11/16 Tanker ban, BC pipe, storm poop, BC CG, Lummi life, toxic crab, KPLU sold, rail bridges, Tacoma LNG

(PHOTO: Laurie MacBride)

Stone-Faced
Laurie MacBride in Eye on Environment writes: "Over time, the sandstone shores of our region have been eroded by the elements, producing all manner of fascinating textures, patterns and visual oddities. I’ve written before about the natural art gallery you can find here and its strange shape-shifting tendency. When the tide is right, you can find some pretty interesting “faces” along many stretches of shoreline in the Gulf Islands. This one, off Portland Island, jumped out at me when I was rowing our dinghy there this summer – though I’m not sure whether its open mouth was welcoming me or warning me off."

Trudeau bans oil tankers on B.C.'s north coast, threatening pipeline plan; But Enbridge says it will proceed with Northern Gateway
Enbridge’s proposed Northern Gateway plan is, at least for now, dead in the water after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau released a letter of instruction Friday telling his transport minister to ban oil tanker traffic on British Columbia’s north coast. A ban would prevent hundreds of tankers each year from carrying diluted bitumen extracted from Alberta’s oilsands and piped to northern B.C. from being shipped for export overseas. Brian Morton reports. (Vancouver Sun)

100 groups urge Trudeau to end pipeline reviews
Environmental, community and business groups are pushing for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to shut down a pair of pipeline reviews before heading to Paris for climate talks. The City of Burnaby, the Georgia Strait Alliance, Greenpeace Canada and the Sierra Club B.C. are among 100 groups seeking a halt to National Energy Board reviews of Kinder Morgan’s Trans Mountain expansion and TransCanada’s Energy East proposal. In a joint letter sent Thursday to Trudeau, the groups say the reviews should be put on hold until fundamental flaws in the process are fixed…. Trudeau has voiced his support for the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, but has also said the approval system is broken and designed to support the previous government’s objectives. The Liberals have pledged to overhaul the federal environmental review process so future projects would have the public trust. Matt Robinson reports. (Vancouver Sun)

B.C. storm causes sewage overflows in Greater Victoria
The heavy rains that hit B.C. on Thursday have caused the Capital Regional District to advise people to stay away from beaches on southern Vancouver Island, after storm water and sewage combined to create overflows. The waste water is pumped, raw, into the Strait of Juan de Fuca by the CRD municipalities, and now the CRD has advised the public not to wade along the shorelines or allow their pets into the water in the core area of Greater Victoria. (CBC) See also: Sewage flood forces Savary Island Pie Company to lay off 35 staff  Matthew Robinson reports. (Vancouver Sun)

Trudeau orders Kitsilano Coast Guard station re-opened
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has ordered Vancouver's Kitsilano Coast Guard station re-opened in a mandate letter to Minister of Fisheries and Oceans Hunter Tootoo. The move was promised during Trudeau's election campaign, and is included in a list of initiatives the prime minister labeled "top priorities" in his letter. Max Haberstroh reports. (CBC) See also: Justin Trudeau makes Coast Guard fleet refresh 'top priority'  (CBC)

For Lummis, fishing is more than a living — it’s a way of life
Members of Lummi Nation say that for them, fishing is different. Tribal and nontribal fishers alike must keep to the seasons and mind their catch quotas. Still, for most Washington residents, fishing is a privilege granted by the state government, said Jay Julius, a Lummi member who has a seat on the tribe’s council. The tribe, on the other hand, has been fishing for 150 generations, Julius said. Ralph Schwartz reports. (Bellingham Herald)

Calif. boats sit idle as algae threatens Dungeness crab season
San Francisco’s Fisherman’s Wharf typically bustles this time of year as workers prepare to haul millions of pounds of Dungeness crab that are a tradition at Thanksgiving and other holiday meals. But crab pots are sitting empty on docks, boats are idled and fishermen are anxiously waiting for California authorities to open the lucrative Dungeness crab season. California has delayed the Nov. 15 start of its commercial crab season after finding dangerous levels of a toxin in crabs. Officials in Oregon and Washington are testing crab samples and will decide soon whether to open its coastal season by Dec. 1 as planned. Phuong Le reports. (Associated Press)

Manchester stormwater project to help clean up Puget Sound
On a rainy day in Manchester Nov. 6, a cluster of people gathered to celebrate completion of Kitsap County’s stormwater retrofit project. The park has been named qaqad, which translated means “a place to dry clams,” and will serve as a stormwater purification area for runoff from more than 80 acres of surrounding land…. The project took shape in 2009 after the Stormwater Advisory Committee was established at the request of the Manchester community. Sara Miller reports. (Port Orchard Independent)

University of Washington will buy KPLU-FM, pull the plug on its news operation
Pacific Lutheran University announced Thursday that it will sell its broadcasting licenses to the University of Washington, in a plan that will turn the current KPLU at 88.5 FM into an all-music, all-jazz station while KUOW at 94.9 FM becomes the Seattle outlet for National Public Radio and Northwest news…. The sale is expected to close in 2016 when FCC approval is received. The purchase price for KPLU and its assets is $8 million, with $7 million in cash and $1 million of “underwriting announcements” over 10 years. Proceeds from the sale will go to Pacific Lutheran’s endowment, which currently totals $85 million. The sale, and change of formats, will deprive the Puget Sound area of a first-rate news operation. Joel Connelly reports. (SeattlePI.com)

Study adds 37 species to Salish Sea’s fish list, bringing total to 253
…. A new analysis published this fall puts the region’s total number of fish species at 253. That includes 37 species never before documented in the Salish Sea — the 6,500-square-mile expanse that includes Puget Sound, the Strait of Juan de Fuca, the San Juan Islands and the Strait of Georgia. And since the report, “Fishes of the Salish Sea: A Compilation and Distributional Analysis,” was finished, scientists have added another five to the list. Sandi Doughton reports. (Seattle Times)

Environment groups' study calls attention to rail bridge safety
Environment groups from throughout the country say government oversight, industry transparency and safety standards fall short when it comes to railroad bridges that in recent years have seen an increase in the number of oil trains that cross them. A study released Tuesday titled “Deadly Crossings: Neglected Bridges and Exploding Oil Trains,” urges government and industry officials to take action to prevent derailments such as the one that killed 47 in Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, in July 2013 or the one that spilled burning oil into the James River in Lynchburg, Virginia, earlier this year. The study comes from RE Sources in Bellingham, which collaborated with international environment groups ForestEthics and the Waterkeeper Alliance to develop the report. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Tacoma Moves Ahead On Plans For A Liquefied Natural Gas Plant At The Port
Plans for a liquefied natural gas facility at the Port of Tacoma are one step closer to reality, after the Tacoma City Council passed a resolution to move ahead on an agreement with the port about the project. Puget Sound Energy says it needs a place to store natural gas and the way to do that is to chill it to a liquid form. So the company wants to spend $275 million to build the plant which would convert the gas to a liquid and then keep it on port property in a 140-foot-tall storage tank. Ashley Gross reports. (KPLU)

