste said in a news release from the group. The area in question was not protected when more than 16,000 hectares of forests were placed off limits to logging in the Carmanah Walbran Provincial Park created in 1993 following protests and blockades. Gordon Hoekstra reports. (Vancouver Sun)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 230 AM PDT TUE SEP 22 2015
TODAY
SE WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 1 OR 2 FT. W SWELL 4 FT AT 9 SECONDS.
TONIGHT
SE WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 1 OR 2 FT. W SWELL 4 FT AT 9 SECONDS.

--
"Salish Sea News & Weather" is compiled as a community service by Mike Sato. To subscribe, send your name and email to msato@salishseacom.com. Your email information is never shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.

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9/21 "S.O.S' Act, B'ham waterfront, BC highway, no log, killing birds, BC LNG, Shell drill, Gov's Pt

Biggs killer whales (Pacific Wild)

If you like to watch: Bigg's killer whales prey on Stellar sea lions
8/25/15 Outer Coast field cam. Check out the live video of the Great Bear Rain forest, too. (Pacific Wild)

Puget Sound 'S.O.S.' Act announced by congressmen
…. Congressmen Derek Kilmer and Denny Heck decided the Sound needs emergency help. At the 23rd Salmon Homecoming on Saturday morning, they announced their plan to present a new bill to Congress, called PUGET SOS. They will introduce it to the U.S. House next week…. The bill would define Puget Sound as a nationally significant body of water under the Clean Water Act. It would create a Puget Sound Recovery Program Office in the EPA. It also protects the future of tribal treaty fishing rights. Alison Morrow reports. (KING)

Massive overhaul of Bellingham waterfront underway
After two decades of planning, some of the most visible cleanup projects along Bellingham’s contaminated waterfront are making progress. From dredging to demolition, hundreds of workers are currently preparing downtown sites near the former Georgia-Pacific Corp. pulp and tissue operations for rebuilding, which could start within a few years. The efforts represent tens of millions of dollars in projects planned for and approved by the Port of Bellingham, city of Bellingham, Washington state Department of Ecology, and other agencies, and represent one of the largest waterfront cleanup efforts in the state. Samantha Wohlfeil reports. (Bellingham Herald)

B.C. to study highway connection to Sunshine Coast
The B.C. government plans to study the feasibility of a highway or bridge connection to the province's Sunshine Coast, says Transportation Minister Todd Stone. Right now, the only methods to travel from the Lower Mainland to the coastal region northwest of Vancouver is by air or by water — mainly ferry services. (CBC) See also: Fixed-link study: "everything is on the table"  Martha Perkins reports. (Bowen Island Undercurrent)

Logging protesters win temporary victory on B.C.'s Sunshine Coast http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/logging-protest-sunshine-coast-1.3235878
Protesters fighting plans to log an old-growth forest on the Sunshine Coast are celebrating a temporary victory after construction of a logging road was halted temporarily. The protesters, who have set up camp near Roberts Creek, say the area is an important bear habitat that will be destroyed if the trees come down. Hans Penner has been taking turns blocking access to a service road in the Dakota Creek area of Mount Elphinstone, where the government has plans to auction off 53 hectares of old-growth timber, including ancient balsam, hemlock and yellow cedar. (CBC)

Killing cormorants to save salmon: 11,000 in crosshairs of controversial program
EAST SAND ISLAND, COLUMBIA RIVER ESTUARY — Shots ring out — boom, boom, boom, boom — then there’s a splash: government agents gunning for double-crested cormorants have hit their mark again. Federal agents have stalked this tiny uninhabited island with night-vision goggles and silencers, blasting birds on the nest. They have oiled more than 5,000 eggs to suffocate the embryos within. And now, they have taken to the water, firing at double-crested cormorants with shotguns under a federal program intended to boost juvenile salmon and steelhead survival. They killed more than 500 cormorants in just the past week, including five Brandt’s cormorants not intended to be targeted. Under the controversial four-year federal cormorant culling program under way since Memorial Day, federal agents could eventually kill as many as 11,000 adult double-crested cormorants and destroy even more nests. Lynda Mapes reports. (Seattle Times)

Lax Kw’alaams First Nation moves to veto LNG plan
The Lax Kw’alaams First Nation is seeking aboriginal title to Lelu Island and Flora Bank, creating a legal obstacle for a Malaysian-led consortium that wants to build an $11.4-billion terminal to export liquefied natural gas from British Columbia. The aboriginal group will file a notice of civil claim to launch the legal action (this) week in the B.C. Supreme Court, Lax Kw’alaams Mayor Garry Reece said in an interview on Friday. Brent Jang reports. (Globe and Mail)

Shell report says Alaska oil exploration program brings $172.7 million to Puget Sound communities
Shell Oil, preparing to return its offshore Arctic drilling fleet to Puget Sound as early as next month, has released a study saying that this year and next its controversial Alaska oil exploration program will pump $172.7 million directly into the Puget Sound economy. That spending is expected to support 1,590 jobs and generate $125 million in wages and $312 million in total economic output, which includes direct, indirect and induced impacts, according to an economic impact study released Wednesday. Coral Garnick reports. (McClatchy) See also: Shell study details $1 million economic benefit for Port Angeles from Polar Pioneer oil rig  (Peninsula Daily News)

Oil terminal review won’t be expanded despite new details
The state agency examining the impacts of what would be the nation’s largest rail-to-marine oil transfer terminal in Vancouver says it won’t broaden its analysis in the face of new contract details showing the facility could be expanded or that a second one could be built in the future. The state Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council said it doesn’t need to widen its analysis of the facility proposed by Tesoro Corp. and Savage Cos. at the Port of Vancouver in response to Kristen Boyles, an attorney for Earthjustice who had requested the expanded review. That’s because the companies haven’t changed their permit application, submitted more than two years ago, to seek “an increased capacity, expanded or new facility,” according to Stephen Posner, manager for the evaluation council. To date, he said, the analysis of the proposed oil terminal, including development of a draft environmental impact statement, is “based on a maximum capacity to receive an average of 360,000 barrels per day.” Aaron Corvin reports. (Columbian)

