5/13 Pond turtle, Burrard Inlet dredging, BC low snowpack, South Sound prairies, LNG ship fuel, democracy watch

Northwestern pond turtle [WDFW]

 

Northwestern pond turtle Actinemys marmorata
The range of the western pond turtle extends from the Puget Sound lowlands in Washington through western Oregon and California, south to Baja California. This aquatic turtle lives in streams, ponds, lakes, and permanent and ephemeral wetlands. Pond turtles spend most of their lives in water, but they also require terrestrial habitats for nesting.

Today's top story in Salish Current: Reproductive health in the balance as state weighs budget priorities

B.C., federal government support dredging Vancouver's Burrard Inlet, others opposed
British Columbia's energy minister is backing plans to dredge and deepen Vancouver's Burrard Inlet to accommodate fully loaded oil tankers, despite concerns from environmentalists, experts and First Nations. Wolfgang Depner reports. (Canadian Press)

B.C.'s low snowpack and early melt signal drought, raising concerns for hydro power
Former provincial environment minister says drought is a factor in B.C.’s declining electricity generation. Brenna Owen reports. (Canadian Press)

Decline of South Puget Sound prairies are a conservation priority in Thurston County
South Puget Sound’s native prairies are now listed as one of the state’s rarest ecosystems, as The Nature Conservancy confirmed prairie lands have dwindled to under 3 percent. In response to the biome loss, the Thurston County Board of County Commissioners (BoCC) passed a proclamation, naming May 2025 as Prairie Appreciation Month at a meeting earlier this month. Kameko Marquez reports. (JOLT)

Cruise Ship Refuels With LNG For The First Time At Port Of Vancouver
The first-ever cruise ship has filled up with an alternative fuel at the Port of Vancouver, receiving LNG (liquefied natural gas) from Seaspan Energy’s LNG bunker vessel Seaspan Garibaldi as it prepares to sail to Alaska. (Marine Insight)

Democracy Watch

• Trump administration welcomes 59 white South Africans as refugees (AP)
  
•  RFK Jr. swims in D.C. creek that flows with sewage and bacteria (NY Times)
  
• House Republicans propose $5 billion for private school vouchers (AP) 
• Farmers Sued Over Deleted Climate Data. So the Government Will Put It Back (NY Times)
  
• Trump, Pressed on Qatari Jet, Says Only ‘Stupid’ People Reject Gifts (NY Times)
  
• Trump tried to fire Corporation for Public Broadcasting board members. Then came DOGE (NPR)
  

Have you read the Salish Current? 
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Here's your tug weather—
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  310 AM PDT Tue May 13 2025    
TODAY  E wind around 5 kt, backing to N late this morning, then  becoming W 10 to 15 kt this afternoon. Seas 4 to 6 ft. Wave  Detail: NW 2 ft at 7 seconds and W 6 ft at 10 seconds.  
TONIGHT  W wind 10 to 15 kt. Seas 5 to 7 ft. Wave Detail: W  7 ft at 10 seconds.

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



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5/12 Gartersnake, fossil fuel suit, green energy dream, UW climate research, border pix, birding capital, fuel refinery sale, Chinook Nation, W. Ron Allen, democracy watch

Gartersnake

 Puget Sound Gartersnake Thamnophis sirtalis pickeringii
The Puget Sound Gartersnake is dark grey to black with three yellow or bluish-grey stripes: one narrow stripe down the back (dorsal stripe) and one on each side (lateral stripes). The lateral stripes are confined to the second and third scale row. Unlike the other subspecies of the Common Gartersnake that occur in B.C., the red bars on the sides between the dorsal and side stripes are often very faint or absent. The Valley Gartersnake typically only has seven scales on the upper lip and has a yellowish chin and belly. Individuals can grow to just over a metre in length. (Canadian Herpetological Society)

Today's top story in Salish Current: On the front line of food insecurity

Washington state sues to block Trump order expediting fossil fuel projects
Washington Attorney General Nick Brown is suing over what he says is President Donald Trump's unlawful declaration of an energy emergency, which is intended to speed up permitting procedures for fossil fuel projects. Brown’s latest lawsuit, his 17th against the Trump administration, was filed Friday in the Western District of Washington and joined by 14 other states. Amy Radil reports. (KUOW)