Explosive tanks carried in unmarked cars
Every work day, a small fleet of vehicles travels the roads and highways of Western Washington carrying cargo that, if mishandled or damaged in an accident, can explode. The fleet is not comprised of SUVs or heavy trucks equipped to safely transport cargo that could explode if not handled properly. The cargo is compressed hydrogen gas, and it is transported into neighborhoods and business districts, near schools, playgrounds, coffee shops and senior centers -- in ordinary cars…. The company responsible is Puget Sound Energy, the big utility serving hundreds of thousands of customers. The hydrogen gas, ironically, is used to make sure PSE's network of natural gas pipes running under nearly community are not leaking. Chris Ingalls reports. (KING)

Cadboro Bay threatens to secede over Saanich’s ecological bylaw
The Cadboro Bay Residents Association is threatening to separate its neighbourhood from Saanich if a controversial Environmental Development Permit Area bylaw isn’t changed by next spring. The bylaw, introduced in 2012, affects about 2,000 residents. It kicks in with restrictions and requirements when someone tries to build on land that the bylaw deems to be a rare ecosystem or vital habitat…. In a heated four-hour townhall meeting at the Garth Homer Society on Thursday, the threat was cheered by the more than 300 people who packed the meeting space and spilled into the hallways. The majority of residents were angry and asked councillors to rip up the bylaw or remake it. Cindy Harnett reports. (Times Colonist)

To save the orcas, do we need to demolish dams?
The show is over — at least it’s almost over. SeaWorld has announced that next year, it will phase out its killer whale performances in San Diego. The theme park has been under fire — and, perhaps more importantly, losing visitors — ever since the 2013 movie Blackfish documented its abusive treatment of captive killer whales. But the whales – endangered Puget Sound orcas, if you prefer – need more than just to be freed from captivity. Not surprisingly, they need to eat. Daniel Jack Chasan reports. (Crosscut)

Have a whale of a time at Langley’s new center dedicated to Puget Sound whales
The Langley Whale Center is drawing an increasing number of visitors to its new location in Langley... The move is next door to the previous location but provides far more visibility and double the space for educational displays, information and a gift shop. They also have a lending library for books and DVD’s relating to Puget Sound whales…. The Langley Whale Center is a project of Orca Network, which is based in Freeland, Washington, and is a non-profit started by Howard Garrett and his wife, Susan Berta, in the 1990’s. The organization is dedicated to raising awareness of the whales of the Pacific Northwest, and the importance of providing them healthy and safe habitats. Carolyn Tamler On reports. (Whidbey News Times)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 259 AM PST MON NOV 16 2015
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT THROUGH THIS EVENING
 GALE WATCH IN EFFECT FROM LATE TONIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY EVENING
TODAY
S WIND 15 TO 25 KT...RISING TO 20 TO 30 KT IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 2 TO 5 FT. W SWELL 9 FT AT 12 SECONDS...
 SUBSIDING TO 7 FT AT 12 SECONDS IN THE AFTERNOON. RAIN.
TONIGHT
SW WIND 15 TO 25 KT...BECOMING W 5 TO 15 KT AFTER MIDNIGHT. WIND WAVES 2 TO 4 FT...SUBSIDING TO 2 FT OR LESS AFTER
 MIDNIGHT. W SWELL 10 FT AT 9 SECONDS. 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.

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8/19 Hazel Wolf, sewage, citizen scientist, tanker ban, coal port, rewilding, Blob-Godzilla, crab closure, quakes, gulls

Brown creeper (Mike Hamilton/BirdNote)

Hazel Wolf
The writer Paul Bowles said, “Nothing just happens. It depends on who comes along.” For the Audubon Society in Washington State, that “who” was Hazel Wolf. She was a labor activist, environmental campaigner, and life-long champion of causes she believed in. From 1969 until 1997, Hazel Wolf organized Audubon chapters throughout the Pacific Northwest. She made a difference for birds including her favorite, the Brown Creeper, because someone had made a difference for her. It was a calling, though, that nearly didn’t happen... (BirdNote)

Department of Ecology honors Vashon wastewater plant
The Vashon Wastewater Treatment Plant is perfect — according to the performance requirements of the State Department of Ecology (DOE), that is. The plant is one of 127 such operations throughout the state recently recognized for perfect performance by the DOE. The plant passed all environmental tests, analyzed all samples, turned in all state-required reports and avoided permit violations during 2014. It is the first time the plant has been recognized for such an award. Craig Groshart reports. (Vashon Beachcomber0

Sewage treatment: Victoria’s constipated political process needs fixing
The Seattle Times editorial board asks: "Despite decades of ridicule and protest, Victoria continues the foul practice of treating the Puget Sound like a toilet bowl. What will it take, Oh Canada, to bring your sewage treatment into the 20th century?"

New blog: Citizen Scientists – Are They For Real?
Guest blogger Pete Haase writes: "Nowadays, in this business of volunteering in the environmental community around Puget Sound, I see citizen scientists behind every tree and on very beach…. I’m one.  I know this because several “real” scientists have told me so and thanked me for being one!…"

Greens push for supertanker ban on B.C. coast, stronger environmental laws
The federal Green party says Canada needs stronger environmental assessment laws to help defend coastal communities from risky pipeline and tanker schemes. The party also wants a legislated ban on supertankers on British Columbia's coast and a moratorium on drilling for oil and gas in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. (Canadian Press)

Montana officials praise Cherry Point coal port plan
Congressional and business leaders from Montana shrugged off the concerns of environmentalists and praised a coal terminal proposed for Cherry Point. This was no surprise, as coal is an $80 million a year business in Montana, according to U.S. Rep. Ryan Zinke, a Republican and Montana’s only House member. No state has more coal in the ground than Montana, the officials said. Zinke and representatives of the Montana Farm Bureau and Montana Chamber of Commerce met with reporters on Tuesday, Aug. 18, after touring the site of the proposed Gateway Pacific Terminal. Ralph Schwartz reports. (Bellingham Herald)

Burrard Inlet restoration boosts Seymour River salmon returns
Salmon numbers in the Burrard Inlet are improving, with the help of a so-called rewilding project put in place following an oil spill in Burnaby, B.C. in 2007, according to a North Shore environmental group. "On the pink salmon I would say the returns are 50 per cent better this year than what we saw two years ago," said Shaun Hollingsworth, president of the Seymour Salmonid Society.  He said he believes the numbers of salmon on the Seymour River have improved in part because of the work being done by the Burrard Inlet Restoration Program. (CBC)