Prime real estate at Governors Point goes on auction block
Governors Point, the 125-acre peninsula south of Bellingham that has been in the same family for a half century, will go to the highest bidder next month at auction. Roger Sahlin, whose father acquired Governors Point piece by piece in the 1960s, is seeking Chapter 11 protection in U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Western District of Washington. The auction will be held Oct. 8 in Seattle. Only bidders who have paid earnest money will be able to attend, said Douglas Johnson, managing director of CBRE Auction Services. Bids will start at $3.5 million. Ralph Schwartz reports. (Bellingham Herald)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PDT MON SEP 21 2015
TODAY
NW WIND 5 TO 15 KT...EASING TO 10 KT OR LESS IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 6 FT AT 8 SECONDS.
TONIGHT
W WIND 5 TO 15 KT IN THE EVENING...BECOMING LIGHT. WIND WAVES 1 TO 2 FT IN THE EVENING...BECOMING LESS THAN 1 FT. W SWELL 4 FT AT 9 SECONDS.
--
"Salish Sea News & Weather" is compiled as a community service by Mike Sato. To subscribe, send your name and email to msato@salishseacom.com. Your email information is never shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Salish Sea News: Communicate, Educate, Advocate

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6/22 Spotted owl, Dungeness crab, Brian Cladoosby, Sally Lider, BC pipe, toxic algae, pumpout

Lapland longspur (BirdNote)

If you like to listen-- The Longest Day of the Year
On the summer solstice, birds nesting near Juneau, Alaska take advantage of almost 18 1/2 hours between sunrise and sunset. This day in south Texas is considerably shorter, so the Altamira Oriole has only 14 hours to sing. Seattle's Song Sparrows see 16 hours of daylight; Sacramento's only 15. Birds nesting north of the Arctic Circle have six weeks with almost 24 hours of daylight every day. So this Lapland Longspur has a work-day that's about as long as it gets.  (BirdNote)

25th anniversary of spotted owl listing: fewer owls, less timber industry
The heated debate over whether to curtail the logging of old-growth forests to protect the northern spotted owl was at full throttle when the federal government declared the bird a threatened species June 22, 1990. At the time, environmentalists worried that the federal plan would fall short of saving the spotted owl.  Timber interests worried that a wave of environmental rules would gut the Olympic Peninsula’s wood-products industry and devastate communities. Twenty-five years later, the effects of the landmark decision can be seen in the reams of economic, industry and environmental data routinely gathered by state and federal governments. The outcomes are by turns expected, disheartening and surprising. George Erb reports. (Peninsula Daily News)

Record year possible for Dungeness crab enthusiasts
Signs indicate numbers up to 3 million pounds of crab could exceed last year’s record harvest. Mark Yuasa reports. (Seattle Times)

Swinomish leader Brian Cladoosby fights for salmon and sovereignty
From his days as a scrappy ballplayer for La Conner High, the Swinomish chairman has achieved national prominence as casinos fuel tribal wealth and influence Brian J. Cantwell reports. (Seattle Times)

Sally Lider, face of city’s environmental education programs, retiring July 2
After 24 years, the face of environmental education in the City of Edmonds – and the founder of annual city-sponsored Bird Fest — is retiring. Sally Lider was first hired by the city in 1991 as a part-time beach ranger, a job that fit her background and interests. (My Edmonds News)

District votes against pipeline plan
Add the District of North Vancouver to the list of communities that have formally opposed Kinder Morgan's application to twin the Trans Mountain pipeline to Burrard Inlet. District council passed a motion similar to ones passed by the councils in Burnaby and Vancouver, following a lengthy presentation from staff Monday night on the environmental, health and economic concerns raised by increased tanker traffic or a potential spill at Westridge Terminal. Brent Richter reports. (North Shore News)

Toxic algae bloom west of Island threatens salmon
A toxic algae bloom west of Vancouver Island has prompted shellfish harvest bans and may affect salmon stocks, federal scientists say.The bloom stretches along the Pacific coast from California to B.C., making it possibly the largest one on record in the area, scientists have said. Amy Smart reports. (Times Colonist)

Vancouver offers free sewage pump-out at civic marinas
In an effort to reduce high E. coli bacteria levels in English Bay the Vancouver park board is opening up the sewage pump-out stations at its two False Creek civic marinas to all boaters The pump-out stations at Burrard Civic and Heather Street marinas were free for marina members, but other boaters were charged a $10 fee to pump out their on-board sewage holding tanks. But on Friday at the launch of the board’s Clean Water Campaign, park board vice-chair Sarah Kirby-Yung announced that free pump out will be available to all pleasure boat users. Gerry Bellett reports. (Vancouver Sun)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 830 PM PDT SUN JUN 21 2015
MON
SW WIND TO 10 KT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS. SW SWELL 2 FT AT 18 SECONDS.
MON NIGHT AND TUE
W WIND TO 10 KT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS. SW SWELL 3 FT AT 15 SECONDS.

