11/19 Statoil drill, sea rise, BC scallops, greenhouse gas, San Juan ridge, derelict boats, Fort Nisqually

Great Gray Owl (BirdNote)

The Ears of an Owl
Exactly where are an owl's ears? Well, the eyes of this Great Gray Owl are set in a broad, dish-shaped face. Ridges of tiny hair-like feathers rim the owl's face, creating "facial disks." Just below the margins of the facial disks, concealed by feathers, are the openings to the owl's ears. The facial disk acts as a sound collector — like an old-fashioned ear trumpet — and guides sound to asymmetrically placed ears. There's always more to learn about owls' ears! (BirdNote)

Another big global oil company abandons plans for Arctic offshore drilling in Alaska
The government-owned Norwegian firm Statoil said Tuesday it is pulling out of oil leases in Alaska’s Chukchi Sea, just two months after Shell Oil abandoned its $7 billion Arctic program after drilling an unsuccessful well…. The company cited “recent exploration results in neighboring leases,” a direct reference to Shell’s failure. Statoil is walking away from 16 leases along with 50 stakes in ConocoPhillips leases. The leases were due to expire in 2020. Joel Connelly reports. (SeattlePI.Com)

If you dare to watch: The Coming of Climate Change and Mass Inundation of the Puget Sound
The progressive change that sea level rise could have locally is obvious. Entire communities like low-laying Georgetown and South Park could be swept away. Pioneer Square could finally sink back into Elliott Bay. And even Seattle's industrial economic engines south of Downtown — as widespread as the Green River Valley — could be permanently submerged. Only the freeways of I-5 and I-405 that once served them would remain, and that's merely because they're on higher ground. Stephen Fesler reports. (The Urbanist)

The B.C. Scallop Farmer's Acid Test
Rob Saunders points a flashlight into the depths of an immense plastic tank at his hatchery, illuminating millions of scallop larvae as tiny as dust particles. "Think of these as canaries in a coal mine," says the marine biologist turned embattled shellfish farming CEO. It is here at Island Scallops' facility in Qualicum Beach, located just inland from British Columbia’s shellfish farming epicentre of Baynes Sound, that ocean acidification wreaked havoc. Beginning in 2011, the company's scallop brood stock (adult shellfish bred over 25 years to be disease-resistant and exceptionally meaty), began to die. Christopher Pollon reports. (The Tyee)

Washington State Plowing Ahead With Greenhouse Gas Limits
The administration of Washington Governor Jay Inslee is moving ahead with a plan to limit greenhouse gas pollution from the state's largest industrial sources. State regulators fielded dozens of questions Wednesday about the efficacy, design and compliance costs of the proposal to slow climate change…. In late summer, Governor Inslee asked the Ecology Department to develop quickly what he called a "cap and reduce program." The carbon pollution limit ratchets down over time. Tom Banse reports. (KUOW)

Another Mount Constitution? Islanders unite to preserve San Juan ridge for views, trails
Approached on a winding road that leads from Friday Harbor, squat Mount Grant is cloaked under a canopy of old-growth trees, shrouding it from islanders who live on the pastoral lands at its feet. Virtually unbeknown to neighbors, it has long held one of the island’s great secrets: the 740-foot ridge’s spectacular views, taking in postcard vistas of surrounding islands, the Olympic Mountains, Mount Baker, the Twin Sisters — and, on a clear day, Mount Rainier and Glacier Peak…. Mount Grant has the potential to be the Mount Constitution of San Juan Island, said San Juan Preservation Trust executive director Tim Seifert, referring to the famed viewpoint on neighboring Orcas Island. Tan Vinh reports. (Seattle Times)

Victoria won’t make waves on derelict boat problem
Victoria will take a “slow and steady” approach to clearing out derelicts and other boats moored in the Gorge waterway, says Mayor Lisa Helps…. The city has been working for about two years to find a way to deal with the boats, some derelict, anchored just northwest of the Selkirk Trestle off Banfield Park. In the summer of 2014, councillors adopted a bylaw to rezone the waterway for recreational use only. Bill Cleverley reports. (Times Colonist)

Future of Fort Nisqually public input wanted
Metro Park Tacoma is looking for public input on the future of Fort Nisqually. The board recently approved the Point Defiance Park Master Plan, so the next phase is public meetings to help refine programs and improvements on several focus areas within in the park…. Stepping into Fort Nisqually is like stepping back in time and seeing what life was like pre-Civil War. Fort Nisqually first opened in 1833, even before Washington was a state. British-based Hudson's Bay Co. established the first non-native settlement in the Puget Sound Region. The living and walking museum runs some amazing programs, camps, and tours. Teresa Yuan reports. (KING)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 316 AM PST THU NOV 19 2015
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT THROUGH THIS AFTERNOON
TODAY
NE WIND 15 TO 25 KT. WIND WAVES 2 TO 4 FT. W SWELL 6 FT AT 11 SECONDS. A SLIGHT CHANCE OF SHOWERS IN THE MORNING.
TONIGHT
NE WIND 5 TO 15 KT...BECOMING E AFTER MIDNIGHT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 6 FT AT 11 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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11/9 Keystone, BC unmuzzled, NW tribes, Asarco, port races, Wisconsin derail, bag ban, Navy jets, Elwha

Citing Climate Change, Obama Rejects Construction of Keystone XL Oil Pipeline
President Obama announced on Friday that he had rejected the request from a Canadian company to build the Keystone XL oil pipeline, ending a seven-year review that had become a symbol of the debate over his climate policies. Mr. Obama’s denial of the proposed 1,179-mile pipeline, which would have carried 800,000 barrels a day of carbon-heavy petroleum from the Canadian oil sands to the Gulf Coast, comes as he seeks to build an ambitious legacy on climate change. Coral Davenport reports. (NY Times) See also: Justin Trudeau 'disappointed' with U.S. rejection of Keystone XL  Kathleen Harris reports. (CBC)

Keystone pipeline rejection means oil tankers could multiply in Strait of Juan de Fuca
President Obama’s decision Friday to reject the Keystone XL pipeline puts a fresh spotlight on other efforts to bring Canadian crude to market, including a $5.4 billion project to boost oil flows to British Columbia. The oil piped from Alberta would be targeted for maritime export, dramatically increasing the number of oil tankers traversing the Strait of Juan de Fuca and raising environmental concerns among Washington state Department of Ecology (DOE) officials.  Hal Bernton reports. (Seattle Times)

Kristi Miller, muzzled fisheries scientist, felt like a second-class citizen
A federal edict that prevented government scientists from talking publicly about their work turned them into "second-class citizens", a B.C. based molecular geneticist told CBC news Friday. Kristi Miller, a scientist with Fisheries and Oceans Canada, told CBC News Friday that she was excited at news the newly elected federal government had lifted the muzzle from its researchers. Kristi Miller was prevented from talking to media about the results of her study. (CBC) See also: Scientists, ministers get green light to speak under Trudeau  Pauline Dakin reports. (CBC)

Exxon Mobil accused of climate change cover-up
Oil giant Exxon Mobil is being investigated for misleading the public about the impact of climate change. The New York attorney general has sent a request for emails and financial records to the company. Allegations surfaced last month that the company's own scientists raised concerns about global warming decades ago and that Exxon had worked to suppress that information. (BBC) See also: Oil companies and climate change: who should pay?  Environmentalists say an investigation into ExxonMobil may open the door to tobacco-style lawsuitsJason Proctor reports. (CBC)