Blob-Godzilla combo to affect B.C. coast weather
What will happen when “the blob” meets “Godzilla” off the coast of the Pacific Northwest this year? The question might sound like science fiction, but B.C. scientists are watching closely. Experts forecast this year could bring one of the most intense El Niño events in recorded history, of such strength that some scientists recently dubbed it the “Godzilla El Niño.” The El Niño is expected to bring another warm, dry winter to southern B.C., and experts are watching to see how it combines with a warm-water phenomenon called “the blob” already being observed off the coast of the Pacific Northwest. John Colebourn and Dan Fumano report. (The Province)

Drought prompts more rule changes for region’s rivers
Drought conditions have prompted changes to rules on 60 rivers and streams in the state. The state Department of Fish and Wildlife announced changes this week for some dredging and plant removal activities. The changes prohibit or restrict suction dredging for gold and the removing aquatic plants using machinery. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Emergency closure of Dungeness crab fishery in Olympic National Park’s coastal section
To protect people from severe health impacts, fishing for Dungeness crab along the coastal strip of Olympic National Park is closed, effective at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday, Aug. 19…. This emergency closure is designed to protect human health, as levels of the marine toxin domoic acid have exceed health standards in Dungeness crabs along the Washington coast. (Peninsula Daily News)

Cascadia fault chatters and pops with little quakes
Initial results from a program to monitor the Cascadia Subduction Zone in unprecedented detail show that the fault off the Northwest coast isn’t as seismically quiet as it has long appeared. Seafloor seismometers deployed as part of the National Science Foundation’s Cascadia Initiative detected nearly 600 small earthquakes off central Oregon during their first year of operation — quakes that didn’t register on any land-based instruments. Sandi Doughton reports. (Seattle Times)

Gull darn it! – Lots of seabirds, lots of guano
The problem with gulls in Port Townsend. John Boone reports. (Port Townsend Leader)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PDT WED AUG 19 2015
TODAY
W WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 6 FT AT 9 SECONDS.
TONIGHT
W WIND 5 TO 15 KT. 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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8/10 Humpbacks, BC salmon, pinks, tribal fish, derelict gear, Hood Canal deal, shrimp spray, no tankers, mine waste

Humpback whale (NOAA)

If you like to listen: It Took A Musician's Ear To Decode The Complex Song In Whale Calls
Humpback whales don’t just sing songs — they compose with the whales around them, singing a song that changes, and evolves over time. Scientists didn’t know that until they started recording whale sounds in the 1960s and spent years listening…. Katy Payne, a researcher in acoustic biology at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, and her husband Roger were the first scientists to realize that the intricate and eerie calls of some humpback whales are actually songs. Bill McQuay and Christopher Joyce report. (NPR)

Mountain School makes the magic of the wilderness real for kids
The three-day mountain camp strives to give school children a visceral connection to the Northwest wilderness. Ron Judd reports on the 25-year-old program by the North Cascades Institute. (Seattle Times) See also: Kids get outdoors in ‘Experience The Wild’ camp There is a summer camp where campers climb to the top of a mountain, then descend to the shores of the sea over the course of five days. Vince Richards reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

New blog: Into The (Sort Of) Wild
"I spent parts of this past weekend at Deception Pass State Park with a thousand or more campers. But with the right camera angles, it can still be remembered as a few days in a wildness of sorts. But what was the experience?…"

Salmon on Vancouver Island threatened by heat wave
River levels in Southern B.C. are at record lows and water temperatures are at record highs. This is threatening the millions of salmon coming home to spawn and the billion-dollar freshwater fishing industry that depends on healthy rivers. Greg Rasmussen reports. (CBC News)

Crews to prep Dungeness River this week for huge run of pink salmon
Work could begin this week on creating as hospitable an environment as possible for hordes of pink salmon expected to return to the Dungeness River later this month. A preseason prediction that 1.3 million pinks will return to the Dungeness this year may not come to pass, said Mike Gross, biologist with the state Department of Fish and Wildlife, who is based in Montesano. That estimate was based on a run of 400,000 pinks in the Dungeness two years ago. (Peninsula Daily News)

Court upholds Suquamish’s right to share fishing with Tulalips
A federal appeals court has upheld a lower court’s decision that recognized the Suquamish Tribe’s rights to fish in Port Gardner and other nearby waters. The result is that the Tulalip Tribes, who had filed the appeal, will have to share those fishing grounds with the Suquamish, who are based across Puget Sound in Port Madison. A three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled July 27 that the Tulalip Tribes did not provide ample evidence that fishing grounds on the east side of Puget Sound should not be shared with the Suquamish. Chris Winters reports. (Everett Herald)

Traditional fishing revival launched by First Nations man
Almost a century after fishing practices unique to First Nations in B.C.'s Salish Sea were outlawed, members paddled canoes back to traditional waters and dropped their full-sized reef net. It was the start of a long-term mission to revitalize the once-celebrated technique for gathering food and bonding community for the Strait Salish people. The web-like net — about the length of a city bus — was suspended between two canoes in an endeavour by a University of Victoria doctoral student who envisions bringing his nation's fishing style "back to life." Tamsyn Burgmann reports. (Canadian Press)

Initiative’s feat: Ridding waters of nets
Knowing the deadly consequences abandoned fishing nets pose for marine life, a nonprofit has worked to remove 550 from Puget Sound this year alone. That brings to 5,600 the number of derelict nets the Northwest Straits Initiative and its partners have dragged out since 2002. The effect: restoring 800 acres of marine habitat. The group’s efforts to remove nets identified in shallow Puget Sound waters concluded in June. A celebration is scheduled Thursday in Everett to commemorate the milestone. Noah Haglund reports. (Everett Herald)

State won’t audit shoreline deal Navy got at half the $1.7M value
The acting state auditor has turned down a request by two state senators asking for an audit of a Hood Canal land-lease deal between the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and the Navy. As her reason, Auditor Jan Jutte cited a Jefferson County Superior Court judge’s opinion in May that said DNR had authority to grant the shoreline lease and that the way the agency determined its $720,000 value “was not arbitrary, capricious or unlawful.” (Seattle Times)

Back to the drawing board for control of oyster-killing shrimp
They’ve tried smashing, cementing, shocking and shaking them, but now that pesticides are off the table — at least temporarily — what’s the option for ridding oyster beds of ghost shrimp? Sandi Doughton reports. (Seattle Times) Meanwhile: Shellfish spraying in Willapa Bay continues — on clam beds  After neurotoxin controversy, oyster growers aren’t spraying to kill shrimp. But herbicide applications to kill nonnative eel grass are still allowed. Sandi Doughton reports. (Seattle Times)