--
"Salish Sea News & Weather" is compiled as a community service by Mike Sato. To subscribe, send your name and email to msato@salishseacom.com. Your email information is never shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Salish Sea News: Communicate, Educate, Advocate

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6/9 Budget, Shell drill, warm 'blob,' fish barriers, Vic sewer, BC logging, Laura James, Port Susan, oil train, BC LNG, houseboats

Northern Lights from Mukilteo (Liem Bahneman/KOMO)

If you like to watch: Northern Lights come out to play over Western Washington
They're tough to get in the summertime here due to our shorter periods of darkness, but the Northern Lights managed an appearance (Sunday) night! Liem Bahneman captured this time lapse video from the Mukilteo pier. These photos are using time-exposure, but he said they were visible to the naked eye for a solid three hours. Scott Sisek reports. (KOMO)

Senate budget negotiator: No deal on spending level yet
A Senate budget negotiator disputed statements made last week that indicated lawmakers had reached a tentative deal on the size of Washington state's next two-year budget, saying Monday that the announcement was "premature." Talking with reporters before a Monday afternoon meeting with Gov. Jay Inslee, Republican Sen. John Braun of Centralia, said that talks with House Democrats are still ongoing, and that progress was made over the weekend, but that there's still no agreement on the overall spending level of the budget, tentative or otherwise. Rachel La Corte reports. (Associated Press)

Phones, emails deluged in protest of Shell’s oil-fleet lease
Opponents of Shell Oil’s lease of a Port of Seattle terminal to stage the company’s Arctic drilling fleet have employed a new tactic in their battle against the oil giant: deluging phone lines and email accounts of firms supporting the company’s stay in Seattle. Lewis Kamb reports. Seattle Times)

Ocean 'blob' of warm water bringing poor food for B.C. wild salmon
A University of Victoria oceanographer studying the so-called "warm blob" of water off the B.C. coast has observed unusual, "squishy" visitors from the south — and that could be bad news for young salmon. John Dower, who just returned from a research cruise north of Vancouver Island, said he saw remarkably high amounts of tiny animals called zooplankton in the "blob," a huge mass of ocean water about 2 degrees warmer than normal. And the varieties he saw are normally found off northern California — not Canada. (CBC)

Statewide effort takes aim at removing barriers that block fish
A little-known state board has begun sizing up a daunting task: removing the many barriers that block fish across the state's waterways. That's no small undertaking. The Fish Passage Barrier Removal Board cites about 14,000 such impediments in Washington alone. And that's just the known barriers — the estimated total is closer to 35,000 or 40,000, according to officials involved in the effort. Many are culverts built decades ago. Eric Florip reports. (Columbian)

Environment beats cost controls in sewage-treatment survey
Protecting the environment trumps cost in planning sewage treatment for Saanich, Oak Bay and Victoria, according to an Ipsos Reid survey. When respondents were asked the most important criteria for developing sewage treatment, the single-biggest priority at 31 per cent was: “removal of harmful materials from entering water and/or land.” That was followed by minimizing cost to the taxpayer (19 per cent), safety to residents (15 per cent) and no odour (nine per cent). Bill Cleverley reports. (Times Colonist)

Protests will follow if old-growth logging proceeds on Vancouver Island: group
A British Columbia forest company’s plan to log centuries-old cedar trees in southern Vancouver Island’s Walbran Valley cuts into the heart of one of Canada’s most ecologically sensitive forests, says an environmental group. Wilderness Committee spokesman Torrance Coste said that forest company Teal Jones is courting conflict with environmental groups in its bid to harvest almost 500 hectares of old-growth forest in eight separate land parcels. Dirk Meissner reports. (Canadian Press)

Laura James wins Emmy Award for 'Solving the mystery of the dying starfish'
West Seattle filmmaker/diver/environmentalist Laura James has won a 2015 Emmy® Award in Environmental Feature/Segment in the Northwest Region of the US. The award was presented on June 6 for her underwater video work on Solving the Mystery of Dying Starfish produced by KCTS9's Katie Campbell and edited by Michael Werner. Laura is a Seattle based videographer. This is Laura’s second Emmy®. She won her first Emmy® in 2014 in the Health/Science Feature/Segment category in the Northwest Region for Sea Otters vs. Climate Change produced by Michael Werner for Quest PBS. (West Seattle Herald)

Port Susan estuary takes a hit from warming, low Stillaguamish River flow
The early summer, with its unusually hot days and low snowpack, offers a window into the future for local scientists. Researchers have turned their attention to Port Susan and the mouth of the Stillaguamish River. Important tidal ecosystems there have been dwindling over the past two decades, and a team is studying how tide marshes and estuaries can adapt to a warming climate. Other researches are investigating how changing river flows affect the way sediment is spread, and how that could harm fish and increase flood risks. Kari Bray reports. (Everett Herald)

Discovery Bay beaches in Jefferson closed to shellfish harvest due to biotoxins; Dabob Bay reopens, but with vibrio warning in place
Discovery Bay area beaches have been closed to recreational shellfish harvesting due elevated levels of marine biotoxins that cause paralytic shellfish poisoning. Recent shellfish samples from the area showed an increase in biotoxins, prompting the state Department of Health closure, according to a Jefferson County Water Quality Program news release Monday. (Peninsula Daily News)

Ecology joins county in EIS for Shell oil-by-rail project
The state Department of Ecology and Skagit County will together review the Shell Puget Sound Refinery’s proposed rail unloading facility under the state Environmental Policy Act…. Skagit County asked the state agency to serve as a co-lead in the preparation of an environmental impact statement, or EIS, for the proposal to build a crude-by-rail facility at the Shell refinery in Anacortes, according to an Ecology news release. In a letter to the Skagit County Board of Commissioners, Ecology Director Maia Bellon said the agency agreed it was a matter of interest both locally and regionally. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Exxon Mobil selects on-shore LNG system for Prince Rupert site
Exxon Mobil Corp. has selected on-shore terminal plans in its quest to export liquefied natural gas from a site near Prince Rupert, B.C., positioning the project as a serious contender. While Pacific NorthWest LNG leads B.C.’s LNG race, Irving, Tex.-based Exxon Mobil and its Canadian affiliate Imperial Oil Ltd. hope to finish engineering studies in 2017 for their joint venture called WCC LNG Project Ltd. Brent Jang reports. (Globe and Mail)

Everett company accused of muddying water, endangering fish
A global building-materials company faces $21,000 in state fines over allegations that concrete and muddy water flowed from a local facility into city storm drains. The violation involves a sand, gravel and concrete-mixing operation at 6300 Glenwood Ave. that belongs to CEMEX Construction Materials Pacific. The drains there let out into Pigeon Creek Number Two, a tributary of Pigeon Creek. Noah Haglund reports. (Everett Herald)