How the Pacific Northwest’s dream of green energy fell apart
Oregon and Washington passed aggressive goals to decarbonize their power supply but left it to the Bonneville Power Administration to build the transmission lines needed for wind and solar. The agency hasn’t delivered. Tony Schick and Monica Samayoa report. (OPB)

Trump administration pulls plug on UW climate research partnership
The Trump administration has pulled funding for a climate research program at the University of Washington that helps communities in the Northwest adapt to extreme heat, drought and other threats from climate change. The UW’s Climate Impacts Group, which has hosted the program since 2021, said in a Thursday statement that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ended its grant award for the research in a Monday letter. Isabella Breda reports. (Seattle Times)

U.S. reportedly plans to photograph people leaving the country by vehicle at border crossings
The goal would be to 'biometrically confirm departure from the U.S.,' spokesperson for CBP, Jessica Turner told WIRED. (National Post)

Greater Victoria the unofficial birding capital of Canada
With sightings of more different species of birds than anywhere else in the country, B.C.’s capital region is Canada’s unofficial birding capital. Hannah Link reports. (Times Colonist)

Questions raised over U.S. company's bid for B.C. fuel refinery
The possibility of a Texas energy company buying a Burnaby, B.C., fuel refinery has workers and energy observers concerned, given Canada's trade fight with the United States. Sunoco, headquartered in Dallas, has offered $9.1 billion US for Calgary-based Parkland Corporation. (CBC)

Chinook Indian Nation federal status uncertain again after political break
The Chinook Indian Nation of Southwest Washington has been trying to get federal recognition from the U.S. government since the mid-90s. But is that possible without someone to champion their cause in Washington D.C.? Eric Neumann reports. (OPB)

Allen to be inducted into Native American Hall of Fame
W. Ron Allen, chair of the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe, will be inducted into the National Native American Hall of Fame, the organization announced. Allen and five other inductees will be honored on Nov. 1 at the OKANA Resort in Oklahoma City. (Peninsula Daily News)

Democracy Watch
Judge pauses much of Trump administration’s massive downsizing of federal agencies (AP)
Dow jumps nearly 1,000 and S&P 500 climbs 2.6% following a 90-day truce in the US-China trade war (AP)
House Republicans unveil Medicaid cuts in Trump's big bill (AP)

Have you read the Salish Current? 
Independent, fact based news for Whatcom, San Juan and Skagit counties. Community supported, free from ads. Read the latest weekly newsletter here.

Here's your tug weather—
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  211 AM PDT Mon May 12 2025    
TODAY  W wind 5 to 10 kt. Seas 3 to 4 ft. Wave Detail: W 4 ft  at 9 seconds. A slight chance of showers this afternoon.  
TONIGHT  W wind 5 to 10 kt, easing to around 5 kt after  midnight. Seas 4 to 6 ft. Wave Detail: W 6 ft at 10 seconds.

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



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5/9 Pileated woodpecker, WA logging protest, 'Oakville blobs,' extreme climate costs, Tofino dead whale, democracy watch, week in review

Pileated woodpecker

Pileated woodpecker Dryocopus pileatus
The Pileated Woodpecker is typically found in mature deciduous or coniferous forests with large trees. It uses semi-open woodlands in suburban areas. The Pileated Woodpecker is a year-resident in most of Alberta and British Columbia. It also occurs in West Montana, the northern half of Idaho, and in most of Washington and Oregon. It is absent from the central mountains of the latter states.