Gabriola Island residents rally against tanker moorage proposal
Concerned residents of B.C.'s Gulf Islands are planning to round up their boats near Gabriola Island today to draw attention to a proposal to moor large vessels in the area….. The proposal comes from the Pacific Pilotage Authority of Canada, which says the new anchorage space is needed, partly because ships are getting larger… the authority's CEO Kevin Obermeyer says the authority is currently gathering more research on the issue and will hold a meeting with Gabriola Island residents in early 2016, after which they'll have 90 days to respond. (CBC)

EPA Says It Released 3 Million Gallons Of Contaminated Water Into River
In an event that has led to health warnings and turned a river orange, the Environmental Protection Agency says that one of its safety teams accidentally released contaminated water from a mine into the Animas River in southwest Colorado. The spill, which sent heavy metals, arsenic, and other contaminants into a waterway that flows into the San Juan National Forest, occurred on Wednesday. The EPA initially said that 1 million gallons of wastewater had been released, but that figure has risen sharply.  (NPR, KUNC)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PDT MON AUG 10 2015
TODAY
VARIABLE WIND TO 10 KT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS.  W SWELL 3 FT AT 8 SECONDS.
TONIGHT AND TUE
VARIABLE WIND TO 10 KT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 3 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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4/2 Rockfish, BC sockeye, oil train, OR coal, BC tanker bill, Salish Sea, sand shrimp, Green Diamond trees

Snow Trains Bring Water to the West
Today (April 1), Governor Inslee made an important announcement that will put a smile on the faces of local environmentalists: many of the coal trains that have been plying our region will be adapted to carry snow from the eastern and central U.S. to the Pacific Northwest.   Coal trains will be turned to snow trains, and as shown below, the first snow trains are rolling. Cliff Mass winks. (Weather Blog)

New study highlights the value of local knowledge in recovering endangered species
A new study highlights the value of local knowledge in recovering endangered species. The collaborative research, co-authored by NOAA Fisheries, the University of Washington, and researchers from the University of Alaska, Fairbanks, is specifically designed to incorporate the knowledge of recreational anglers into recovery planning for three rockfish species in Puget Sound—bocaccio, canary rockfish, and yelloweye rockfish, each of which was listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) in 2010. The study explores how recreational anglers' understanding of the ecosystem and fishing practices influence their views of conserving Puget Sound rockfish. Through surveys of 443 recreational boat-based anglers, which included scoping questions related to their knowledge of rockfish biology, fishing practices, perceptions of threats to rockfish, and preferences for rockfish recovery measures, several key findings arose. (Pyys.org)

More bad news for B.C.’s wild sockeye
Nations around the Pacific Ocean may have to cap the number of hatchery salmon they release if sockeye salmon runs are to return to sustainable levels, according to a new study. Record high numbers of pink salmon in the North Pacific coincided with the disastrously small 2009 Fraser River sockeye return, while the unexpectedly large 2010 sockeye return interacted with 40-per-cent fewer pinks, said Brendan Connors, co-author of the article published by the Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences. The findings have implications for fisheries management and hatchery programs in Russia and Alaska that produce most of the five billion hatchery fish released into the Pacific each year. Randy Shore reports. (Vancouver Sun)

BNSF: State rail regulators wrong in saying company failed to report leaks
BNSF claims that Washington state rail regulators were mostly wrong when they said the company failed to properly report more than a dozen hazardous materials spills. In an email newsletter Monday, March 30, the company said it wants to “set the record straight” regarding claims made by the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission staff in a March 19 report. The report outlines 14 releases of hazardous materials between Nov. 1, 2014, and Feb. 24 that the state says were not properly called in to a state hotline within the required half hour of learning about them. In some cases BNSF did call the hotline, but not within 30 minutes, according to the report. In other cases, it states BNSF never called the hotline and only submitted a copy of a federal report required within a month of any hazardous material spill…. But the company stated it had found inaccuracies with “more than 90 percent of the alleged violations.” Samantha Wohlfeil reports. (Bellingham Herald)

Coal export terminal gets water-quality approval from Oregon
Oregon environmental regulators have ruled that proposed coal export terminal on the Columbia River meets state and federal water-quality standards, but the project still faces an adverse ruling from another state agency and questions about its economics in a slumping coal market. The state Department of Environmental Quality issued a water-quality certification Tuesday to the proposed Coyote Island Terminal at Boardman, The East Oregonian reported. The terminal would receive coal arriving by rail from Montana and Wyoming and put it on barges. Downriver, the barges would be offloaded at another terminal, and the coal put on oceangoing vessels, bound for Asia. Shipments to the Boardman terminal could total 8.8 million tons a year. (Associated Press)

B.C. MP's anti-tanker bill not expected to pass
Members of Parliament will vote on a private member's bill on Wednesday afternoon that would keep crude oil tankers off of British Columbia's North Coast. However, Bill C-628, introduced by New Democrat MP Nathan Cullen, likely has next to no chance of passing due to the fact that not a single Conservative MP in B.C. appears to support it. Daybreak North reports. (CBC News)

The Northwest’s Salish Sea comes alive in new book
Perhaps you remember the squabbles a few years ago over the effort to incorporate a new name, “the Salish Sea,” into the cartography of inland waters running from Olympia up to Campbell River, British Columbia. This was an international issue of identity – or lack thereof. As Audrey DeLella Benedict and Joseph K. Gaydos suggest in their new book, “The Salish Sea: Jewel of the Pacific Northwest,” the matter arose when environmentalists, concerned by the impact of oil tankers on the inland waters, found it hard to gain traction with their arguments – it was difficult to assert there could be a problem in a place that doesn’t even exist on a map. A professor of environmental and marine science at Western Washington University, Bert Webber, proposed that the waters of Puget Sound, the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and the Strait of Georgia be given a single moniker to reflect the fact that, despite political boundaries, they are an integrated ecosystem. Barbara Lloyd McMichael reports. (Bellingham Herald)

Sand shrimp may be unavailable due to whales
Herring, sand shrimp, Power Bait, cured roe, nightcrawlers. Eliminate any of those baits and you’ve made a major portion of the western Washington sport fishing public very unhappy. So expect howls of outrage when the word gets around that sand shrimp may be unavailable — or at least hard to find — for anglers anticipating fishing that big run of pinks due this summer in our local rivers. Or steelhead, Dolly Varden, cutthroat, and several other species…. The problem stems from the fact that leases to harvest sand shrimp on public beaches along parts of Saratoga Passage were cancelled last summer by the Washington Department of Natural Resources.... But whales have entered the picture…. Recently, questions have been asked, often by folks in the Langley area, about whether or not commercial shrimp harvest is negatively impacting whale behavior. Wayne Kruse reports. (Everett Herald)