Living out 'Sleepless in Seattle'-type dreams just got a little more difficult
People living on Seattle's waterfront can sleep a little easier at night. The city's Shoreline Master Program lets all current houseboats meeting the city's requirements stay where they float. The updated shoreline program, which was approved June 1, has been in development about eight years. The Lake Union Liveaboard Association has fought for at least five years to keep houseboats from being booted from the city. Kipp Robertson reports. (MyNorthwest.Com)

Now, your tug weather--
 WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PDT TUE JUN 9 2015
TODAY
W WIND 10 KT...BECOMING NW 10 TO 20 KT IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS...BUILDING TO 1 TO 3 FT IN THE AFTERNOON. NW SWELL 7 FT AT 9 SECONDS.
TONIGHT
W WIND 15 TO 25 KT...BECOMING SW TO 10 KT. WIND WAVES 2 TO 4 FT...SUBSIDING TO 1 FT OR LESS AFTER MIDNIGHT. NW SWELL 6 FT
 AT 9 SECONDS.

--
"Salish Sea News & Weather" is compiled as a community service by Mike Sato. To subscribe, send your name and email to msato@salishseacom.com. Your email information is never shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Salish Sea News: Communicate, Educate, Advocate

Follow on Twitter.

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5/4 Jelly blooms, shellfish spray, sea star babies, Simpson exit, oil train rules, Shell protest, BC LNG, sea lab

Moon jellyfish (Dept of Ecology/Seattle Times)

Prime fish give way to hordes of jellyfish in Puget Sound
Correigh Greene hauled the dripping, black net over the stern of the RV Orca and dumped its meager contents into a blue plastic tub: Five fingerling surf smelt, one juvenile herring, a few nickel-sized jellyfish and a handful of assorted larvae. Paltry catches aren’t unusual on cool, April days, explained Greene, a fisheries biologist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)’s Northwest Fisheries Science Center in Seattle…. Late last May, in this same spot near Deception Pass State Park, Greene and his crew hauled up a net so heavy they couldn’t winch it up on deck. But the contents didn’t speak well for the health of the ecosystem. Instead of the plump herring and smelt that used to be the dominant forage fish in Puget Sound, the net was bristling with 40,000 sticklebacks — bony, armored fish that seem to be on the upswing. In some parts of the Sound, the researchers’ nets are often crammed with jellyfish — another sign of a shift toward a less-productive environment. Sandi Doughton reports. (Seattle Times)

Washington State Officials Withdraw Shellfish Spray Permit
Washington's Department of Ecology has canceled a permit to spray pesticides over shellfish beds in two areas, officials said Sunday. The decision to halt the practice in Willapa Bay and Grays Harbor is part of an agreement between the local oyster growers association and the state. The growers association submitted a letter to the Department of Ecology on Sunday, after environmental concerns were raised in news coverage. The department reported hearing from residents across Washington state that the practice did not meet their expectations. (ABC News) See also:  Shellfish producer backs away from pesticide spraying
After receiving calls, emails and social-media comments from customers all day Friday, Washington’s largest shellfish producer has announced it will not treat its oyster beds with a controversial pesticide. “Our customers spoke loud and clear today, and that speaks volumes to us,” Bill Dewey, spokesman for Taylor Shellfish, said Friday.  Carol Garnick reports. (Seattle Times) See also: Oyster pesticide battle shows who really wields power   A couple of chefs accomplished in a few days what two powerful federal agencies couldn’t do in more than a year: head off the plan to spray pesticides on oyster beds. Danny Westneat reports. (Seattle Times)

New sea star babies offer hope amid mass deaths in Pacific
In scattered sites along the Pacific Coast, researchers and others have reported seeing hundreds of juvenile sea stars, buoying hopes for a potential comeback from sea star wasting disease that has caused millions of purple, red and orange sea stars to curl up, grow lesions, lose limbs and disintegrate into a pile of goo. Phuong Le reports. (Associated Press)

Simpson pulling up stakes is painful
Shelton was always a company town. For most of the 20th century, Simpson Timber Co.’s logging and mill operations were synonymous with the city’s industrial waterfront and the forest economy of rural Mason County. That era is over now, and this week Mason County’s struggling economy got another clear, urgent message. It needs to diversify, or reinvent its economic identity, and its workforce needs retraining opportunities. Some 270 jobs at Simpson’s mills in Shelton and Dayton are going away by June 30 as Simpson sells those operations to a Northern California firm, Sierra Pacific Industries. (Olympian)

Fish biologist piggy backs on other research as he seeks answers on coastal cutthroat trout
Most days this time of year, James Losee is working on salmon or steelhead projects for the state Department of Fish and Wildlife. But when he can, the state fish biologist slips on his waders and life jacket, and joins the crew using a beach seine net to capture smelt along South Sound beaches. Losee’s interest is not the forage fish that are the focus of a Fish and Wildlife research project. It’s the larger fish also caught as the net is brought to shore. Jeffrey P. Mayor reports. (News Tribune of Tacoma)

New oil-train rules leave a lot of questions unanswered
The U.S. and Canadian governments on Friday unveiled a long-awaited new standard for the tank cars used to transport crude oil and ethanol that includes numerous safety improvements. But it is far from the final word on efforts to reduce the risk of catastrophic derailments, such as the one that killed 47 people in Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, nearly two years ago. And industry and environmental groups are bracing for a court fight over portions of the new regulations that they don’t like. Most of the current tank car fleet that doesn’t meet the new requirements will be allowed to carry ethanol and some types of crude oil for eight more years. Environmental groups and some lawmakers objected Friday to the extended timeline. Curtis Tate reports. (McClatchy)