UW Symposium: Ocean Acidification Pushing Boundaries Of Environmental Law
The University of Washington held its first annual symposium on environmental law last week. The idea is to choose a topic and examine how it fits into current and future regulations. This year’s focus—ocean acidification.  It is sometimes called the evil twin of global warming. Ocean acidification is caused when carbon pollution from fossil fuels dissolves into our waterways. Scientists say it may cause serious harm to life on the planet; some say it is already damaging the local shellfish industry. It is also pushing the envelope of current environmental law. Bellamy Pailthorp reports. (KPLU)

Northwest tribal leaders fight for government to uphold treaties
A proposed coal terminal and affiliated railway for Cherry Point, Wash., has sparked concern about treaty violations and environmental degradation for many Pacific Northwest tribal leaders, 10 of whom rallied together in Washington, D.C., on Thursday morning against what they said is government disregard for their treaties. Grace Toohey reports. (McClatchy)

Three decades after the Asarco smelter shutdown, its toxic legacy surprises Tacoma newcomers
Tacoma’s industrial history confronted Alex Stillman on a late spring morning while she was up to her wrists in front-yard dirt. A neighbor saw the 27-year-old school nurse, part of the city’s influx of new homeowners, digging to plant a hedge outside her North 40th Street house and walked over to share some friendly insight about the neighborhood. The conversation sent Stillman inside to start learning things no real-estate agent or inspector had explained to Alex or her husband, Bryce, when they bought the place in fall 2014. It fell to Google to tell her about the long-gone Asarco copper smelter that operated less than a mile from where her tidy 1940s bungalow stands, and that the lead and arsenic emitted from its 571-foot-tall smokestack for several decades had polluted her yard and thousands of others with agents linked to cancer and other serious health problems. Derrick Nunnally reports. (Tacoma News Tribune)

Dangerous, tasty fishery resumes off B.C. coast
One of British Columbia's most unusual and dangerous fisheries is poised for a comeback. Gooseneck barnacles, which grow on the rocks below the high tide line off the west coast of Vancouver Island,.are prized in Spain and served as appetizers by high-end restaurants across North America. With a shell-like top and stubby stalks of rich meat beneath, goosenecks resemble clumps of asparagus. However, the best ones are hard to reach and risky to harvest. Chris Brown reports. (CBC)

Port Commissioner: The Race We Can No Longer Afford To Ignore
As election results continue to filter in, most eyes focus on the big-ticket races—city council members, state ballot measures, and levies. Yet way down near the bottom of the ballot is one of the most important votes that we cast in the Northwest: the races for port commissioner. Historically overlooked by voters and pundits alike, the Northwest’s recent controversies over coal and oil have begun to shift some attention to the leadership of public ports. It’s an entirely appropriate shift, because the elected leaders of the region’s ports play a more important role—for good or for ill—in determining the fate of the thin green line than almost anybody else. (…. Running for an empty seat vacated by outgoing Commissioner Bill Bryant, environmental advocate Fred Felleman, who was an outspoken critic of the Port’s decision to host Shell’s Arctic drilling fleet this summer, defeated Marino Yoshino. Felleman raised $86,000 to Yoshino’s $29,000.) Eric de Place and Nick Abraham report. (Sightline)

2nd Train Derails in Wisconsin in 2 Days, Spills Crude Oil
Canadian Pacific Railway says less than 1,000 gallons of crude oil has spilled after a train derailment that prompted evacuations in southeastern Wisconsin. Thirteen cars derailed around 2 p.m. Sunday in Watertown. Canadian Pacific said in a statement late Sunday night one car was punctured and it leaked some oil. The company says it's working to determine the exact amount, but it's no more than 1,000 gallons…. The derailment Sunday was the second in the state in as many days. On Saturday, a freight train derailed near Alma in western Wisconsin, spilling thousands of gallons of ethanol. (ABC)

California lawmaker plans law to end killer whale captivity
A California congressman announced Friday that he is planning federal legislation that aims to phase out the captivity of killer whales by banning breeding, importing and exporting the animals for public display. Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff said he will introduce the Orca Responsibility and Care Advancement Act to ensure that orcas now at aquatic parks such as SeaWorld are the last ones and that when they die, no other whales will replace them. The bill also would ban taking any whales from the wild. Although no orca has been captured in U.S. waters since 1976, Schiff says captive killer whales are bred. (Associated Press)

Construction site washout kills salmon on Burnaby Mountain
Water thick with sand and sediment has fouled a fish-bearing creek after heavy rain washed out an active construction site on Burnaby Mountain last week. The silty water poured into Stoney Creek from a tributary, killing spawning Chum and Coho salmon and smolts, said John Preissl, a local streamkeeper. Salmon had been absent from the once polluted creek for half a century, but returned about a decade ago, thanks to decades of rehabilitation work by foundations, government agencies and hundreds of volunteers, Preissl said. Before the accident, streamkeepers had counted nearly 200 salmon in the creek. Matthew Robinson reports. (Vancouver Sun) See also: Rain causes more problems at Burnaby Mountain construction site  Joanne Lee-Young and Matthew Robinson reports. (Vancouver Sun)

Victoria council backs ban on single-use plastic bags, staff to study
The days of plastic bags in Victoria could be numbered. Victoria councillors Thursday took the first steps in developing a bylaw that would ban retailers from providing single-use plastic bags. Several councillors said they support the proposal provided the public is properly consulted and the city works in concert with retailers so that the change, if implemented, is even-handed. Bill Cleverely reports. (Times Colonist)

Navy, National Park Service to work together to monitor jet noise over Olympic National Park
The Navy and National Park Service are coordinating efforts to monitor jet noise over Olympic National Park during training missions. “I'm glad the Park Service — the staff who are charged with protecting the visitor experience at Olympic National Park — and the Navy will work together to monitor noise issues and evaluate any increase in noise from Navy training activities,” said U.S. Rep. Derek Kilmer in a news release issued Thursday. A Democrat from Gig Harbor, Kilmer represents the 6th Congressional District, which includes the North Olympic Peninsula. He had requested that the Park Service and the Navy work together on monitoring jet noise. Chris McDaniel reports. (Peninsula Daily News)

Taking the pulse of Puget Sound
The state’s effort to improve the health of Puget Sound is moving slowly, even with a variety of fish-focused projects in motion throughout the Skagit River watershed, from major dike setbacks to minor culvert replacements. In a State of the Sound Report released last week, the Puget Sound Partnership describes the progress to restore this inlet of the Pacific Ocean as largely stagnant. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Herald) See also:  Puget Sound restoration: two steps forward, one back — or vice versa?  Chris Dunagan blogs. (Watching Our Water Ways)

With dams down, restored Elwha River mouth 'a treasure'
No one, not even among those studying the ecology of the Elwha River mouth, expected the degree of change seen there after the dams came down, according to a woman who has researched it for years. An area that once was little more than large cobbles is now a vast tract of quiet, sandy beach speckled with hundreds of seabirds and brushed by ocean waves. It contains pools constantly dimpled by the jumping of fish. Sometimes, looking at the acres of new beach — and the new life it now supports — she nearly cries, said Anne Shaffer, a marine biologist and the executive director of the Coastal Watershed Institute of Port Angeles. Arwyn Rice and Leah Leach report. (Peninsula Daily News) See also:  Who owns new Elwha River land? Discussions begin about ownership, responsibility  Arwyn Rice reports. (Peninsula Daily News)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 228 AM PST MON NOV 9 2015
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY FOR HAZARDOUS SEAS IN EFFECT UNTIL 9 AM PST THIS MORNING
TODAY
NE WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 10 FT AT 14 SECONDS...SUBSIDING TO 8 FT AT 14 SECONDS IN THE AFTERNOON. A CHANCE OF SHOWERS IN THE MORNING.
TONIGHT
NW WIND TO 10 KT IN THE EVENING...BECOMING LIGHT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 6 FT AT 12 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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5/21 Septic gaps, oil spill, B;ham cleanup, ocean acid, coal port, T rex bone, BC ferry, 'Fake Willy,' John Willits