Today's top story in Salish Current: St. Joseph Medical Center employees plan strike / County asking for public comment on new environmental regulations

Activist climbs tree near Port Angeles to block cut of older WA forest
An activist has spent the last couple nights perched on a chilly, wind-rocked platform in a grand fir near the Elwha River, in the latest flare-up in the escalating conflict over logging of older state forests. Demands of the protest include immediate cancellation of this cut, called the Parched timber sale; a pause on all logging in the Elwha watershed; and a permanent ban on logging the remaining mature forest on state lands in Western Washington. Lynda Mapes reports. (Seattle Times)

Return of the blobs: SW Washington revisited by decades-old gooey mystery
A curious phenomenon known as the “Oakville blobs” appears to have returned to a small southwest Washington community, 31 years after the first reports of an unidentified gelatinous substance fell from the sky. This time, the goo fell on Rochester, Wash. Libby Denkmann reports. (KUOW)

US will stop tracking the costs of extreme weather fueled by climate change
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will no longer track the cost of climate change-fueled weather disasters, including floods, heat waves, wildfires and more. It is the latest example of changes to the agency and the Trump administration limiting federal government resources on climate change. Alexa St. John reports. (Associated Press)

Necropsy planned for dead grey whale found near Tofino
The carcass that washed up near Tofino this week could be part of a troubling trend of spring stranding events along the North American coast. Darron Kloster reports. (Times Colonist)

Democracy Watch

• Trump Declares Biden’s Digital Equity Act ‘Racist’ and ‘Unconstitutional’ (NY Times)
  
• Gulf of Mexico to be renamed 'Gulf of America' under bill passed by U.S. House (Washington State Standard)
  
• Trump tells Congress to raise taxes on the rich in budget bill (Washington Post)
  
• President Trump fires Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden (Associated Press)
  
• FEMA's acting administrator is replaced a day after congressional testimony (Associated Press)
  
• Trump asks Supreme Court to allow him to end humanitarian parole for 500,000 people from 4 countries (Associated Press)
  
• Trump Seeks to Strip Away Legal Tool Key to Civil Rights Enforcement (NY Times)
  
• Transgender troops being moved out of the military under new Pentagon order (Associated Press)
  

Have you read the Salish Current? 
Independent, fact based news for Whatcom, San Juan and Skagit counties. Community supported, free from ads. Read the latest weekly newsletter here.

Here's your weekend tug weather—
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  205 AM PDT Fri May 9 2025    
TODAY  W wind around 5 kt, veering to NW this afternoon. Seas  3 to 4 ft. Wave Detail: W 4 ft at 11 seconds.  
TONIGHT  W wind 5 to 10 kt. Seas 3 to 5 ft. Wave Detail: W 4 ft  at 10 seconds.  
SAT  SW wind 5 to 10 kt. Seas 3 to 4 ft. Wave Detail: W 2 ft at  7 seconds and W 3 ft at 10 seconds. A chance of showers.  
SAT NIGHT  S wind 5 to 10 kt, backing to SE after midnight.  Seas 3 to 4 ft. Wave Detail: W 3 ft at 9 seconds. A chance of  showers.  
SUN  SE wind around 5 kt, veering to SW in the afternoon. Seas  3 to 4 ft. Wave Detail: W 3 ft at 8 seconds and W 2 ft at  11 seconds. A chance of showers.

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



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5/8 Flicker, geoducks, BC clean power, Harcourt ousted, BC fish kill, WA Ecology monitoring, WA wildfire budget, GOP land sale, 'flying' ferry, slow-speed chase, democracy watch

 

Northern flicker

Northern flicker Colaptes auratus
The Northern Flicker is one of the largest woodpeckers in the region and is typically found in semi-open or open habitats with scattered trees. It is  a year-round resident in Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Oregon, Washington, Coastal and extreme south British Columbia. During the Spring and Summer months the Northern Flicker expands its range to Central Alaska, Yukon, The Northwest Territories, and Alberta.

Today's top story in Salish Current: It's 'time to warrior up for trees,' author says

How a Chinese delicacy got caught in the crossfire of Trump’s trade war
In recent years it has also become a delicacy in China, with Washington state sending 90% of its geoducks there, creating a niche yet lucrative American seafood export. But the escalating trade war between the U.S. and China is now crippling an entire industry that hand-harvests geoducks, leaving Washington state divers without work, Seattle exporters without business and Chinese aficionados with fewer of these prized clams. Sally Ho and Manuel Valdez report. (Associated Press)