Did You Like Knowing Where Oil Trains Moved In the Northwest? Too Bad.
Northwest emergency responders have complained about receiving little information about oil train movement through their community. They’re about to get even less. A set of new rules for oil train safety announced Friday includes mandates for tank car design, upgraded brakes and lower speed limits. The federal Department of Transportation also used it to rescind a requirement it issued last year requiring railroads notify states about shipments of flammable crude. Tony Schick reports. (KUOW) See also: State lawmakers call newly released rail-safety rules inadequate  Noah Haglund reports. (Everett Herald) See also: Washington Fire Chiefs seek BNSF info for disaster planning   Samantha Wohlfeil reports. (Bellingham Herald)

Kayakers prep for oil-drilling protests in West Seattle  
Judging from the water-safety preparations and drills off Seacrest Park in West Seattle, kayakers are ready for their upcoming mission to protest Shell oil rigs drilling in the Arctic. On Sunday, approximately 19 advanced kayakers learned self-rescue techniques and how to assist when a kayak capsizes in anticipation of the upcoming flotilla protest May 16 in Elliott Bay. Through the Shell No! Action Council, hundreds of kayakers will join forces to oppose the Port of Seattle’s decision to allow Terminal 5 to be used as a staging area for Arctic drilling. (Seattle Times)

'Game changer': Gas company offers $1-billion to First Nations band in B.C.
The proponent of a liquefied natural gas plant on British Columbia’s north coast is offering more than $1-billion to obtain the consent of a First Nations community, a groundbreaking proposal that could establish the new price for natural resource development in traditional aboriginal territories. In a province where resource projects have stalled and sometimes foundered over aboriginal opposition, the tentative deal between the Prince Rupert-based Lax Kw’alaams band and a joint venture led by Malaysia’s state-owned Petronas sets a new benchmark for sharing the wealth from energy extraction. Justine Hunter and Brent Jang reports. (Globe and Mail)

Underwater observatory to share data with those on land
Imagine if elementary school students took an interest in volcanoes and were able to track volcanic activity in the Pacific Ocean over the next 20 years, carrying what they witnessed into later college studies and maybe eventually their careers. That vision is part of what has driven researcher Deborah Kelley to bring to the rest of the world what she has experienced as one of the few deep-sea divers who have spent a significant amount of time along the seafloor. Kelley is part of a network of researchers across the country who have been involved in a decades-long National Science Foundation effort to bring underwater data and observations to people bound to the land…. Kelley, who teaches oceanography at the University of Washington and has been involved with the observatory project for years, said it’s a development that is going to change education across the globe. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Quilcene, Dabob bays closed to recreational shellfish harvesting because of biotoxin fears
Dabob Bay and Quilcene Bay beaches have been closed to the recreational harvest of shellfish because of high levels of a potentially deadly biotoxin. Shellfish samples taken Wednesday were found to contain dangerous amounts of the biotoxin that causes paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP), said Michael Dawson, lead environmental health specialist for the Jefferson County Water Quality Program. (Peninsula Daily News)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA-300 AM PDT MON MAY 4 2015
TODAY
W WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 1 OR 2 FT. W SWELL 4 FT AT 13 SECONDS. CHANCE OF RAIN IN THE AFTERNOON.
TONIGHT
W WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 1 OR 2 FT. W SWELL 6 FT BUILDING TO 8 FT AT 13 SECONDS. SHOWERS LIKELY.

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"Salish Sea News & Weather" is compiled as a community service by Mike Sato. To subscribe, send your name and email to msato@salishseacom.com. Your email information is never shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.

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3/20 DMPs, tank car gas, leak reports, herring spawn, Samish shellfish, steep slope logging, weather ?

Yellow Warbler(Daniella Theoret)

If you like to listen: Dawn Song - Emily Dickinson
Emily Dickinson: "The Birds begun at Four o'clock..." As the first rays of sunlight fill the trees on a spring morning, a symphony of birdsong erupts. As early morning light extinguishes the stars, male birds begin to belt out their songs. One of the magical gifts of spring is the dawn song. Early in the morning, sparrows, chickadees, thrushes, finches, wrens, blackbirds, and warblers - like this Yellow Warbler - all sing at once. (BirdNote)

Tiny particles delay study of coal port
They are so small you can’t see them in the air — but you inhale them, and they can go to your lungs and even your bloodstream. They come from many sources, but among them are diesel train engines and coal in trains or storage piles. Doctors worry about them, researchers study them, and now the microscopic critters — called Diesel Particulate Matter, or DPMs — are delaying the finish of a lengthy environmental assessment of a giant coal-export terminal proposed for Cherry Point in Whatcom County. Agencies handling the protracted Environmental Impact Statement process say the EIS process has been delayed — perhaps for a year or more — by disagreements over how to study particulates. BNSF Railway’s refusal to share documents and studies with consultants has also contributed to the delay, along with other factors. Floyd McKay reports. (Crosscut)

Gases in oil tank cars: How volatile, Cantwell wants to know
Three oil trains pass through Seattle each day, headed to north Puget Sound refineries, and Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., is prodding federal regulators to take a long, hard look at what will happen to their cargoes if a train derails. Cantwell wants something called the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) to probe the volatility of gases in tank cars hauling Bakken crude oil, and how that can contribute to the risk of explosions if cars derail. Joel Connelly reports. (SeattlePI.Com)

State rail regulators: Fine BNSF for not reporting leaks immediately
Washington state regulators have recommended BNSF Railway be fined up to $700,000 for failing to properly report more than a dozen hazardous materials spills in recent months despite the fact state staff had reminded the company how to do so last fall. On Thursday, March 19, the state Utilities and Transportation Commission staff announced it found BNSF had failed to report 14 releases of hazardous materials, including crude oil leaks, within a half hour of learning about the leaks, as required by state law. Samantha Wohlfeil reports. (Bellingham Herald)

Massive herring spawn on South Beach
Masses of herring spawn, up to 3 inches deep in spots, washed ashore on South Beach March 12, portents of a potential bumper crop of herring this year. Pacific herring deposit their eggs on subtidal eelgrass and algae, and a sharp eye can spot the tiny larval fish in each transparent egg. Point Roberts is a spawning ground for two distinct stocks of herring, the Semiahmoo Bay stock, which spawns from January through April, and the Cherry Point stock, which is unique in Washington, spawning from April through June. Meg Olson reports. (All Points Bulletin)