Stubby squid (Susan Middleton/San Juan Journal)

'Spineless'... sea creatures like you've never seen 'em before, at IMA
A portrait of the a Stubby Squid (Rossia Pacifica) is one of the many provocative photographs of creatures of the deep by Susan Middleton, which will be on display as part of San Juan Islands Museum of Art's latest exhibit, 'Spineless,' opening May 23 in Friday Harbor. Scott Rasmussen reports. (San Juan Journal)

KING 5 finds gaps in septic tank inspections
After a two-year-old boy died and a 10-year-old girl was hurt in accidents involving septic tanks, KING 5 examined state and county data and discovered a trail of incomplete records and out of date inspections. The Washington State Department of Health admits it doesn't know exactly how many on-site sewage systems exist in the state. DOH estimates 934,000 exist in the state and 613,000 of those are in the Puget Sound region. Of those, only a fraction are closely monitored. The majority of those are in marine recovery areas where a failure could be catastrophic to the area's waterways. Danielle Leigh reports. (KING)

Pipeline Operator In Calif. Spill Reportedly Had History Of Infractions
The Texas-based company responsible for the undersea pipeline that has leaked tens of thousands of gallons of oil into the sea near the coast at Goleta, Calif., has a history of federal safety violations, The Los Angeles Times reports. The newspaper reports that Plains All American Pipeline has accumulated 175 safety and maintenance infractions since 2006… a nine-mile slick is expected to have a negative impact on some wildlife. Scott Neuman reports. (NPR)

Cleanup work along Bellingham’s waterfront to start this summer
Crews could start work on a more than $35 million environmental cleanup of a polluted Bellingham waterfront site as soon as July. The Port of Bellingham Commission approved a contract for cleaning up the Whatcom Waterway with American Construction Company of Tacoma during its regular Tuesday afternoon meeting, May 19. The vote was 2-1, with Commissioner Mike McAuley opposed. Samantha Wohlfeil reports. (Bellingham Herald)

Fund the race to save marine life from souring seas
Congress must invest in research to combat acidic seawater conditions. Jay Manning and Bill Ruckelshaus write. (Seattle Times Opinion)

Army Corps: ‘We can be flexible’ in giving coal terminal time to respond
In a response sent early this Wednesday morning, May 20, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers told The Bellingham Herald it won’t hold SSA Marine to a strict deadline in its response to Lummi Nation’s assertion that SSA’s coal terminal would interfere with tribal fishing. Ralph Schwartz reports. (Bellingham Heald)

First Dinosaur Fossil Found in Washington State
A large bone from a meat-eating dinosaur has been discovered in the San Juan Islands – the first dinosaur fossil ever found in Washington state. Researchers found the fossil along the shores of Sucia Island State Park in the San Juan Islands. They returned with paleontologists from the Burke Museum at the University of Washington. The fossil they pulled from the rock is from the Late Cretaceous period and is about 80 million years old. The partial thigh bone comes from a two-legged cousin of the Tyrannosaurus rex. It measures 16.7 inches long and 8.7 inches wide. Scientists believe the complete bone was likely more than three feet long. Isolde Raftery reports. (KUOW)

Jack Knox: Ferry-naming contest invites spirit of scorn
On Tuesday, B.C. Ferries invited the public to take part in a contest to name three intermediate-class vessels being built in Poland. On Wednesday, the public replied … and replied … and replied. Gleefully malicious/seditious posts bearing the #NameAFerry hashtag swamped social media. How about SS ShouldveBeenABridge? Or Privatized Backfire? Or Ark of the Government? Or the Knot Pretty, Knot Cheap and Knot Maiden B.C. Jack Knox reports. (Times Colonist)

‘Fake Willy’ could haunt sea lions
A Free Willy impersonator could come to Astoria to scare off sea lions. In its efforts to get sea lions off its docks, the Port of Astoria has had to think outside the box. Thanks to a man from Bellingham, Wash., that could become a lot easier. During his report Tuesday to the Port Commission, Executive Director Jim Knight said the agency has been approached by a man — he didn’t know exactly who it was — from northern Washington with a realistic fiberglass orca whale. Edward Stratton reports. (Daily Astorian)

Shelley Fralic: River Monsters host Jeremy Wade’s excellent B.C. adventure
Jeremy Wade is on the phone Tuesday morning, apologizing for sounding so groggy because he’s still recovering from the previous night’s diving exploration in Puget Sound. In the deeps. In the dark. No, he’s not at liberty to share what he was looking for in the waters around Seattle, or what he found, because that would be giving away the surprises for viewers of the coming Season 8 of Wade’s Discovery Channel hit, River Monsters. Shelley Fralic reports. (Vancouver Sun)

Renowned Port Angeles conservationist John Willits dies at 78
John Willits, a dedicated conservationist whose passion helped preserve hundreds of acres of farmland and wildlife habitat, is dead. He was 78. He died last Friday at his Port Angeles home after a long battle with Parkinson's disease. Rob Ollikainen reports. (Peninsula Daily News)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PDT THU MAY 21 2015
TODAY
W WIND TO 10 KT...BECOMING 5 TO 15 KT IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 5 FT AT 7 SECONDS. AREAS OF FOG IN
 THE MORNING.
TONIGHT
W WIND 10 TO 20 KT...EASING TO 10 KT. WIND WAVES 1 TO 3 FT...SUBSIDING TO 1 FT OR LESS AFTER MIDNIGHT. W SWELL 3 FT AT
 7 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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4/8 Allen grant, oil train suit, train safety, LNG glut, pontoons, septic death, Green Porno

Olympia oyster (OR DFW)

Paul Allen’s Foundation grants $1.5M to Puget Sound Restoration Fund project
Puget Sound is absolutely vital to the health of the Pacific Northwest, but the ever-increasing acidification of ocean waters is taking its toll on our lovely waters. The Paul G. Allen Family Foundation has granted $1.5 million to the Puget Sound Restoration Fund so researchers can “investigate seaweed cultivation” as one potential strategy to lessen acidification of the Sound. The project will be led by Dr. Jonathan Davis and Betsy Peabody at Puget Sound Restoration in collaboration with partners at the University of Washington and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Molly Brown reports. (GeekWire)

Puget Sound Tribe's Lawsuit Aims To Keep Oil Trains Off Its Reservation
The Swinomish Tribe has filed a lawsuit against BNSF Railway to stop oil trains from traveling through its reservation. BNSF train tracks cross the top of the Swinomish Reservation in Skagit County. In recent years they’ve been used to move oil from North Dakota to two refineries in Anacortes. In 1990 BNSF and the Swinomish reached a settlement that required BNSF to regularly update the tribe on the type of cargo moving through the reservation. It also limited traffic to two 25-car trains per day. Now, the tribe says BNSF is running several times that many train cars through the reservation each day (an estimated six oil trains of more than 100 cars per week). Ashley Ahearn reports. (KUOW)

