11/30 Coal meeting, Tesoro oil, carbon tax, Shell spill gear, BC ports, Port Gamble, seal pups, Sandy's lessons

Tesoro rail offloading facility (Skagit Valley Herald)

Gateway Pacific Terminal supporters showed up early and they showed up in force Thursday, Nov. 29, at a public meeting scheduled to gather testimony about what issues are worthy of study as regulators decide whether to grant permits for the coal export pier at Cherry Point. By the time the meeting got under way at 3 p.m., coal terminal opponents may have been in the majority in the Ferndale Events Center crowd of more than 1,000, clad in red "Power Past Coal" shirts. But backers of the project showed up first to get a bigger share of the 100 available time slots for testifying at the microphone. John Stark reports. Coal terminal backers make strong showing at Ferndale meeting  See also: Coal Exports Fire Up A NW Washington Crowd

Tesoro’s Anacortes refinery is looking to the future of crude oil with a dedication Thursday afternoon of its recently finished Anacortes Rail Offloading Facility. The facility received the first of many 100-unit car trains carrying crude oil from North Dakota’s Bakken formation Sept. 4, following an estimated $60 million construction project that commenced in September. Mark Stayton reports. Focusing on the Future  

State Sen. Kevin Ranker is considering an industrial carbon tax to curb carbon dioxide emissions in Washington and to deal with the increasing acidity of the state's waters. John Stang reports. Orcas Island senator eyes a carbon tax to protect NW shellfish

Shell Oil has been building and testing equipment designed for the Arctic Ocean here in Puget Sound. In September, a key test of underwater oil-spill equipment was a spectacular failure. It forced the energy giant to postpone drilling into oil-bearing rocks beneath the Arctic Ocean until next summer. Shell and its federal regulators have been tight-lipped about the failed test. John Ryan reports. Sea Trial Leaves Shell's Arctic Oil-Spill Gear "Crushed Like A Beer Can"  

Canada’s Port Metro Vancouver has launched an expansion project that will give it more capacity than the current container volumes of Seattle and Tacoma combined, and that’s making leaders of Puget Sound’s two largest ports wary. Plus, farther north in British Columbia, the Prince Rupert Port Authority is getting ready to embark on its own expansion, which could nearly double its ability to draw U.S.-bound cargo... Steve Wilhelm reports. B.C. ports’ plans could grab more U.S. cargo  

References to the town of Port Gamble have been removed from the latest draft of the Kitsap County Shorelines Master Program, now under review by the Kitsap County commissioners. The county's planning commission had included special allowances for the redevelopment of Port Gamble, with the understanding that the project would undergo extensive review during approval of a master plan for the townsite. Development plans have not yet been submitted by the owner, Olympic Property Group. Chris Dunagan reports. Kitsap County debates how to approach Port Gamble shoreline rules  

The Vancouver Aquarium says satellite tracking data shows that five rehabilitated seal pups returned to the ocean in mid October are adapting well to the wild. It’s the first time the aquarium has tagged the animals with satellite transmitters, and the technology is giving researchers excellent data on the animals’ activities, said Lindsaye Akhurst is the manager of the Aquarium's Marine Mammal Rescue Centre. Rescued seal pups tracked by satellite

Sandy’s lessons learned? Carl Safina blogs, Rebuilding After Sandy is Too Big a Risk  and Orrin Pilkey writes: “We need an approach to our shorelines that takes account of rising sea levels, intensifying storms and continuing erosion.” We Need to Retreat From the Beach

Now, your weekend tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PST FRI NOV 30 2012
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT
TODAY
SE WIND 15 TO 25 KT. WIND WAVES 3 FT. W SWELL 11 FT AT 13 SECONDS. SHOWERS.
TONIGHT
E WIND 10 TO 20 KT. WIND WAVES 1 TO 3 FT. W SWELL 12 FT AT 13 SECONDS. RAIN.
SAT
S WIND 15 TO 25 KT. WIND WAVES 2 TO 4 FT. W SWELL 12 FT AT 13 SECONDS. SHOWERS.
SAT NIGHT
S WIND 10 TO 20 KT. WIND WAVES 1 TO 3 FT. W SWELL 12 FT AT 12 SECONDS.
SUN
W WIND 15 TO 25 KT. WIND WAVES 2 TO 4 FT. W SWELL 10 FT AT 12 SECONDS.

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

Salish Sea News: Communicate, Educate, Advocate

Follow on Twitter. 

Salish Sea Communications: Truth Well Told