BC’s Latest Clean Power Project Call Wins Support
First Nations leaders and environmental groups welcomed this week’s announcement that British Columbia will seek more clean energy projects. But some are concerned the power will be used to expand fossil fuel production. Andrew MacLeod and  Zoë Yunker report. (The Tyee)

Bellingham community praises ousting of Harcourt waterfront developer
Whatcom County community members praised Port of Bellingham commissioners on Tuesday for their decision to terminate Ireland-based Harcourt Developments’ development rights along Bellingham’s waterfront after significant delays and contract defaults. Harcourt now remains solely responsible for completing its condo development and maintaining ownership of the Granary Building, making room for a new development vision of Bellingham’s waterfront. Rachel Showalter reports. (Bellingham Herald)

Mass fish kill on Burnaby-Coquitlam border under investigation
Approximately 100 young fish were found dead Tuesday in Stoney Creek, located on the border of Burnaby and Coquitlam, prompting both cities to investigate water contamination. Residents say it's a frequent occurrence in the area.  Michelle Gomez reports. (CBC)

Department of Ecology members get all the dirt around the Sound
For the next few weeks, the state’s marine monitoring team will collect sediment and organism samples across Puget Sound. Eliza Aronson reports. (Everett Herald)

WA lawmakers slash wildfire budget in half
Lawmakers tussled with a four-year, $16 billion budget shortfall...Their proposed budget now under consideration by Gov. Bob Ferguson cut in half the $125 million previously promised per biennium for wildfire response and preparedness. Isabella Breda reports. (Seattle Times)

House Republicans push to sell thousands of acres of land in Utah, Nevada
House Republicans added a provision to their sweeping tax cut package authorizing sales of hundreds of thousands of acres of public lands in Nevada and Utah, prompting outrage from Democrats and environmentalists who called it a betrayal that could lead to drilling, mining and logging in sensitive areas. Matthew Daly and Matthew Brown report. (Associated Press)

‘Flying’ passenger ferry sails Puget Sound
The boat — made by Northern Ireland’s Artemis Technologies — is in town simply to show off, and to help drum up some business for Artemis and its new partnership with Delta Marine, a local maker of luxury yachts. Nicholas Deshais reports. (Seattle Times)

Boldt 50.
Cecilia Gobin, Conservation Policy Analyst, Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission will discuss "Boldt at 50 Years: Tribal Sovereignty, Resources Management, & the Boldt Decision’s Continuing Influence." May 10, 2 p.m. Padilla Bay Reserve. Reservations

Slow-Speed Chase
Across the sandy seafloor off the coast of Hawai‘i, a high-speed chase unfolds—or at least, what amounts to high speed for an echinoderm and a gastropod. The prey, a red pencil urchin (Heterocentrotus mamillatus), is ready for battle with its coat of thick spines. The predator, a type of sea snail known as a horned helmet (Cassis cornuta), carries its own armor: a helmet-shaped shell that protects the mushy mollusk within. Krista Langlois reports. (bioGraphic)

Democracy Watch

• Trump taps influencer Casey Means, ally to RFK Jr., as surgeon general (Associated Press)
  
• Congressional budget agency projects sweeping Medicaid cutbacks in states under GOP plans (Washington State Standard)
  

Have you read the Salish Current? 
Independent, fact based news for Whatcom, San Juan and Skagit counties. Community supported, free from ads. Read the latest weekly newsletter here.

Here's your tug weather—
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  251 AM PDT Thu May 8 2025    
TODAY  S wind 5 to 10 kt, backing to NE late this morning and  early afternoon, then becoming NW 10 to 15 kt late. Seas 3 to  5 ft. Wave Detail: W 5 ft at 11 seconds.  
TONIGHT  NW wind 10 to 15 kt, easing to 5 to 10 kt after  midnight. Seas 3 to 5 ft. Wave Detail: W 5 ft at 10 seconds.

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



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5/7 Hairy woodpecker, Energy Star, wind energy, Red Dress Day, BC Ferries, hidden streams, Chuckanut Drive, democracy watch

Hairy woodpecker

 

Hairy woodpecker Leuconotopicus villosus
The Hairy Woodpecker is larger and longer-billed than the downy woodpecker. Hairy woodpeckers use a variety of forest types, but they tend to prefer mature forests where wood boring beetle larvae are readily found. It is a year-round resident in all of the Northwest Region.