Cantwell, Fire Chiefs Pressing For More Regulation Of Oil Trains
Highly volatile Bakken  crude oil poses a serious threat to the safety of communities located along rail lines. Just since February, there have been four fiery derailments in the US and Canada.  Now Democrats in the U.S. Senate are pressing for more regulation. Speaking at the the Emergency Operations Center near a downtown Seattle rail tunnel, U.S. Sen. Maria  Cantwell (D- Wash.) said it’s frustrating to see how slowly federal officials are moving when so much explosive oil is coming through. Bellamy Pailthorp reports. (KPLU) See also: First responders likely wouldn’t fight oil-train fire in Seattle rail tunnel  Joel Connelly reports. (SeattlePI.Com)

Global supply glut threatens British Columbia’s LNG projects
Most liquefied natural gas export projects are at risk of being cancelled in North America as a result of a looming global glut of LNG, putting a damper on British Columbia’s energy dreams. Moody’s Investors Service Inc. issued a stark outlook for the fledgling North American LNG industry, arguing it doesn’t make economic sense to invest billions of dollars on each venture especially as Asian buyers slow down their LNG orders for new LNG supplies. Brent Jang reports. (Globe and Mail)

Floating bridge pontoons being towed through Strait; contest underway to capture best image of their travels
The final three pontoons for the state Highway 520 floating bridge over Lake Washington near Seattle will make their way through the Strait of Juan de Fuca this week. Three tugboats — the Western Ranger, Arthur Brusco and Nancy M — are towing the giant floats from Grays Harbor on the Pacific coast, around Cape Flattery and through the Strait of Juan de Fuca to Puget Sound, then through the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks in Ballard and finally into Lake Washington. There, they'll join the 74 previously constructed pontoons that together will support the world's largest floating bridge. Just when the football-field-size floats will pass points on the Strait is uncertain. They are expected to be in Seattle's boat channel Thursday. (Peninsula Daily News)

Inspection overdue on septic tank where child died
King 5 has uncovered the Skagit County property where a two-year-old boy fell into a septic tank with an insecure lid and died Monday was overdue for an inspection. The little boy who died, Orion Fenstra, was at the property with his parents who knew the caretaker of the lot. Danielle Leigh reports. (KING)

Isabella Rossellini, former supermodel, stages play about sex lives of animals
Internationally renowned supermodel and actress Isabella Rossellini is bringing her one-woman show Green Porno to Vancouver's PuSh festival, educating audiences about the sex lives of animals. "For basically just being a pet lover, I became more interested in biology and zoology and conservation, and so lately I went back to university to study ethology, which is animal behaviour in particular," Rossellini told The Early Edition's Rick Cluff. The focus of her one-woman show is reproduction, Rossellini said. (CBC)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PDT WED APR 8 2015
TODAY
W WIND 10 KT...BECOMING NW IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 4 FT AT 9 SECONDS.
TONIGHT
W WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 3 FT AT 8 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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3/24 Samish Bay poop, Surrey Docks coal, ocean acid, NEB free speech, Shell drill, oil spills, BC skiing

Blau Oyster Company

Samish Bay misses upgrade target, partners keep eye to the future
Despite the efforts of more than 20 groups and organizations working for years to clean the Samish watershed, it has again failed a state pollution evaluation. That means the bay cannot get an upgrade this year, but Clean Samish Initiative partners remain hopeful that the watershed will eventually make the mark. Last year, Samish Bay failed the state Department of Health’s eligibility test for a shellfish harvest upgrade within the first three weeks. This year it held out only a few days longer. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Fraser Surrey Docks seeks to pump coal waste water into Metro Vancouver’s sewer system
Fraser Surrey Docks is asking Metro Vancouver for a permit to discharge treated waste water from its planned coal transfer facility into the regional sewage system. The company’s permit application says it is proposing “comprehensive water-based dust suppression systems” that will generate run-off, as will washing down of machinery. Rain that falls on the coal piles would also be collected. Larry Pynn reports. (Vancouver Sun)

Ocean acidification: Research here will add to what we know
Mira Lutz of Anacoretes is an Extended Education faculty member for Western Washington University. She provides a short tutorial on ocean acidification: "We folk of Fidalgo are island dwellers. We look over bays and channels, straits and coves as a normal course of commutes. We take in the beauty and bounty of scenic vistas, a good day’s catch and life is as it should be. Yet we hear all is not as it should be under the surface. There are toxins from dumping and runoff accumulating in the food web from plankton to killer whales, and something even more fundamental. The pH level of the ocean — the entire ocean — is decreasing at geologically unprecedented rates…." (Anacortes American)

Environmental advocates take NEB fight to Supreme Court
An environmental organization and a group of concerned citizens are asking the Supreme Court of Canada to hear a complaint that the National Energy Board is violating their rights to free speech. ForestEthics Advocacy Association, and several individuals who live near the route of Kinder Morgan’s proposed Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project, say the NEB is acting unfairly in limiting who can speak at the public hearings and in restricting the topics to be discussed. Mark Hume reports. (Globe and Mail)

Seattle worries Arctic drilling would impact its port
Interior Secretary Sally Jewell is poised to help Shell clear a major hurdle in its effort to resume drilling for oil in the Arctic Ocean, despite opposition from her hometown of Seattle, where the company’s drilling fleet would be moored at the city’s port. All nine members of the Seattle City Council signed a letter on Monday calling on Jewell to block the Arctic drilling, said Councilmember Mike O’Brien, who spearheaded the effort.,,, Jewell is expected, possibly as early as Wednesday, to sign off on the revised environmental impact statement for Shell’s Chukchi Sea lease, a major step toward the company’s goal of drilling in the Arctic Ocean this summer. Sean Cockerham reports. (McClatchy)

'Small' Oil Spills Can Add Up To Big Costs
State Fish and Wildlife Biologist Brian McDonald is careful not to raise his voice as he approaches a row of baby cribs in a warehouse in Pasco, Washington. Each one holds mallard ducks…. The ducks were hit by an oil spill in Sunnyside earlier this month. McDonald says oil coats the ducks’ feathers and breaks down their natural waterproofing, “so each time they go into the water, it’s like a scuba diver going in without a wetsuit.” Though they don’t always make headlines, 95 percent of oil spills in the U.S. are relatively small — less than the size of a tanker truck you might see on the highway. Washington State’s Department of Ecology responds to about 400 oil spills a year, nearly all of them a few thousand gallons or less. Rowan Moore Gerety reports. (Northwest Public Radio)

Mt. Seymour, Cypress Mountain close for ski season
Mt. Seymour and Cypress Mountain announced Monday that their ski resorts were closing early after a dismal season of meagre snowfall. "We made a huge amount of quality snow during the season but got virtually wiped out on four separate occasions with unearthly amounts of rain," Cypress said in an email to season passholders…. Mt. Seymour has been on standby and was operating its Mystery Peak Express and the Goldie Magic Carpet simultaneously for 12 days. It's now offering season passholders an 88 per cent credit towards the next season. Tamara Baluja reports. (CBC)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PDT TUE MAR 24 2015
TODAY
SE WIND TO 10 KT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 7 FT AT 12 SECONDS. A CHANCE OF SHOWERS.
TONIGHT
SW WIND TO 10 KT...BECOMING SE 15 TO 25 KT AFTER MIDNIGHT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS...BUILDING TO 2 TO 4 FT AFTER
 MIDNIGHT. W SWELL 6 FT AT 11 SECONDS. A CHANCE OF RAIN IN THE EVENING...THEN RAIN AFTER MIDNIGHT.