Green Diamond plants its 100 millionth tree, more or less
In the midst of a 40-acre clearcut Wednesday just east of Taylor Towne in Mason County, about 75 people with ties to the state’s timber industry watched Green Diamond Resource Company Chairman Colin Moseley plant what was proudly called the family-owned forestry company’s 100 millionth tree….The Douglas fir seedling that gained so much attention was surrounded by about 16,000 slightly larger Douglas fir and Ponderosa pine trees that were planted in 2011 on the 40-acre parcel, which was harvested in 2010. On all four sides of the reforested area, Green Diamond timber stood in age classes ranging from 15 years old to 80 years old., symbolizing the fact that the company, which began as S.G. Simpson & Company has been around a long, long time — since 1890 to be exact. John Dodge reports. (Olympian)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 301 AM PDT THU APR 2 2015
TODAY
LIGHT WIND...BECOMING SW TO 10 KT IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 6 FT AT 11 SECONDS.
TONIGHT
SW WIND 10 KT...BECOMING SE 15 TO 25 KT AFTER MIDNIGHT. WIND WAVES BUILDING TO 2 TO 4 FT. W SWELL 5 FT AT 10 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.

Salish Sea News: Communicate, Educate, Advocate

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3/25 Herons, Portage Bay, Lolita, oil train plans, Exxon Valdez, Fir Island, Bainbridge who?

Herons (Darrell Benedict/KING)

If you like to watch: Explore the PNW: Sammamish River Heron Colony
You don't have to travel far to enjoy great bird watching in the Puget Sound area. Recently, my husband Darrell and I spotted a heron colony along the shore of the Sammamish River while kayaking. The big birds nest high in the treetops and were easy to spot since the branches haven't leafed out yet. Darrell later returned to the spot on foot to photograph the nesting pairs as they prepared to raise a new batch of chicks. Evonne & Darrell Benedict report. (KING)

Pollution partially closes nearly 500 acres of Portage Bay shellfish beds
Commercial shellfish harvesting is being banned on nearly 500 acres of Portage Bay for about half the year because of worsening water quality caused by fecal coliform bacteria, the Washington state Department of Health announced Tuesday, March 24. Portage Bay is home to Lummi Nation’s ceremonial, subsistence and commercial shellfish beds. State health officials last week changed the classification of nearly 500 of the 1,300 commercial shellfish harvesting acres in the bay from “approved” to “conditionally approved” because of water quality. That means harvesting in the conditionally approved area will be closed each year April through June and again October through December. Kie Relyea reports. (Bellingham Herald)

Appeals court hears arguments over license for orca 'Lolita'
Animal rights groups that want a captive killer whale removed from Miami Seaquarium asked federal appeals judges Tuesday to send their lawsuit against the tourist attraction and the U.S. Department of Agriculture back to a U.S. district court. The case concerns an orca named Lolita that has lived at the Seaquarium since 1970. Last year, a federal judge in Miami dismissed the groups' lawsuit alleging that the tank that holds Lolita violates USDA standards for its care under the Animal Welfare Act. Jennifer Kay reports. (Associated Press)

Fire Chiefs demand oil train disaster plans from BNSF Railroad
The Washington Fire Chiefs, in a pointed letter, have asked the BNSF Railroad to turn over “Worst Case Scenarios” for an oil train accident as well as “Comprehensive Emergency Response Plans” for high hazard flammable trains…. The letter comes as three oil trains pass through Seattle each day en route to northern Puget Sound refineries. Railroads now transport one-tenth of U.S. crude oil output — approximately 1.1 million barrels a day. Joel Connelly reports. (SeattlePI.Com)

Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Anniversary: Effects, Facts, Pictures, Captain's Drinking Rumors
At 12:04 a.m. on March 24, 1989, the oil tanker Exxon Valdez ran aground on Bligh Reef in the Prince William Sound off the coast of Alaska. It was one of the worst oil spills in history at the time, leaking nearly 11 million gallons of oil – think 17 Olympic swimming pools’ worth – into a pristine sea and ultimately coating more than 1,300 miles of shoreline coated with black, sludgy oil. “We’ve fetched up hard aground, and evidently we’re leaking some oil,” Exxon Valdez Captain Joseph Hazelwood said in a recording during the crash. Elizabeth Whitman reports. (International Business Times)

Fir Island dike setback moves forward  
New dikes are expected to go up on the state Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Fir Island Farm this summer, making way for removal of about a mile of the old ones next year. The project will inundate land formerly farmed for waterfowl to create fish habitat where the Skagit River meshes with Skagit Bay. It’s more than twice as ambitious a restoration project as The Nature Conservancy’s earlier work at Fisher Slough. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Ever look over to Bainbridge Island and wonder who Bainbridge was?
Starting the New Year on an 11-boat raft up in Eagle Harbor on Bainbridge Island, I was curious to know if anyone else ever wondered who Bainbridge was? Why was an island named after him? And what did he do? Mark Aberle reports. (Three Sheets Northwest)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PDT WED MAR 25 2015
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT THROUGH LATE TONIGHT
TODAY
SE WIND 15 TO 25 KT...BECOMING S IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 2 TO 4 FT. W SWELL 6 FT AT 10 SECONDS. RAIN.
TONIGHT
S WIND 15 TO 25 KT...EASING TO 10 TO 20 KT AFTER MIDNIGHT. WIND WAVES 2 TO 4 FT...SUBSIDING TO 1 TO 3 FT. W SWELL 8
 FT AT 10 SECONDS. RAIN LIKELY 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.

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2/23 BirdNote, Oil oil oil, Shell smell, Nanuq death, saving orcas, stormwater $s, climate $s, Saanich leak

Winter wren (Wild Bird Video/BirdNote)

BirdNote At 10
To celebrate BirdNote's 10-year anniversary, we asked BirdNote founder Chris Peterson how she came up with the idea for the show. The StarDate public radio program provided inspiration. “I had this idea grab me around the neck,” Chris recalls. “Why don’t we do for birds what StarDate does for stars?” She gathered a team, and the first BirdNote broadcast, “Bald Eagle – National Symbol,” aired on KPLU 88.5 FM Seattle/Tacoma on February 21, 2005. Since then, more than 1200 shows have aired. (BirdNote)

If you like to watch: Inside The Fight To Save The Salish Sea
A proposed tar sands pipeline through Western Canada threatens the Salish Sea—rich, abundant border waters shared by the U.S. and Canada—and the very existence and way of life of Native tribes located in the United States. The pipeline would end near Vancouver, but from there, massive oil tankers carrying toxic tar sands bitumen must thread their way through the waters of the Salish Sea along the U.S-Canada border, where an oil spill would destroy one of our nation's most valuable ecosystems. (EarthJustice)