Today's top story in Salish Current: Wordsmith and comic superfan: an origin story

Editor's note: I'll ask again if you'd GiveBIG today to support our partners publication Salish Current. You'll be supporting independent community journalism, fact-base and free to read without paywall. Please GiveBIG. Thank you. Mike.

E.P.A. Plans to Shut Down the Energy Star Program
Employees were told that the popular energy efficiency certification program would be “de-prioritized and eliminated,” according to documents and a recording. Lisa Friedman and Rebecca F. Elliott report. (NY Times)

States sue Trump administration for blocking the development of wind energy
Attorneys general from 17 states and Washington, D.C., are challenging an executive order Trump signed during his first day in office, pausing approvals, permits and loans for all wind energy projects both onshore and offshore. Jennifer McDermott reports. (Associated Press)

Swinomish tribe holds Red Dress Day event
The Swinomish Indian Tribal Community recognized Red Dress Day on Monday by honoring those who had missing or murdered Indigenous people in their families.  Ava Running reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Coastal mayors call on province to intervene amid ongoing B.C. Ferries disruptions
Mayors say accountability is confusing when multiple entities oversee B.C. Ferries operations. Courtney Dickson reports. (CBC)

Chilliwack looks to uncover hidden streams
The city is creating a formal system to 'daylight' the watercourses currently moving through pipes and culverts. Grace Kennedy reports. (Fraser Valley Current)

Chuckanut Drive remains closed as WSDOT clears debris
Chuckanut Drive will be closed for several more weeks south of Bellingham as road crews remove debris and stabilize a sheer rock wall after an April 22 rockslide. Robert Mittendorf reports. (Bellingham Herald)

Democracy Watch

• U.S. Supreme Court lets Trump ban transgender people in military while case continues (Washington State Standard)
  
• States win a legal injunction against President Trump, pausing library funding cuts (NPR)
  

Have you read the Salish Current? 
Independent, fact based news for Whatcom, San Juan and Skagit counties. Community supported, free from ads. Read the latest weekly newsletter here.

Here's your tug weather—
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  227 AM PDT Wed May 7 2025    
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM NOON PDT TODAY THROUGH  THIS EVENING    
TODAY  W wind 5 to 10 kt, rising to 15 to 20 kt with gusts to 25  kt. Seas 5 to 7 ft. Wave Detail: NW 4 ft at 6 seconds and W 7 ft  at 12 seconds.  
TONIGHT  W wind 15 to 20 kt, easing to 10 to 15 kt after  midnight. Seas 5 to 7 ft. Wave Detail: NW 4 ft at 7 seconds and W  7 ft at 12 seconds.

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



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Salish Sea News: Communicate, Educate, Advocate



Salish Sea Communications: Truth Well Told


5/6 Downy woodpecker, enviro sail, recycling tech, wildfire 'spring dip,' mitten crab, democracy watch

Downy woodpecker

 

Downy Woodpecker Dryobates pubescens
The Downy Woodpecker is a familiar sight at backyard feeders and in parks and woodlots, where it joins flocks of chickadees and nuthatches, barely outsizing them. An often acrobatic forager, this black-and-white woodpecker is at home on tiny branches or balancing on slender plant galls, sycamore seed balls, and suet feeders. Downies and their larger lookalike, the Hairy Woodpecker, are one of the first identification challenges that beginning bird watchers master. (All About Birds)

Editor's Note: Today and tomorrow I ask you to make a one-time or monthly recurring donation to our partner publication Salish Current during the GiveBIG campaign. You'll be supporting independent community journalism, fact-base and free to read without paywall. Please GiveBIG. Thank you. Mike.