Samish Bay to reopen to shellfish harvesting
Samish Bay will open to shellfish harvesting this afternoon, according to the state Department of Health. The bay was closed to harvest activities Sunday due to river rise that exceeded the state’s threshold for conditionally approved areas. The bay is conditionally approved because of its history with recurring fecal coliform bacteria pollution funneled in from the Samish River. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

State tackles steep challenges to step up logging oversight
Mike Janicki has spent 40 years as a logger, and his work brings him to the unstable hillsides around this upper Skagit Valley town. During past decades, there have been large and small slides here, some on cut land and some on forested land. Those slides have damaged homes, dumped a hillside of silt into a reservoir and spilled onto roads. Again and again, Janicki and other loggers have returned to harvest fir, cedar and other trees. Since the Oso disaster in neighboring Snohomish County one year ago, there has been only one application to log nearby slopes behind Concrete. That compares with a half-dozen requests in the 15 months before the landslide in the same 11,520-acre area. Hal Bernton reports. (Seattle Times)

The most asked weather question, answered.
"What is the difference between partly cloudy and partly sunny?" Cliff Mass answers. (Weather Blog)

Now, your first Spring weekend tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PDT FRI MAR 20 2015
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT
TODAY
SE WIND 15 TO 25 KT. WIND WAVES 2 TO 4 FT. W SWELL 7 FT AT 10 SECONDS. RAIN.
TONIGHT
S WIND 10 TO 20 KT BECOMING W. WIND WAVES 1 TO 3 FT. W SWELL 8 FT AT 10 SECONDS. RAIN.
SAT
W WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 1 OR 2 FT. W SWELL 7 FT AT 11 SECONDS. CHANCE OF SHOWERS.
SAT NIGHT
W WIND 5 TO 15 KT BECOMING S. WIND WAVES 1 OR 2 FT. W SWELL 7 FT AT 10 SECONDS.
SUN
SE WIND 10 TO 15 KT RISING TO 15 TO 25 KT IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 1 TO 2 FT BUILDING TO 2 TO 4 FT IN THE AFTERNOON. W SWELL 5 FT AT 10 SECONDS.
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"Salish Sea News & Weather" is compiled as a community service by Mike Sato. To subscribe, send your name and email to msato@salishseacom.com. Your email information is never shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Salish Sea News: Communicate, Educate, Advocate

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Salish Sea Communications: Truth Well Told

12/10 King tide, methane, Victoria sewage, creosote removed, WA budget, native claims, Oso slide, tidal power

Supporting Climate Research with the NASA Earth Exchange
The NASA Earth Exchange (NEX) is an innovative platform that provides the Earth science community with key collaboration and knowledge-sharing capabilities…. To support NASA's goals in climate science research, the NEX science team and collaborators in the Climate Analytics Group have created a new, high-resolution climate dataset, the NASA Earth Exchange Downscaled Climate Projections (NEX-DCP30) and made it available to the community. (NASA)

Vancouver places 30,000 sandbags along waterfront as 'king tide' looms
Some 30,000 sandbags line a stretch of low-lying waterfront land in Vancouver, placed by city workers in a bid to protect local homes from an anticipated king tide. The task was completed by about 45 workers in advance of Wednesday’s forecasted weather event, which could coincide with the same type of high winds and heavy rains that have already cut power to thousands of residents across the south coast and flooded streets. Justin Smallbridge reports. (Canadian Press)

Warming Ocean May Be Triggering Mega Methane Leaks Off Northwest Coast
As the waters of the Pacific warm, methane that was trapped in crystalline form beneath the seabed is being released. And fast. New modeling suggests that 4 million tons of this potent greenhouse gas have escaped since 1970 from the ocean depths off Washington’s coast. Ashley Ahearn reports. (EarthFix)

View Royal site ‘ideal’ for sewage plant, investors say
Investors who own a 3.4-hectare waterfront site at Thetis Cove in View Royal have wasted no time in trying to reignite interest in their property for a regional sewage treatment plant. In a full-page ad in the Times Colonist Tuesday directed at Capital Regional District directors and concerned citizens, the ownership group touts the former Victoria Plywood mill site as “ideal for Victoria’s sewage treatment and biosolids energy centre.” The property at the end of Hallowell Road is zoned for residential development. Bill Cleverley reports. (Times Colonist)

Toxic Creosote Pilings Removed From Thatcher Bay
Twenty-eight creosote pilings were recently removed from the waters of Thatcher Bay on Blakely Island to improve water quality for fish and other marine organisms…. The Blakely piling removal was just one component of extensive habitat restoration efforts conducted in Thatcher Bay and on its beaches by Friends of the San Juans, Skagit Fisheries Enhancement Group and the private landowner. (San Juan Islander)

Talk of taxes: Inslee to propose $1B in new revenue
Gov. Jay Inslee will propose a mix of spending cuts and at least $1 billion in new revenue next week when he releases his proposed budget, according to David Schumacher, director of the state Office of Financial Management. Jim Brunner and Joseph O'Sullivan report. (Seattle Times)

Native group lays claim to Stanley Park, Galiano and Saltspring Islands
Large pieces of Stanley Park, Galiano Island and Saltspring Island are being claimed by a small Indian band that has largely been ignored in British Columbia, although its main village once came under fire from the British Navy. In a notice of claim filed in the Supreme Court of British Columbia, Chief Raymond Wilson and a group he identifies as the Hwlitsum First Nation seek the return of key lands and financial compensation for loss of access to what it claims as its traditional territory. Mark Hume reports. (Globe and Mail)