--
"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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3/13 Sink ship, Vic sewer, train leak, BC orcas, Robyn du Pre, WoRMS, space ocean, WA lege, booms, Takaro pix, Japanese Gulch, Montana coal

Mmmm (Andrew Scrivani/NY Times)

If you like to watch: Secrets of Food Porn Photos
NY Times photographer Andrew Scrivani is a "photographer who makes beautiful images that set taste buds to tingling. He makes people want to cook." Sam Sifton reports. (NY Times)

B.C. divers get federal approval to sink former warship Annapolis
Federal Court has cleared the way for the Artificial Reef Society of British Columbia to sink the former Canadian warship Annapolis in waters just north of Vancouver. The group of recreational divers has been trying to scupper the 113-metre decommissioned destroyer for six years, but has faced numerous delays because of opposition from the Save Halkett Bay Marine Park Society, which fears the wreck will cause pollution. Mark Hume reports. (Globe and Mail)

Sewage treatment for Greater Victoria pushed back to 2023
It could be 2023 before Greater Victoria is treating its sewage — three years beyond the federally legislated deadline of 2020 — according to a new timeline adopted by Capital Regional District directors…. It’s hoped the new schedule, agreed to by CRD directors at an in-camera session on Thursday, will meet federal requirements to qualify for a one-year extension on an $83-million PPP Canada grant for a biosolids treatment plant. Without the extension, the grant agreement will expire at the end of this month. The federal government offered a 12-month extension, but only if the CRD met conditions within a year, including a timeline and having all approvals in place, such as a treatment-plant site. Bill Cleverley reports. (Times Colonist)

N. Dakota loading facility sanctioned in oil train leak discovered at BP Cherry Point
The Federal Railroad Administration has issued a violation against a North Dakota loading facility over a leaking oil car in northwest Washington state that initially wasn’t reported to state officials for a month. The leak was discovered at the BP Cherry Point refinery near Ferndale, Wash., in early November by federal inspectors. About 1,600 gallons of oil was missing from the car, which had originated in Dore, N.D., at a facility operated by Musket Corp. and apparently escaped through a valve that was not properly shut. Curtis Tate reports. (McClatchy)

Killer whales spotted near Vancouver's Lions Gate Bridge
Four killer whales have been spotted swimming under the Lions Gate Bridge in Vancouver's Stanley Park on Thursday morning…. Carla Crossman, a research biologist at the Vancouver Aquarium, said while sightings of killers whales around Vancouver are not common, it is not totally unexpected to see them. "These are probably Biggs killer whales, also known as transients, so they probably made their way up to the Deep Cove area to go hunting for some seals... that area is rich in seals right now, so there's a lot of food for them up in the Inlet," said Crossman. (CBC)

Environmental protector and Bellingham resident Robyn du Pré dies
Robyn du Pré, who has been praised for working tirelessly to protect the region’s environment, died Tuesday, March 10, after a yearlong battle with cancer. The Bellingham resident was 53. Kie Relyea reports. (Bellingham Herald)

WoRMS catalogue downsizes ocean life
A mammoth effort to catalogue all known ocean life is nearly complete. It has taken taxonomic experts eight years to pull together all existing databases and compile one super-definitive list, known as the World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS). Of the 419,000 species names recorded in the scientific literature, nearly half (190,400) have been shown to be duplicate entries. One species of sea snail even had 113 different names. The WoRMS editors have now put the number of species known to science at 228,450. The vast majority - 86% or about 195,000 species - are animals. Jonathan Amos reports. (BBC)

Researchers Think There's A Warm Ocean On Enceladus
Saturn's moon Enceladus is a mystery. From Earth it looks tiny and cold, and yet it's not a dead hunk of rock. Passing spacecraft see trenches and ridges, similar to Earth's, and in 2005 NASA's Cassini mission spotted ice geysers streaming from its south pole. "The moon is actually alive in a sense," says Sean Hsu with the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Beneath the surface, most researchers believe it even has a liquid ocean. Now Hsu and his colleagues have found new evidence that it's a downright balmy ocean. Geoff Brumfiel reports. (NPR)

Naturally acidic waters of Puget Sound surround UW’s Friday Harbor Labs
For more than 100 years, marine biologists at Friday Harbor Laboratories have studied the ecology of everything from tiny marine plants to giant sea stars. Now, as the oceans are undergoing a historic shift in chemistry, the lab is establishing itself as a place to study what that will mean for marine life. And the University of Washington laboratory is uniquely placed in naturally acidic waters that may be some of the first pushed over the edge by human-generated carbon emissions…. Measurements off the dock show that the water surrounding the lab has an average pH of about 7.8, which is acidic for seawater. Worldwide, average ocean pH is thought to have dropped from about 8.2 to 8.1 due to climate change. Hannah Hickey reports. (UW Today)

Which bills are still alive at Legislature’s halfway point
Halfway through the state Legislature’s 105-day session, only three bills have made it to Gov. Jay Inslee’s desk to be signed into law, with the state’s Republican-controlled Senate and Democrat-led House each passing a series of bills seemingly at odds with the policy goals of the opposite chamber…. The work that remains to reconcile the two chambers’ visions for Washington is thornier, and that’s even before the budget-related debates begin over competing visions for expensive transportation and education proposals. Some bills could be brought to life, if they are deemed to be connected to the budget. (Seattle Times)

Mysterious booms continue to shake houses in west Port Angeles, Joyce while defying explanation
A new round of booming noises has disturbed residents of west Port Angeles and Joyce, who say the mysterious sounds shake their homes. The rattling noises were reported at about 12:21 p.m. Wednesday, almost exactly two weeks after the last round of booms heard on the afternoon of Feb. 25, and again at about 9:35 a.m. Thursday…. Speculation on the cause of the booms has included naval military exercises in the Strait, thunder, sonic booms from Naval Air Station Whidbey Island aircraft, hunters and small, shallow earthquakes. Arwyn Rice reports. (Peninsula Daly News)

SFU prof Tim Takaro gets in trouble for taking photos near Kinder Morgan site
A B.C. climate change scientist says he got an "intimidating" call from RCMP because he had taken pictures on Burnaby Mountain near the site of a proposed Kinder Morgan pipeline. Tim Takaro, a health sciences professor at SFU, says he was having lunch in Tofino with his family on Wednesday when his daughter's cellphone rang…. He says the officer asked him if he had recently had been taking photos near a TransMountain pipeline work site on Burnaby Mountain. They also told him they knew he had been to protest rallies that had taken place there a few months earlier. (CBC)

Work party to restore native plants to part of Japanese Gulch
For years, Japanese Gulch was the city’s favorite unofficial park. People visited the wooded area to enjoy wildlife, trails and views, even though most of the land was privately owned. That changed last year with the final, and largest, acquisition by the city of 98 acres, the capstone to a 144-acre park. The city is formally planning the future of Japanese Gulch. As part of that effort, a volunteer event is planned for Saturday to help restore an area that had been heavily used by bicycle motocross (BMX) enthusiasts. The event is organized by the non-profit Seattle group EarthCorps. Sharon Salyer reports. (Everett Herald)

Bill would study effects of closing Montana coal plant
Washington lawmakers say they want to study the effects of closing a massive coal-fired power plant in southeastern Montana that provides power to the Northwest. Senate Bill 5874 was initially written to make it easier for owners of the four-unit plant in Colstrip, Montana, to shut that plant down, prompting letters of concern from Montana's governor and Montana's utility commission. But the Senate amended and passed the bill Wednesday night to call for a study on the costs and benefits of a possible closure. It now goes to the House of Representatives for consideration, where those wanting to wean Washington state off coal hope it can be amended again. Phuong Le reports. (Associated Press) See also: Montana tribe wants to see Cherry Point coal terminal built Ralph Schwartz reports. (Bellingham Herald)