Today's top story in Salish Current: Neighbors helping neighbors against wildfire risk

Vessel sets sail from Anacortes on 14-month expedition
About 100 loved ones and visitors gathered on the docks of Cap Sante Marina in Anacortes on Saturday to wave goodbye to a small crew that will travel around North and South America over the next 14 months. The Skagit Valley College Foundation partnered with the Around the Americas project on the environmental sailing expedition. Emma Fletcher-Frazer reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Are you recycling the right things? New cameras, tech will let you know
The city of Olympia is launching a recycling contamination reduction project this month to help people improve their recycling efforts. It will use cameras and other technology to monitor what people are putting into their curbside recycling carts. The city will use global positioning systems, computers and cameras on city recycling trucks to check the contents of curbside recycling carts and provide residents feedback, household by household. Ty Vinson reports. (The Olympian)

Uptick in active wildfires is caused by 'spring dip,' say B.C. fire officers
The number of wildfires in British Columbia has roughly doubled over the past several days, but an information officer with the BC Wildfire Service says the activity can be attributed to the annual "spring dip"...a  phenomenon caused by a decrease in moisture in the needles of coniferous trees. (Canadian Press)

Chinese mitten crab could be trouble for Oregon, Washington, if there are more
Oregon and Washington wildlife officials are asking people to keep an eye out for hairy-clawed mitten crabs in the Columbia River. In April, a commercial fisher caught a Chinese mitten crab along the river that borders both states. It’s the first recorded instance of this species in the Pacific Northwest, besides a Japanese mitten crab caught in the same area in 1992. April Ehrlich reports. (OPB)

Democracy Watch

• WA law mandating clergy report child abuse to be investigated by DOJ (Investigate West)
  
• Trump budget would slash money for housing programs in WA (Seattle Times)
  
• Trump administration asks to dismiss suit trying to limit abortion pill (Washington State Standard)
  
• Trump denies posting image of himself as pope, laughing off critics  (NY Times)
  
• Trump’s Return to Power Elevates Ever Fringier Conspiracy Theories (NY Times)
  

Have you read the Salish Current? 
Independent, fact based news for Whatcom, San Juan and Skagit counties. Community supported, free from ads. Read the latest weekly newsletter here.

Here's your tug weather—
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  309 AM PDT Tue May 6 2025    
TODAY  E wind around 5 kt, backing to NW late. Seas 3 to 5 ft.  Wave Detail: W 5 ft at 12 seconds.  
TONIGHT  W wind 5 to 10 kt. Seas 3 to 5 ft. Wave Detail: W 5 ft  at 11 seconds. A chance of showers after midnight.

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



savesalishsea@bluesky.social

Salish Sea News: Communicate, Educate, Advocate



Salish Sea Communications: Truth Well Told


5/5 Sapsucker, TM pipe, salmon restoration, immigrant policy, Red Dress Day, sand mine, Oly housing, Perkins Coie, student debt, democracy watch

Red-breasted Sapsucker [Grace Oliver]

Red-breasted Sapsucker Sphyrapicus ruber
The Red-breasted Sapsucker cuts a dramatic profile with its brilliant scarlet head and dapper checkerboard pattern on the back. Sapsuckers are named for their habit of drilling rows of shallow wells in shrubs and trees, and then lapping up the sap with their brush-tipped tongues. Sapsuckers are important members of their ecosystems, because many species of insects, birds, and mammals use the sapwells to supplement their own diets. (All About Birds)

Today's top story in Salish Current: Environmental nonprofit aims to recoup after funding cut

One year after the Trans Mountain Pipeline expansion, why isn't it full?
The Canadian oilpatch has a brand-new pipeline, something it's pleaded for year after year, and it offers a relatively quick route to the West Coast and overseas markets. But a year in, the newly expanded Trans Mountain Pipeline still isn't running at full capacity — though the CEO of the Crown corporation says he doesn't think it's a problem. Paula Duhatschek reports. (CBC)

WA lawmakers approve $1.1B for salmon habitat restoration
The state Legislature approved an additional $1.1 billion for court-ordered Department of Transportation culvert replacement projects, bringing the program’s roughly two-decade total to $5.2 billion. At least for now. Gov. Bob Ferguson still has until May 20 to review and veto items in the budget. Mike Reicher reports. (Seattle Times)