State seeks more oversight as rails carry more oil
As the number of trains carrying volatile North Dakota crude oil through Washington grows, railroads are coming under scrutiny. Hal Bernton reports. (Seattle Times)

Ferndale senator’s oil safety bill faces competition in state House
Mirroring last session, two competing bills that would expand oil safety programs are making their way through the state Legislature, and compromises likely will be needed for either to pass. Rep. Jessyn Farrell, D-Seattle, is working to pass House Bill 1449, which was requested by Gov. Jay Inslee to implement a series of oil safety recommendations made in a state Department of Ecology oil transportation study. Samantha Wohlfeil reports. (Bellingham Herald)

Conferences in March to discuss fight for rail safety
“The Future of Railroads: Safety, Workers, Community and the Environment” is the title for two upcoming conferences sponsored by Railroad Workers United, a labor group active in last year’s successful fight against one-person “crews” at the BNSF Railway, and Backbone Campaign, an organization based in Washington state active on environmental and other issues. The conferences will be held March 14 in Richmond, California, and March 21 in Olympia, Washington. Jeff Powers reports. (The Militant)

Despite Kinder ruling, NEB wants pipeline emergency response plans made public
The National Energy Board wants companies in Canada to make their emergency response plans public for existing pipelines, even though it has ruled Kinder Morgan can keep its plans secret from British Columbians. "Our chairman is not very happy. Canadians deserve to have that information,” said Darin Barter, a spokesperson for the NEB. Companies are not required to disclose their emergency response plans under Canadian law. Barter said the board is not calling for a legislative change, but for a commitment from industry to be more transparent. David Geselbracht and Laura Kane report. (Globe and Mail)

Maintenance work at Shell Refinery causes bad odors
A strong chemical odor from the Shell Puget Sound Refinery late Friday afternoon had an impact on some of its neighbors, and the chairman of the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community says he wants answers. At least 13 instances of offensive odors were reported Friday to the Northwest Clean Air Agency, which said the affected areas included the Swinomish reservation and La Conner. An air quality inspector went to the scene to investigate the source of the odor, the agency said. The Skagit County Department of Emergency Management issued an alert Friday night saying the odor was expected to dissipate with time but advised anyone who felt ill to call 911 or visit a hospital. Evan Marczynski reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Beluga whale Nanuq death at Orlando SeaWorld reignites breeding debate
The death of a beluga whale loaned by the Vancouver Aquarium to Orlando SeaWorld for breeding purposes is renewing the debate over whether cetaceans should be bred in captivity. SeaWorld officials said Nanuq died Thursday at the estimated age of 31 or 32. While the cause of death is not yet known, he had been undergoing treatment for an infection caused by a broken jaw that occurred in an encounter with other animals. "The conversation has obviously been brought back to the table," said Vancouver Park Board commissioner Michael Wiebe.  (CBC)

If you like to watch: Orca encounter near Whidbey Island  Photographer Stu Davidson said he had an unbelievable day when he was out on the boat on Puget Sound on Sunday. He encountered a small pod of about four or five Orcas milling just off the Clinton Ferry dock and watched them frolic before slowly heading north. (KING)

To save orcas, we must save salmon
OUR salmon and orcas are at a crossroads. Puget Sound’s resident killer whale population could be headed toward extinction, and saving our region’s salmon — a critical and sharply declining food source for our whales — may be the only way to save these Northwest icons. Ken Balcomb, Martha Kongsgaard and David Troutt opine. (Seattle Times Opinion)

Kitsap to receive major funding for stormwater, sewer construction
Washington Department of Ecology is poised to award $229 million in grants and loans for projects that will help clean up waters throughout the state. Grants to Kitsap County include $4.2 million for planned stormwater projects, plus another $4.6 million to lay sewer lines designed to protect shellfish beds in South Kitsap’s Yukon Harbor. This level of funding for a single round of water-quality grants demonstrates that elected officials are serious about cleaning up Puget Sound and other water bodies throughout the state. The Legislature must still approve the funding for the proposed grants and loans. Chris Dunagan reports. (Watching Our Water Ways)

Noted climate-change skeptic linked to corporate money
Documents show Wei-Hock Soon, a scientist who attributes global warming largely to variations in the sun’s energy, has accepted more than $1.2 million from the fossil-fuel industry but failed to disclose that in most of his scientific papers. (NY Times)

Former homeowners must pay for oil tank leak in Saanich
Current and former owners of a Saanich home with a leaking underground oil tank must pay the costs of cleaning up their neighbour’s property, a B.C. Supreme Court judge has ruled…. The contamination was discovered on March 4, 2012, when Saanich engineers saw oil spilling into the Gorge Waterway from the storm drain at the bottom of Adelaide Avenue. They found oil coming through a drainage tile on Dolinsky’s property. Louise Dickson reports. (Times Colonist)

Now, your tug weather--
 WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PST MON FEB 23 2015
TODAY
SE WIND TO 10 KT BECOMING E IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 5 FT AT 14 SECONDS.
TONIGHT
W WIND TO 10 KT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 5 FT AT 13 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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2/17 Elwha, Grace Islet, oil train crash, spill risk, BC fish farms, sea star comeback, OR minnow, bird beaks

Elwha River 2/15 (Tom Roodra/Coastal Watershed Institute)

Elwha Shoreline Changes Public Forum and Field Tour, Feb. 21
Coastal Watershed Institute and partners present a free forum and field trip for you to learn about changes on the Elwha shoreline as a result of dam removal. A forum will be held 11 AM- 12 PM at the Landing Mall, Room 205, 115 E. Railroad Ave., Port Angeles, and a shoreline walking tour (1 - 4 PM) will be held near the Place Road Beach Access. Carpool advised.

British Columbia pays $5.45-million for Grace Islet
B.C. has finalized its deal to buy Grace Islet, with the lion’s share of the purchase price going to the former owner who had planned to build a retirement home on the picturesque site. The province announced Monday it has put up $5.45-million for the property – in Ganges Harbour off Saltspring Island in the Gulf Islands – consisting of $850,000 for the land and $4.6-million as a settlement with the previous landowner. That amount represents “costs incurred over the past two decades by the landowner and his lost opportunity for future enjoyment of the property,” the province said in a statement Monday. Costs also reflect the expense of putting in utilities and materials for a “high-end house,” the statement added. The province announced its plans to buy the island in January but had not disclosed a price. Reached after months of controversy, the deal was struck to protect the ancient aboriginal cemetery that covers the property. Wendy Stueck reports. (Globe and Mail)