Now, your weekend tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 230 AM PDT FRI MAR 13 2015
TODAY
E WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 6 FT AT 10 SECONDS.
TONIGHT
W WIND 10 KT...BECOMING SE AFTER MIDNIGHT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 5 FT AT 10 SECONDS. RAIN AFTER MIDNIGHT.
SAT
SE WIND 10 TO 20 KT...BECOMING SW IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 1 TO 3 FT. SW SWELL 7 FT AT 9 SECONDS. RAIN.
SAT NIGHT
W WIND 15 TO 20 KT...BECOMING NW TO 10 KT. WIND WAVES 2 TO 3 FT...SUBSIDING TO 1 FT OR LESS AFTER MIDNIGHT. W SWELL 9 FT AT 10 SECONDS.
SUN
NE WIND 5 TO 15 KT...BECOMING E 10 TO 15 KT IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 7 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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2/24 Octo love, Shell train, train derailing, ocean acid, orca ESA, Western Flyer, Saanich ecosystems

Octo Love (Photo: Jackie Hildering/CBC)

If you like to watch: Giant Pacific octopus wraps itself around diver's face near Port McNeill, B.C.  
A scuba diver in Port McNeill, on the north coast of Vancouver Island, B.C., got up close and personal with a Giant Pacific octopus on Sunday, when the marine creature wrapped itself around her face. The encounter between Natasha Dickinson and the octopus was caught on camera by her diving partner Jackie Hildering, a biologist and marine educator who blogs under the name The Marine Detective. (CBC)

Hearing examiner says Shell oil project needs full review
A Skagit County hearing examiner handed conservation groups a victory Monday, ruling that an oil-by-rail project at the Shell Puget Sound Refinery near Anacortes should undergo a full environmental review. "Shell's proposal is a major action significantly affecting the quality of the environment," and a full review should be prepared, Skagit County Hearing Examiner Wick Dufford said in Monday's ruling. The review should take into account the potential risks of spills and explosions, the safety of railroad bridges and the impact of oil-train spills to sensitive natural areas such as Padilla Bay, Dufford wrote. Phuong Le reports. (Associated Press)

Fuel-hauling trains could derail at 10 a year
The federal government predicts that trains hauling crude oil or ethanol will derail an average of 10 times a year over the next two decades. The projection was contained in a Department of Transportation analysis from last July. It says the derailments could cause more than $4 billion in damage and possibly kill hundreds of people if a serious accident were to happen in a densely populated part of the U.S. Matthew Brown and Josh Funk report. (Associated Press)

National ocean acidification study finds Northwest among hardest-hit regions
The Natural Resources Defense Council released a report today that won't come as a surprise to Northwest shellfish growers. Ocean acidification--a chemical imbalance in the water caused by carbon dioxide emissions--is hitting the Northwest harder than other parts of the country. Authors of the report, "Vulnerability and adaptation of US shellfisheries to ocean acidification," ranked Oregon and Washington high among regions expected to be rocked by the ocean's changing chemistry, but not only because of our water conditions. They picked us because many Northwesterners make their living off shellfish - a species that's particularly vulnerable to acidification. Kelly House reports. (Oregonian) See also: Acidifying Waters Are Endangering Your Oysters And Mussels Christopher Joyce reports. (KPLU)

Feds studying how to expand protections for endangered orcas
The National Marine Fisheries Service is studying how to revise habitat protections for endangered orcas that spend time in Washington waters. The federal agency said Monday it is responding to a petition by the Center for Biological Diversity. The group wants to expand protections for southern resident killer whales to include offshore waters from Cape Flattery to Point Reyes, Calif. The agency says it didn't have enough data or analyses yet to propose revisions requested in the petition. It would publish a proposed rule in 2017 after collecting more data and completing studies. (Associated Press)

Steinbeck Vessel To Be Refloated By New Owner And Northwest Shipwrights
New ownership is giving new hope to a decrepit, unseaworthy fishing boat with a notable literary pedigree. Northwest shipwrights will be hired to restore the Western Flyer, the vessel made famous by the author John Steinbeck. In 1940, Steinbeck and marine biologist Ed Ricketts (who later inspired the character Doc in "Cannery Row") chartered the Western Flyer for a Mexican cruise, which Steinbeck immortalized in the non-fiction classic "The Log From the Sea of Cortez." Tom Banse reports. (KPLU)

‘Professional’ oversight of environment needs to be tempered: UVic study
Much of B.C.’s environmental deregulation goes too far in handing over matters of public interest to those employed by industry, says a University of Victoria Environmental Law Centre study. The shift to so-called professional reliance in the past decade has put more decision making and responsibility into the hands of professionals such as consulting engineers, and allowed the B.C. government to reduce staffing. Gordon Hoekstra reports. (Vancouver Sun)

Owners irked after Saanich deems properties sensitive ecosystems
Saanich residents are raising alarm about an ecosystem protection bylaw that may make it harder for them to sell their homes. The Environmental Development Permit Area bylaw, which came into effect in 2012, affects more than 2,000 private properties in the district. One of its provisions would prevent homeowners from planting new gardens without a permit, if it damaged native vegetation. Amy Smart reports. (Times Colonist)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 229 AM PST TUE FEB 24 2015
TODAY
W WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 4 FT AT 13 SECONDS.
TONIGHT
W WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 4 FT AT 12 SECONDS. A CHANCE OF RAIN.
--
"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

2/12 Shell drilling, Victoria sewage, ocean acid test, fish farm flap

“The Dancers” Drumbeg Park (Laurie MacBride)

Afloat in the Salish Sea
Laurie MacBride in Eye on Environment writes: "Just over 30 years ago I moved from Vancouver Island, to put down new roots on the much smaller island of Gabriola. A west-coaster from birth and an islander all my life, I continue to love this little jewel of a place, afloat in the Salish Sea. And on an almost daily basis, I continue to find photographic inspiration here – which is why I’m focusing my new show (opening Feb. 16) on images of Gabriola. “The Dancers”... is one of five photos of Gabriola’s Drumbeg Park in the show…"

New blog: Get Smart With Phone, Rockfish Rebound, Fight IS By Shooting Back
When we get smart, smart phones can change the world; rockfish rebound so now let’s eat; why don’t gun-rights activists go to Syria and Iraq instead of wasting their time trying to get arrested in Olympia?

Port of Seattle inks 2-year lease for Shell oil fleet
The Port of Seattle on Monday signed a lease that allows short-term moorage and vessel operations for a Shell oil fleet assembled to conduct exploration off Alaska’s North Slope. The lease with Foss Maritime is expected to pay the port $13.17 million over two years. It covers 50 acres of the 156-acre Terminal 5, according to a message Wednesday from port CEO Theodore Fick to Patti Goldman of EarthJustice, which represents environmental groups opposed to the port being used a support base for Shell exploration. Hal Bernton reports. (Seattle Times)

CRD conundrum: new sewage ideas could cost millions in funding
The Capital Regional District may have to walk away from $83.4 million in federal grant money as it explores innovative options for its sewage treatment program, some local politicians said Wednesday. “Ultimately, we do we want the federal government to participate. Of course we do,” Saanich Coun. Vic Derman told members of the core area sewage committee on Wednesday. “But we don’t really want to get ourselves in a situation where we are tied to an overly expensive solution because it’s coming along with some federal dollars. That makes no sense.” Part of the CRD’s approved liquid waste management plan has called for a biosolids processing centre at the Hartland Road landfill where sludge (the stuff left over from sewage treatment) would be piped and processed using anaerobic digestion to produce biosolids which could be used as a fuel substitute, produce biogas and recover phosphorus. Derman has long been arguing the CRD should explore alternate technologies such as gasification, which could be cheaper, require less land and also handle kitchen scraps and garbage. Bill Cleverley reports. (Times Colonist)