Study of timber harvest near Oso mudslide inconclusive
An investigation into a possible link between a 2005 timber harvest on the hill above the Steelhead Haven neighborhood and the deadly Oso mudslide in March has come up empty. The logging exceeded the approved size by an acre, but state officials could not determine if it complied with a permit to avoid the adjoining watershed of the landslide-prone area, according to the report released Tuesday by the state Department of Natural Resources. Jerry Cornfield reports. (Everett Herald)

FERC upholds Admiralty Inlet tidal project; developer might resume
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has rejected challenges to the pilot hydrokinetic license of the 600-kW Admiralty Inlet Pilot tidal project and said licensee Snohomish County Public Utility District does not intend to surrender the license. Less than three months ago, Snohomish PUD said it would no longer pursue Admiralty Inlet because Department of Energy funding dried up, materials costs have increased, and various entities have mandated increasing amounts of studies and monitoring requirements for what was to be a pilot project in Washington's Puget Sound…. FERC said Snohomish rebutted challenges to the project's economic viability by noting its focus is testing new hydrokinetic technology and not economic value for power generation. (Hydroworld)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 230 AM PST WED DEC 10 2014
STORM WARNING IN EFFECT TODAY
 STORM WATCH FOR THURSDAY AND THURSDAY NIGHT
TODAY
S WIND 35 TO 50 KT. SEAS 18 FT AT 15 SECONDS. RAIN.
TONIGHT
S WIND 15 TO 25 KT. WIND WAVES 2 TO 4 FT. W SWELL 16 FT AT 14 SECONDS. RAIN IN THE EVENING.

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"Salish Sea News & Weather" is compiled as a community service by Mike Sato. To subscribe, send your name and email to msato@salishseacom.com. Your email information is never shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Salish Sea News: Communicate, Educate, Advocate

Follow on Twitter.

Salish Sea Communications: Truth Well Told

11/13 Rockfish protection, pipeline benefits, landslide guidelines, pipeline lead retiring

(Laurie MacBride)

Wind in the Willow
Laurie MacBride in Eye on Environment writes: "After a month of rain and overly warm temperatures, we’ve entered into a time of cool, bright, windy days – each one, a power failure waiting to happen. But there’s an upside to this weather pattern: the sunny afternoons call me out of doors, and now that my garden chores are mostly finished for the year, I finally have some time to wander and explore. The semi-abstract photo above is an attempt to convey my impressions of being amid all the tremendous natural energy that Mother Nature is throwing at us these days…."

Feds to protect Puget Sound habitat for rockfish
The National Marine Fisheries Service is set to designate about 1,000 square miles in Puget Sound as critical habitat for three species of imperiled rockfish. The habitat protection follows a 2010 decision to list yelloweye, canary and bocaccio rockfish under the Endangered Species Act. The agency says the rockfish are vulnerable to overfishing because they have long lives and mature slowly with sporadic reproduction. The designation will require federal agencies to make sure their actions don't harm rockfish habitat. The rule is scheduled to be published on Thursday. The protected area will cover about 340 fewer square miles that originally proposed, excluding some tribal lands and military areas. (Associated Press)

New blog: The Chief Business of the American People...
"“The chief business of the American people is business.” That’s Calvin Coolidge in 1925 and the quote came to mind right after Hallowe’en when the Christmas (we say ‘Christmas’) decorations began appearing in stores and Black Friday special offers started filling the inbox…"

Kinder Morgan president says B.C. pipeline benefits fair
Duelling reports about job-creation numbers and oil spill cleanup costs for the proposed Kinder Morgan pipeline expansion from Edmonton to Burnaby, B.C., have prompted the company to defend the benefits it has forecast for the project. Kinder Morgan’s president Ian Anderson said estimates of a high number of jobs in British Columbia during the proposed expansion of its Trans Mountain pipeline are based on fair and reasonable assumptions. Dirk Meissner reports. (Canadian Press)

New guidelines adopted to help spot landslide risks
A state board has approved expanded guidelines to help identify potentially dangerous landslide areas, a move that comes eight months after the devastating Oso slide. Some timber companies criticized the guidelines as expensive and unnecessary. Joseph O'Sullivan reports. (Seattle Times)

Janet Holder, Enbridge pipeline project leader, to retire
News that the Enbridge executive in charge of leading the company's controversial Northern Gateway pipeline project is retiring comes just weeks after doubt was raised over a 2018 startup date. Executive vice-president Janet Holder will retire on Dec. 31, after more than 20 years with Enbridge, having been the lead on the pipeline project since 2011. (CBC)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 241 AM PST THU NOV 13 2014
GALE WARNING IN EFFECT THROUGH THIS AFTERNOON
TODAY
E WIND 25 TO 35 KT...EASING IN THE AFTERNOON. SEAS 8 TO 9 FT WITH A DOMINANT PERIOD OF 11 SECONDS...SUBSIDING TO 4 TO 7 FT
 WITH A DOMINANT PERIOD OF 15 SECONDS.
TONIGHT
NE WIND 15 TO 20 KT. WIND WAVES 2 TO 3 FT. W SWELL 3 FT AT 14 SECONDS.

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"Salish Sea News & Weather" is compiled as a community service by Mike Sato. To subscribe, send your name and email to msato@salishseacom.com. Your email information is never shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Salish Sea News: Communicate, Educate, Advocate

Follow on Twitter.