WA farmers reckon with Trump’s immigration policies
On his Skagit Valley dairy farm bordering tulip and daffodil fields, Jason Vander Kooy called President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown a touchy subject. While Vander Kooy supports deporting immigrants who have committed crimes, he’d like to see workers with a clean record given a path to staying legally in the U.S. Nina Shapiro reports. (Seattle Times) 

Here's how the 15th Red Dress Day is being marked in B.C.
Monday marks 15 years of Indigenous people and their allies gathering, marching and holding ceremony for the hundreds of Indigenous women and girls who are missing or have been murdered in Canada. The national day of awareness and remembrance, known as Red Dress Day, was inspired by Métis artist Jaime Black after she created the REDress project — an art installation of red dresses hanging in public spaces that serve as a visual reminder of the Indigenous women and girls who are no longer with us. Santana Dreaver reports. (CBC)

B.C. company wants to open $300M made-in-Canada sand mine to fuel anticipated fracking, LNG boom
A B.C.-based company wants to open a sand mine north of Prince George to provide a made-in-Canada solution to an anticipated boost in liquefied natural gas production. Vitero Minerals' proposed silica sand mine, about 60 kilometres north of the city, near Bear Lake, would produce sand used in hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, to prop open the fractures that are created during crude oil and natural gas extraction. Andrew Kurjata reports. (CBC)

West Bay site of proposed housing complex needs environmental cleanup, state says
A West Bay site in Olympia, which is planned to be the future home of a mixed-use development called West Bay Yards, needs more environmental cleanup, the state Department of Ecology has announced. The site off West Bay Drive was once the site of Hardel Mutual Plywood, which operated there from 1951 to 1996. The wood milling activities released hazardous substances into the environment, according to Ecology. Rolf Boone reports. (The Olympian)

Judge blocks Trump executive order targeting elite law firm
A federal judge on Friday permanently blocked a White House executive order targeting an elite law firm, dealing a setback to President Donald Trump’s campaign of retribution against the legal profession. U.S. District Beryl Howell said the executive order against the firm of Perkins Coie amounted to “unconstitutional retaliation” as she ordered that it be nullified and that the Trump administration halt any enforcement of it. Eric Tucker reports. (Associated Press)

Student Debt Collections Restart on May 5. Here’s What to Know.
More than five million borrowers are in default, and millions of others are projected to be on the precipice. Tara Siegel Bernard reports. (NY Times)

Democracy Watch

• Trump, in a new interview, says he doesn't know if he backs due process rights (Associated Press)
  
• Kennedy Orders Search for New Measles Treatments Instead of Urging Vaccination (NY Times)
  
• Trump administration asks Supreme Court to let DOGE access Social Security systems (Associated Press)
  
• Sweeping cuts hit NEA after Trump administration calls to eliminate the agency (NPR)
  
• Judge blocks Trump executive order targeting elite law firm (Associated Press)
  
• Medical journals hit with threatening letters from Justice Department (NPR)
  
• Trump asks Congress to cut $163B in non-defense spending, ax dozens of programs (Washington State Standard)
  
• Trump budget puts clean-energy spending in crosshairs (Washington State Standard)
  
• Trump Administration Slashes Research Into L.G.B.T.Q. Health (NY Times)
  
• Democratic senators press Trump administration on how it will protect endangered species (Associated Press)
  
• Donald Jr. and Eric Trump Pursue New Deals That Would Enrich President Trump (NY Times)
  
• Trump’s HUD retreats from long-standing housing protections for transgender people (Associated Press)
  

Have you read the Salish Current? 
Independent, fact based news for Whatcom, San Juan and Skagit counties. Community supported, free from ads. Read the latest weekly newsletter here.

Here's your tug weather—
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  244 AM PDT Mon May 5 2025    
TODAY  E wind around 5 kt, backing to NE around 5 kt early this  afternoon, backing to NW late. Seas 3 to 4 ft. Wave Detail: W  4 ft at 10 seconds.  
TONIGHT  W wind 5 to 10 kt, easing to around 5 kt after  midnight. Seas 3 to 4 ft. Wave Detail: NW 2 ft at 4 seconds and W  4 ft at 9 seconds.

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