An acid test for the high seas
IN MANY ways, litmus paper is the perfect scientific sensor. It is cheap, requires no power or skill to use and delivers instant results. Blue paper turns red in acids. Red paper turns blue in alkalis. And that is all you need to know. In the real world, though, things are a bit more complicated. … Measuring pH accurately needs special equipment. And in the rough and tumble of the sea rather than on the calm of the laboratory bench, that equipment needs to be robust, as well. Making such marine measurements is important, however, in order to track the acidification of the ocean which is being brought about by rising carbon-dioxide levels in the air. The XPRIZE foundation, a charity that runs technology competitions, has therefore put up $2m in prize money, to be awarded to those inventors who can come up with devices which will do that tracking best. And on February 9th, in Seattle Aquarium, the competitors started going mano a mano.  (The Economist)

Lawsuit dropped after College of Veterinarians of B.C. agrees to investigate fish researcher’s complaint
Ecojustice said Wednesday that a B.C. Supreme Court lawsuit against the College of Veterinarians of B.C. is being dropped after the college agreed to investigate a complaint by independent fish researcher Alexandra Morton. The suit said that Morton had lodged a written complaint with the College on Sept. 13, 2013, over “incorrect information” provided in a confidential memorandum dated Aug. 1, 2007, from Mark Sheppard to the provincial Minister of Agriculture and Lands. Ecojustice asserted that Sheppard, then an aquatic animal health vet for the province, “advised that live Atlantic salmon eggs are not imported to B.C. and are not allowed to be imported to B.C.; these facts are false.” Larry Pynn reports. (Vancouver Sun)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PST THU FEB 12 2015
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT THROUGH THIS AFTERNOON
TODAY
SE WIND 15 TO 25 KT. WIND WAVES 2 TO 4 FT. W SWELL 10 FT AT 15 SECONDS. RAIN.
TONIGHT
SE WIND 10 TO 20 KT...BECOMING 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 1 TO 3 FT. W SWELL 9 FT AT 14 SECONDS. RAIN IN THE EVENING...THEN A
 CHANCE OF RAIN AFTER MIDNIGHT.

--
"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

2/11 J-pod, ocean acid, tanker stop, oil future, Grays Harbor, crude export, Puyallup R., logging rules, wolf kill, Pineapple Express

Elwha 2/8 (Anne Schaffer/Coastal Watershed Institute)

Research cruise will observe J pod orcas for the next 21 days
A team of marine mammal biologists and other researchers will set out tomorrow morning on a 21-day cruise to study Southern Resident killer whales from aboard the 209-foot Bell M. Shimada research vessel. The researchers are fortunate that a satellite tag is still attached to J-27 and remains operable, making it possible to locate J pod without searching far and wide. Chris Dunagan reports. (Watching Our Water Ways)

Lawsuit over ocean acidification in Oregon, Washington gets a hearing in Seattle
A lawsuit against the federal Environmental Protection Agency over the impacts of ocean acidification on Oregon and Washington's oysters and other sea life will get a hearing Thursday (Feb. 12) in Seattle. U.S. District Court Judge James Robart will hold a motion hearing in the suit brought by the Center for Biological Diversity, a nonprofit organization that aims to protect endangered species and habitat. The center says it's challenging a 2012 decision in which the EPA ruled that Oregon and Washington's sea water meets water-quality standards meant to protect marine life despite increasing acidity. Susannah Bodman reports. (Oregonian)

Coast Guard detains tanker in Port Angeles Harbor
Coast Guard personnel has detained the oil tanker Overseas Jademar in Port Angeles Harbor over alleged safety violations. The 748-foot, double-hulled tanker was traveling along the Strait of Juan de Fuca from Malaysia to Anacortes to offload cargo at the time of an inspection Monday, the Coast Guard said Tuesday. Port state control officers from Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound said they discovered several significant safety violations during a port state control exam of the Marshall Island-flagged tanker, which will remain detained in Sector Puget Sound's captain of the port zone until the safety violations are corrected. The deficiencies found onboard included non-functioning distress signaling equipment and fire safety systems. (Peninsula Daily News)

Oil on wild ride: How will it end?
Predicting oil prices is especially tricky now because the oil market has never quite looked like this. Oil-price collapses of the past were triggered either by plummeting demand or an increase in supplies. This latest one had both. Jonathan Fahey reports. (Associated Press) See also: UBC divestment vote calls on university to end fossil fuel investment  (CBC)

A Coastal Community In Washington Contemplates Oil Terminals
Grays Harbor, with its deep-water berths and fast access to Pacific Ocean shipping routes, has all the ingredients to be a world-class port. In some respects, it already is. The Port of Grays Harbor once bustled with shipments of lumber from nearby forests. Next came cars, grains and biofuel. Now, local leaders are warming up to the idea of adding crude oil to the mix. Roughly 3 billion gallons of crude move from the Bakken oil fields of North Dakota into Washington state by rail each year. As oil companies look for the fastest and most cost-effective way to get their product to West Coast refineries, proposals for new oil facilities are popping up around the region. Ashley Ahearn reports. (EarthFix)

Groups Say Changing Crude Oil Exports Could Change Role Of Northwest Refineries
The changing composition of crude oil could have big consequences for the future of the Pacific Northwest economy. That’s one of the key ideas behind a Freedom of Information Act request filed Tuesday by three environmental nonprofit groups. It has to do with exceptions being made to the nation’s 40-year policy of banning most exports of crude oil. Seattle’s Sightline Institute has joined the Earthjustice law firm and a group called Oil Change International in asking the U.S. Department of Commerce for documentation of new exemptions quietly issued to companies including Pioneer Natural Resources Company and Royal Dutch Shell. The groups want such decisions to get more public scrutiny. Bellamy Pailthorp reports. (KPLU)

Guest: A new way to tame rivers is better for humans and salmon
WHEN the rain-swollen waters of the Puyallup River rose rapidly this winter, the town of Orting braced itself for flooding. In 2006, and again in 2009, the river topped its levees and sent people fleeing from homes, businesses and schools in cities all the way to the Port of Tacoma. But this time, something different happened. The river found new man-made channels created when the old levees were torn out and replaced with new earthen berms set farther back. The river had room to spread out, slow down, and it stayed within the levees, leaving Orting safe and dry. Joachim Pestinger writes. (Seattle Times Opinion)

State adopts new logging rule for landslide-prone areas
A new state rule approved Tuesday makes clear that anyone seeking to log in landslide-prone areas might have to provide additional scientific data to show the safety of the public is adequately protected. The state Forest Practices Board, an independent panel that regulates logging, voted unanimously to adopt the rule that's been in the works since May 2014. That's when the state Department of Natural Resources revised its timber harvest application to clarify that the agency may require additional geotechnical reports before being allowed to log near potentially unstable slopes or landforms. Commissioner of Public Lands Peter Goldmark ordered the change following the deadly Oso mudslide and Tuesday's action cements it into place. Jerry Cornfield reports. (Everett Herald)

B.C. wolf cull will likely last 5 years, deputy minister says
The point man for the British Columbia's effort to save endangered mountain caribou says a controversial wolf cull will likely be necessary for the next five years. Assistant deputy minister Tom Ethier told CBC News the 180 wolves being shot from helicopter in the South Peace and South Selkirk regions this winter are just the beginning. (CBC)