Salish Sea Communications: Truth Well Told

11/12 Climate deal, gull diet, pipeline leak, BC salmon, logging landslide, Klipsun Beach, LA coal, film fest

(Phil Hart/BirdNote)

If you like to listen: Why Bird Poop Is White
Birds brighten our lives. They connect us with nature. But sometimes they connect us a bit too directly with nature. Park under the wrong tree - where a flock of starlings or grackles comes to roost - and nature may cover your car so thickly that it takes a trip or two through the carwash just to see through the windshield again. And why is most of the bird poop we see white? The answer is that birds, unlike mammals, don't produce urine. Instead they excrete nitrogenous wastes in the form of uric acid, which emerges as a white paste. Owners of red cars, look out! A study in England found that red cars are most likely to be the target of bird droppings! (BirdNote)

U.S., China strike ‘major’ climate deal
A groundbreaking agreement struck Wednesday by the United States and China puts the world's two worst polluters on a faster track to curbing the heat-trapping gases blamed for global warming. With the clock ticking on a worldwide climate treaty, the two countries sought to move beyond their troubled history as environmental adversaries and spur other nations. Josh Lederman reports. (Associated Press)

Gulls switch to trash-diet as fish stocks run low
Gulls tucking in to discarded food or flocking around landfills has become a familiar sight. Now data spanning 149 years has shown that substituting fish for less nutritious food is linked to population declines and lower fertility in glaucous-winged gulls (Larus glaucescens). Louise Blight from the University of British Columbia and her colleagues looked at 270 gulls' feather samples from museums, taken between 1860 and 2009. Using the ratios of heavy isotopes of carbon and nitrogen, the team pieced together the dietary habits of these seabirds, all of which had lived in the Salish Sea region off the coast of south-western Canada and the north-western US. They found a decline in heavier carbon isotopes, indicating that the gulls shifted from a fishy source of carbon to a terrestrial source. Sandhya Sekar reports. (New Scientist)

Olympic Pipeline shut at Burlington station for leak
The state Department of Ecology and personnel from the Olympic Pipeline Co. are responding to an oil spill at a pipeline pump station south of the Burlington Country Club. Olympic Pipeline Co. first reported the oil to Ecology Oct. 29 after discovering a sheen on water in an excavation pit, Ecology said in a news release. The pipeline was closed that day and state and pipeline personnel responders have been monitoring the site since then to determine the source, type and location of the oil and to plan cleanup strategies. (Skagit Valley Herald)

BC wild salmon tested and certified free of three diseases: federal agency
A two-year investigation by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency has found no evidence of three diseases in wild salmonids on the B.C. coast. A total of 8,006 samples of trout and salmon species collected in 2012 and 2013 showed no evidence of infectious salmon anaemia. Of that number, 6,734 were also tested for infectious pancreatic necrosis and 1,272 for infectious haematopoietic necrosis — and all tests were negative. CFIA said in a news release it also evaluated existing surveillance data for farmed salmon in B.C. and found no current or historical evidence of ISA or IPN in these populations. The 2006-to-2011 data came from provincial and federal programs as well as from routine monitoring and testing by industry. Larry Pynn reports. (Vancouver Sun)

Wash. Forest Practices Board Mulling New Guidelines After Deadly Oso Slide
How to prevent unsafe logging on steep slopes that could cause future landslides will be at the center of discussions in Olympia Wednesday. In the wake of the Oso tragedy, the state’s Forest Practices Board is in the process of updating permitting guidelines.  The board is rewriting the section of its manual that deals with unstable slopes based on the latest and best advice from a panel of geologists. State forester Aaron Everett says while the guidelines are not binding, they should make it harder for companies seeking to log in unsafe areas. Bellamy Pailthorp reports. (KPLU)

City Approves $12.5 Million Park Plan At Cornwall Beach
Bellingham City Council this week approved the master plan for the city’s newest park on 17 acres along the northeastern shoreline of Bellingham Bay. As envisioned in this planning document, the park may be the single largest open-space component of the redevelopment strategy for Bellingham’s central waterfront and strongly tie into Boulevard Park and trail systems to the south. Consultants estimated the cost of the park, including upland improvements, at approximately $12.52 million. An additional $7 million is required for habitat restoration under the plan. In August, Kelli Linville notified Lummi Nation that the city’s Parks and Recreation Advisory Board had selected “Klipsun Beach” as the official name for the 14-acre park. More than 300 names had been suggested by the public. Tim Johnson reports. (Cascadia Weekly)

Coal terminal fight strikes familiar chords
A community has filled its yards with signs and packed meeting rooms to oppose a coal terminal. Residents have appealed for more opportunities for public comment. They worry about coal dust blowing off the open coal cars headed to the proposed terminal. The land around the site is environmentally sensitive and needs to remain undisturbed, opponents say. Whatcom County? In this case, I’m referring to Plaquemines Parish, south of New Orleans, La. Talk about wetland restoration. The delta that comprises the parish naturally blunts the force of hurricanes making landfall from the Gulf of Mexico. A coastal restoration project is planned there, to bolster that line of defense and improve habitat. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on Monday, Nov. 10, issued a permit for a coal terminal in the parish that would export 6 or 8 million tons of coal a year, depending on which report you read. The terminal would be the third in Plaquemines Parish alone. Ralph Schwartz reports. (Bellingham Herald)

If you like to watch: Wild & Scenic Film Festival comes to Victoria November 13th
Georgia Strait Alliance presents the Wild & Scenic Film Festival this Thursday at St. Ann’s Academy, Victoria. Wild & Scenic films educate, inspire, and motivate people to go out and make a difference in their community and around the world. Eight films are featured at the Festival, including award winning films STAND & North of the Sun. Canadian standup paddleboarder and adventurer Norm Hann, star of STAND, will be on hand to speak about his experience paddleboarding the 400km tanker route from Kitimat to Bella Bella. Tickets are $20 in advance, $25 at the door.

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PST WED NOV 12 2014
GALE WARNING IN EFFECT THROUGH THURSDAY MORNING
TODAY
E WIND 30 TO 40 KT. SEAS 6 TO 8 FT WITH A DOMINANT PERIOD OF 17 SECONDS.
TONIGHT
E WIND 30 TO 40 KT...EASING TO 25 TO 35 KT AFTER MIDNIGHT. SEAS 6 TO 8 FT WITH A DOMINANT PERIOD OF 16 SECONDS.

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"Salish Sea News & Weather" is compiled as a community service by Mike Sato. To subscribe, send your name and email to msato@salishseacom.com. Your email information is never shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Salish Sea News: Communicate, Educate, Advocate

Follow on Twitter.

Salish Sea Communications: Truth Well Told