Two oil trains derail, tank cars burning in West Virginia, Ontario
Two oil trains have derailed and caught fire, one in a populated area of Fayette County, W.V., and the other in a remote Ontario forest, during the past 48 hours. The West Virginia accident has seen 14 tankers and a house catch on fire, with at least one tanker car going into the Kanawha River. A nearby water-treatment plant was shut down. The train was carrying Bakken field crude oil from North Dakota, the same somewhat volatile oil that is now passing by rail along waterfronts of Puget Sound cities en route to oil refineries at Anacortes and Cherry Point on northern Puget Sound. Joel Connelly reports. (SeattlePI.Com)

Risk of oil spills shifts from big ships to smaller vessels, Coast Guard expert says
f you fear a big oil spill on Washington waters, you're wiser to worry about small spills and fret about them more often, according to several public and private agency experts. They told an oil spill forum earlier this month that pleasure craft and fishing boats leak more oil than do cargo ships, luxury liners or tankers. And on the North Olympic Peninsula, they said, be grateful we have no train tracks because the threat from so-called crude by rail is greater than a marine spill. Still, no one dismisses the possibility of a disaster like the Arco Anchorage catastrophe in Port Angeles Harbor late in 1985 “when a lot of folks instead of spending Christmas with their families went out and worked on an oil spill,” said Jeff Ward of the Clallam County Marine Resources Committee. James Casey reports. (Peninsula Daily News)

Ottawa extends multi-year aquaculture licences in B.C.
The federal government will issue multi-year licences for finfish and shellfish aquaculture facilities in B.C. to promote investment in sustainable design and technology by the industry. Licenses issued in B.C. by Fisheries and Oceans Canada have previously been limited to one year, which may have discouraged operators from making significant investments in more secure — and more expensive — ocean-based facilities and in land-based hatcheries, according to Jeremy Dunn, executive director of the B.C. Salmon Farmers Association. Randy Shore reports. (Vancouver Sun) See also: B.C.’s only land-based salmon farm on target  Randy Shore reports. (Vancouver Sun)

Sea Stars Could Be Making a Comeback
On a windless, cloudless night in late January, Salish Sea ecologist Russel Barsh and his team of scientists at the Kwiáht biology lab scoured Indian Island for sea stars. No humans live on the island, a tiny strip of land just south of Port Townsend, but the winter low tide reveals a colorful variety of the island’s other inhabitants: violently fucking sea slugs, dazzling red octopuses, reptilian-looking snail fish, and the island’s famous sea stars—one as big as a yard wide—that have traditionally feasted on the mussels and clams hidden in the sand. Indian Island’s sea star population—like other sea star hangouts up and down the West Coast—experienced a swift and mystifying die-off that inspired alarmist headlines in 2014. Marine biologists looked on with horror as appendages of the keystone species—a species that plays a fundamental role in its ecosystem—washed ashore. But this year, Barsh and his crew found something hopeful: Hundreds of sea stars, babies, mostly. And healthy, from the looks of it. Syndey Brownstone reports. (The Stranger)

Oregon minnow is first fish to be taken off endangered list
It’s official. A tiny minnow that lives only in backwaters in Oregon’s Willamette Valley is the first fish to be formally removed from Endangered Species Act protection because it is no longer in danger of extinction. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director Dan Ashe was to make the announcement Tuesday afternoon at a wildlife refuge outside Corvallis. The action comes 22 years after the 3-inch-long fish was first listed as an endangered species, and five years after it was upgraded to threatened. Jeff Barnard reports. (Associated Press)

Chemical contaminants suspect in mystery of Alaska chickadee beak deformities
When black-capped chickadees and some other birds in the Anchorage area began turning up in the late 1990s with elongated, weirdly curved or twisted beaks, biologists and bird lovers began to worry. The deformities range from slight to gross and can have severe consequences for the birds if they are unable to use their beaks to pick up food or groom feathers so their bodies retain heat. The tiny black-capped chickadees are the most afflicted, with 7 percent of Alaska adults developing deformed beaks. The deformities are also showing up in other birds, including ravens and crows, though not as frequently, (said Colleen Handel, a U.S. Geological Survey biologist.) Now the beak-deformity outbreak has spread north to Fairbanks, south to the Puget Sound region and -- for an unknown reason -- across the globe to Great Britain, where it is showing up among starlings, tits and other species, Handel said. Yereth Rosen reports. (Alaska Dispatch News)

Citizen Scientists Generate Big Data For Annual Bird Count
Downy woodpecker, dark-eyed junco, tufted titmouse. These are just a few of the most popular birds to have been sighted in last year’s Great Backyard Bird Count, when in 2014, bird enthusiasts from 135 countries participated in counting over 4,000 species. Monday is the final day of the annual count. It’s a chance for researchers at Cornell University’s Ornithology Lab to harness the power of nearly 100,000 citizen scientists over a 4-day period. Michelle Leis reports. (OPB)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 251 AM PST TUE FEB 17 2015
TODAY
E WIND 10 TO 20 KT. WIND WAVES 1 TO 3 FT. W SWELL 4 FT AT 13 SECONDS.
TONIGHT
SE WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 4 FT AT 13 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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2/11 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.

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12/31 New orca baby, highest pressure, double-hulled tankers, oil trains, Shell Kulluk

New calf J50, mother J16, 12.30.14 (Center for Whale Research)

Baby orca born to endangered population of whales that frequents Puget Sound
The Orca Network says a baby orca has been born to the endangered population of killer whales that frequent Puget Sound. The group's executive director Howard Garrett says the baby was spotted with its mother Tuesday in the waters of Canada north of San Juan Island. The Center for Whale Research also said on its Facebook page that the baby was born to member of the J pod, one of three families of whales that spend time in the inland waters of Washington state and Canada. (Associated Press)

Highest Pressures in Northwest History
Cliff Mass writes: "I am always intrigued by all-time history weather records and it appears we are experiencing one right now: The highest sea level pressure ever recorded at some northwest stations.  For others it is the highest December sea level pressure on record. Some folks are complaining about strange sinus pain and headaches, among other maladies.  I know I am feeling a strange tightness in my head…." (Cliff Mass Weather Blog)

25 Years After Exxon Valdez, U.S. Mandates Double-Hulled Oil Tankers
Oil tankers bring about 15 million gallons of oil every day into Washington state. Starting Jan. 1, those ships are required to have double hulls. The oil-spill prevention measure has been in the works for decades, ever since Capt. Joseph Hazelwood ran the Exxon Valdez onto Alaska’s Bligh Reef in 1989. Eleven million gallons of oil spilled into Prince William Sound, killing thousands of seabirds and sea otters, devastating the region’s fisheries and unleashing action in Washington, D.C. A year after what was then the nation’s worst oil spill, the U.S. Congress required oil tankers to have double hulls. A quick fix it was not: The Oil Pollution Act of 1990 gave ship owners 25 years to phase out their single-hull tankers. John Ryan reports. (KUOW)