What does Pineapple Express actually mean for B.C.?
1. Pineapple Express is the catchy name for what is known to scientists as an “atmospheric river,” says SFU professor and climate researcher Karen Kohfeld. And some years — such as this year — these water-laden storms can supply as much as a quarter of B.C.’s annual rainfall in as little as seven days. 2. SFU professor John Clague, a natural hazards expert, says these storms bring potentially damaging rockfalls and debris flows that can block highways and rail lines and threaten lives when they roll over mountainous terrain. They also strip snow off local mountains. Gerry Bellett reports. (Vancouver Sun)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PST WED FEB 11 2015
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY WINDS EXPECTED THURSDAY
TODAY
SE WIND 10 TO 20 KT. WIND WAVES 1 TO 3 FT. SW SWELL 4 FT AT 11 SECONDS...BUILDING TO W 6 FT AT 13 SECONDS.
TONIGHT
E WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 9 FT AT 13 SECONDS. RAIN AT TIMES.
--
"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

1/19 Elwha, Alki, MLK, Lummi, BC pipes, Gorge spill, Ioco land, BC megathrust, Lynnwood wetland

Eulachon samples (Coastal Watershed Institute)

If you like to watch: Coastal Watershed Institute Elwha Sampling
Anne Shaffer of CWI writes: "At our January long term sampling of the Elwha estuary and lower river we documented-for the first time after looking for over a decade-hundreds of gravid and spent eulachon, Thaleichthys pacificus, and a gravid female long fin smelt, Spirinchus thaleichthys. These   forage fish, which are federally listed along areas of the west coast due to their  precipitous decline, are-literally-the backbone of coastal cultures and nearshore ecosystems…. Within five months of the dam removal ending, these fish are literally flooding the system, feeding dozens of harbor seals and thousands of birds."

If you like to watch: Alki Junkyard - 1/17/2015
Laura James shares some cool underwater views-- and maybe some good news about seastar recovery.

New blog: The 12th Man On MLK Day
"Hard to sit down and compose a Martin Luther King Day blog after watching the end of Sunday’s Seattle Seahawk game. The 12th Man/Woman in houses up and down the neighborhood street yelled himself/herself hoarse. I hope they yell as hard for justice on Monday but race, civil rights, equal opportunity, domestic abuse, gender equality aren’t as simple as a football game, regardless of how much some people might think of sports as a metaphor for life…."

Lummis reject ‘standing offer’ to negotiate approval of Whatcom County coal terminal
The chairman of Lummi Nation said Thursday, Jan. 15, the tribe is not negotiating with the shipping-terminal company that would build a coal-export facility at Cherry Point. Lummi Chairman Tim Ballew sent a letter to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers dated Jan. 5, asking the agency to immediately deny a federal permit for the Gateway Pacific Terminal. The terminal applicant, SSA Marine, responded by asserting its “standing offer” to meet with Lummi officials and work out a deal that would allow the terminal to be built. “Plain and simple, the response is just as the letter to the Corps said,” Ballew said on Thursday, Jan 15. “There is no way to mitigate the damages the proposed project would bring.” Ralph Schwartz reports. (Bellingham Herald)

Kinder Morgan pipeline: Vancouver submits almost 600 more questions
The City of Vancouver has sent Kinder Morgan almost 600 more questions about its proposed pipeline plan in an effort to plug "significant gaps" in the information already provided by the energy giant. Using its status as intervenor, the city says its questions, submitted to the National Energy Board (NEB), have arisen from either a lack of clarity in Kinder Morgan's 15,000 page proposal, or from responses to previous questions. "It is imperative that all of our questions are fully answered by the company this time," the city said in a statement. "In the first round of requests, Kinder Morgan failed to answer nearly 150 of the 394 questions submitted by us." (CBC)

Falling oil prices pose another delay for B.C. pipelines
Energy economists say that a prolonged slump in oil prices will further slow two proposed pipelines already hamstrung by court challenges and community opposition in British Columbia. Federal Finance Minister Joe Oliver has maintained that “the strategic need is still there” for both the Northern Gateway and Trans Mountain pipelines to go through the province. But the slumping price of oil has caused enough “market instability,” as Mr. Oliver put it, to prompt Ottawa to postpone its budget to at least April. Mike Hager reports. (Globe and Mail)

BP oil spill smaller than feared, judge rules
BP faces a fine of up to $13.7bn (£9bn) after a US judge ruled that the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill was smaller than initially feared. His ruling put the spill at 3.2 million barrels - the US government had estimated it at 4.09 million barrels. It shields the oil giant from what could have been a $17.6bn fine. A final figure is expected later this month. (BBC)

Olympia runs short on money for much-needed repairs at Percival Landing
Percival Landing on Olympia’s downtown waterfront would cost millions of dollars to repair, but the city is trying to scrape up enough money for basic maintenance. City parks staff updated the Olympia City Council about the aging park’s condition — and expected costs for repairs — at a study session Jan. 13. Andy Hobbs reports. (Olympian)

Haz-mat crews at work on fuel spill in Gorge Waterway
Animals chewing on copper line coming from a home fuel-oil tank could be the culprits in a 1,000-litre spill into the Gorge Waterway. The spill — at least the third to enter the Gorge in the past year — was discovered about 10 a.m. Friday. It was traced to a broken fuel line at a modular home just off Admirals Road, about 500 metres from where the oil entered the water, said David Rogers of B.C. Hazmat. Jeff Bell report. (Times Colonist)

Metro Vancouver land package including Ioco townsite sold
A new player in Metro Vancouver real estate development — Brilliant Circle Group Investments Ltd — has bought 230 acres of Imperial Oil land in Port Moody and Anmore to develop a master-planned new village. The deal, which closed last week, includes about half of the Ioco townsite as well as the surrounding area, which is forested land in both Port Moody and Anmore. The purchase price was not disclosed. The property includes some heritage buildings and is close to an environmentally sensitive salmon hatchery. Jenny Lee and Brian Morton report. (Vancouver Sun)

Lynnwood rents land for $5, but wetland strings are attached
A small stretch of Highway 99 in Lynnwood is the scene of a quiet, cordial conflict between wetland preservation and business promotion. The disagreement involves two billboards, a 28-year-old document and a 99.8 percent discount on a city contract. Rikki King reports. (Everett Herald)

As waters acidify, Maine looks to Pacific Northwest peers for help
In the icy waters of midcoast Maine, Bill Mook has his eyes on his oysters – and how the waters they need to survive are gradually, but clearly, changing. Down the coast near Portland, the issue is clams and the mud flats that have become inhospitable to their survival. Farther south still, near Cape Cod in Massachusetts, the worry is so-called “sea butterflies,” tiny marine snails that live low on the food chain and are – like the oysters and clams – threatened by a process known as “ocean acidification.” Chris Adams reports. (McClatchy)

B.C. megathrust earthquake will rip earth open like a zipper says expert
Last megathrust earthquake off B.C. coast in 1700 generated a four storey tsunami in Japan nine hours later. A Natural Resources Canada seismologist says the odds of 'big one' occurring in next 50 years are one in 10. Dirk Meissner reports. (The Canadian Press)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 216 AM PST MON JAN 19 2015
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY FOR HAZARDOUS SEAS IN EFFECT THROUGH THIS AFTERNOON
TODAY
W WIND TO 10 KT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 11 FT AT 12 SECONDS...SUBSIDING TO 9 FT AT 13 SECONDS IN THE AFTERNOON.
 SHOWERS LIKELY IN THE MORNING...THEN A CHANCE OF SHOWERS IN THE AFTERNOON.
TONIGHT
SW WIND TO 10 KT...BECOMING S AFTER MIDNIGHT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 8 FT AT 13 SECONDS.

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