Oil Train Safety And Taxes On Lawmakers’ Agenda For 2015
For the past few years, a growing number of trains have been bringing “rolling pipelines” of oil from North Dakota to ports and refineries in the Pacific Northwest. And in that time, the Washington and Oregon legislatures have failed to come up with the money to pay for the cost of responding to the increasing risk of oil spills in their states. That could change in 2015. Both states’ governors and legislators are talking about the need to enhance safety and preparedness in response to the uptick in oil train traffic in the region. But there are some sticking points when it comes to deciding what’s to be done, and more importantly, how to pay for it. Ashley Ahearn reports. (EarthFix)

The Wreck of the Kulluk
In 2005, Royal Dutch Shell, then the fourth-largest company on Earth, bought a drill rig that was both tall, rising almost 250 feet above the waterline, and unusually round. The hull of the Kulluk, as the rig was called, was made of 1.5-inch-thick steel and rounded to better prevent its being crushed. A 12-point anchor system could keep it locked in place above an oil well for a full day in 18-foot seas or in moving sea ice that was four feet thick. Its drill bit, dropped from a 160-foot derrick, could plunge 600 feet into the sea, then bore another 20,000 feet into the seabed, where it could verify the existence of oil deposits that were otherwise a geologist’s best guess. It had a sauna. It could go (in theory) where few other rigs could go, helping Shell find oil that (in theory) few other oil companies could find. McKenzie Funk reports. (NY Times)

Now, your New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 827 PM PST TUE DEC 30 2014
WED AND WED NIGHT
SE WIND TO 10 KT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 2 FT AT 10 SECONDS.
THU
LIGHT WIND. WIND WAVES LESS THAN 1 FT. W SWELL 3 FT AT 11 SECONDS.
THU NIGHT
SW WIND TO 10 KT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 3 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.

Salish Sea News: Communicate, Educate, Advocate

Follow on Twitter.

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9/25 Obama reserve, JeffCo restoration, BC fish farm, Chlliwack mess, BC tanker, & pipes, Endridge, BC tribes

(Jim Maragos/AP, Washington Post)

Obama to create world’s largest protected marine reserve in Pacific Ocean
President Obama will use his legal authority Thursday to create the world’s largest fully protected marine reserve in the central Pacific Ocean, demonstrating his increased willingness to advance a conservation agenda without the need for congressional approval. By broadening the existing Pacific Remote Islands National Marine Monument from almost 87,000 square miles to more than 490,000 square miles, Obama has protected more acres of federal land and sea by executive power than any other president in at least 50 years and makes the area off-limits to commercial fishing. By Juliet Eilperin reports. (Washington Post)

Bridge to replace culverts between Indian, Marrowstone islands
A bridge would be installed to replace road fill and twin culverts on the highway connecting Indian Island and Marrowstone Island, part of a $24.8 million boost to salmon recovery projects in Puget Sound. The "restoring Kilisut Harbor" project is one of four Salmon Recovery Board and Puget Sound Partnership projects set in Jefferson County, according to a press release from the Washington State Recreation and Conservation Office. (Port Townsend Leader) See also: Saltmarsh, shoreline habitat restored along Tarboo Bay  (Port Townsend Leader)

B.C. salmon farmers pledge to meet new global standard
Fewer than one in 20 of the world’s salmon farms have achieved Aquaculture Stewardship Council environmental certification, but B.C.’s salmon aquaculture companies have committed to 100-per-cent certification in this region by 2020. “The members of the B.C. Salmon Farmers Association want to achieve the gold standard in certification,” said Jeremy Dunn, executive director of the association. Randy Shore reports. (Vancouver Sun)

Sockeye fishing mess creates need for Chilliwack river cleanups
An extremely busy recreational fishery for sockeye in Chilliwack this summer means lots of extra garbage is littering the riverbanks right now. In response, river stewards in Chilliwack are gearing up for two big cleanups, Sept. 27 on the Fraser River and Sept. 28 on Chilliwack-Vedder River system. The Fraser Valley Salmon Society recognized there has been a larger than normal influx of visitors to the fishing spots, hence the need for a special cleanup. Jennifer Feinberg reports. (Chlliwack Progress)

NDP Bill Would Ban Tankers off BC's North Coast
Banning supertankers from the North Coast of British Columbia is one way to avoid potential conflict or environmental hazards related to the proposed Northern Gateway pipeline, says a New Democrat MP from the province. Finance critic Nathan Cullen tabled a private member's bill Tuesday that if passed would not only ban oil tankers from the province's North Coast, but also force a more thorough consultation with communities to be impacted by such projects in the future. Jeremy J. Nuttall reports. (TheTyee) See also: Cross-border Indigenous Treaty Takes on Kinder Morgan Pipeline  David P. Ball reports. (TheTyee)

Recreational boats spills more likely to pollute B.C. waters than tankers
Proposed new oil pipelines have heightened concerns about major spills from increased tanker traffic on the West Coast, but a new study has found that fleets of leaking recreational boats and other small vessels are more likely to foul B.C. waters. Stefania Bertazzon, a University of Calgary researcher, worked with several federal government departments and the University of Victoria in putting together what is thought to be the first study of its kind in the world. Mark Hume reports. (Globe and Mail)

Mayor, port authority say no room for Northern Gateway pipeline in Prince Rupert
Alberta Premier Jim Prentice wants Enbridge Inc. to reroute the proposed Northern Gateway pipeline, but the coastal community that is touted as the obvious alternative to locate the marine terminal is no longer rolling out the welcome mat. Prince Rupert’s Mayor Jack Mussallem said residents in his resource-dependent community don’t want to play a role in getting Alberta oil products to Asia. Justine Hunter and Ian Bailey report. (Globe and Mail)

Site C or LNG: pick one, say B.C. First Nations
Several B.C. First Nations are in Ottawa today to offer the federal government an ultimatum — it can have the Site C dam or liquefied-natural-gas development, but not both. Chief Roland Willson of the West Moberly First Nation says an 1899 treaty gives his community title to land in the Peace River valley that's crucial to both projects. He says a recent decision from the Supreme Court of Canada has bolstered his First Nations' say on any industrial development on that land. (CBC)

Now, your tug weatrher--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 900 PM PDT WED SEP 24 2014
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT THROUGH THURSDAY AFTERNOON
THU
SE WIND 15 TO 25 KT. WIND WAVES 2 TO 4 FT. SW SWELL 9 FT AT 11 SECONDS. A CHANCE OF SHOWERS IN THE MORNING...THEN SHOWERS
 LIKELY IN THE AFTERNOON.
THU NIGHT
SE WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. SW SWELL 7 FT AT 10 SECONDS. SHOWERS LIKELY IN THE EVENING...THEN A CHANCE
 OF SHOWERS AFTER MIDNIGHT.
--
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