11/5 Coal export meeting, BC bats, Wyckoff cleanup, Land Conservancy, octopus kill, Fauntleroy Cr. Salmon, Hood Canal midden, Jeff Hogan, talkin' climate change

Fall Light (Laurie MacBride)

Laurie MacBride in Eye on Environment writes: "The days are getting shorter and our weather is alternating between “rain” and “showers”. The ground is sodden, the clocks are going back an hour, and we’ve entered that dark time of year. But every time I look our our north windows, I feel my spirits lift, thanks to the show that our Bigleaf maple is providing...."  Big Leaves, Big Light  

New blog: "I drank beer with a few folks the other night and talked about saving Puget Sound. The beer was good; the discussion, well, less than satisfying...." The ‘Poor’ State of Our Sound

BELLINGHAM — This progressive college town is known for its stunning scenery, access to the outdoors and eclectic mix of aging hippies, students and other residents. But lately it's turned into a battleground in the debate over whether the Pacific Northwest should become the hub for exporting U.S. coal to Asia. Phuong Le reports. Bellingham becomes ground zero in debate on coal exports   See also: Coal terminal backers say poll shows most residents are on their side   You go: Coal port EIS public meeting, Mon Nov 5, Mount Vernon McIntyre Hall, 4-7 PM. Coal terminal meeting set for Monday in Mount Vernon

An endangered species of bat may have lost its birthing ground after the magnitude 7.7 earthquake off the coast of Haida Gwaii caused one of island's hot springs to disappear. About 40 Keen's myotis bats roost at Hot Spring Island in Gwaii Haanas National Park. "These bats come to the island every summer to have their babies and the roosts at hot springs are one of only two maternal colonies that’s right now known in the entire range of the species," said Carey Bergman, an ecologist in Gwaii Haanas. Endangered bats' birthing ground in peril after B.C. quake  

State and federal officials are still searching for some light at the end of the tunnel when it comes to cleaning up the contaminated Wyckoff site on Eagle Harbor. So far, more than $150 million has been spent to reduce toxic contamination along the shore and to keep hazardous chemicals from leaching into the harbor, where sealife is gradually recovering. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Washington Department of Ecology have returned to the design table, where they are studying options to remove up to 1 million gallons of toxic creosote and related chemicals still underground where a wood-treatment plant operated for 85 years. Chris Dunagan reports. Plan for Bainbridge Island Superfund site remains unclear  

The Land Conservancy offered hope and optimism - but no guarantees about paying lenders or protecting properties should the organization collapse - at its annual meeting Saturday. The financially troubled group will pay all creditors and continue to protect its properties, provided it can find enough funds to keep going, members were told. Judith Lavoie reports. Amid heavy debt, The Land Conservancy stays upbeat

A different kind of storm hit the Pacific Northwest this past week when a local diver was seen hauling a giant Pacific octopus from a popular diving area in Puget Sound in Seattle. The diver, 20-year-old Dylan Mayer, had a one-day hunting license and legally did nothing wrong. However, divers from around the world are infuriated by Mayer's actions. Part of the problem is that this particular area in Seattle, Cove 2, is regarded as a pristine park. Divers go there in hopes of observing the giant Pacific octopus, which is considered very intelligent, agile and has the ability to change colors to match its surroundings. It is not a creature that is usually hunted. Shula Neuman reports. Killing of Puget Sound octopus for 'art project' angers divers  

Never mind counting votes. That whiteboard holds the count that mattered the most in West Seattle this weekend – at Fauntleroy Creek. One week after the salmon-welcoming ceremony that included the then-sad news that only seven spawners had approached, and none had made it past a hungry otter – the turnabout is huge.  Another progress report: Fauntleroy Creek salmon set record

Tribal and Navy archaeologists are mining a shell midden uncovered at Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor for information about early Native Americans. Base archaeologist Dave Grant, while monitoring a project to restore Cattail Lake to a Hood Canal estuary, noticed that an excavator dug up a layer of black. Tests determined it to be part of a shell midden, a native landfill. Native Americans gathered for centuries at the sand spit formed between the mouth of Cattail Creek and Hood Canal. During the mid-1950s, Amberjack Avenue was built along the spit and on fill dirt that dammed the stream, cutting off the estuary from Hood Canal and creating Cattail Lake where the inlet had been. Ed Friedrich reports. Shell midden could affirm tribe's stories of Hood Canal

Students at Olalla Elementary were fascinated, not grossed out, when Jeff Hogan told them Thursday that analyzing excrement from orca whales helps scientists learn what they're eating, who's related to who, who is pregnant and whether the animals are "stressed out." Hogan is an educator from West Seattle who spends his summers aboard whale research vessels, studying the life and habits of Puget Sound's resident orcas. During the school year he brings what he's learned into classrooms in Western Washington and beyond. Hogan is the founder of Killer Whale Tales, a nonprofit organization enlisting young recruits in the fight for orca whale protection.  Chris Henry reports. Olalla students recruited to protect orca whales

"Drill, baby, drill," said Sarah Palin. "Energy independence," say Barack Obama and Mitt Romney. It seems to mean more or less the same thing. (If Romney wins, it will be more, if Obama wins less.) Both advocate more oil and gas drilling on land and sea, more use of "clean coal." Both avoid muddying the — rising — waters with talk of climate change. Nagging people about greenhouse gases won't win many votes in coal country or among citizens focused on gasoline prices, so neither candidate does it. Dan Chasan reviews Howard A. Latin's book, Climate Change Policy Failures: Why Conventional Mitigation Approaches Cannot Succeed. Climate change: Do we hear the alarm ringing?

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PST MON NOV 5 2012
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY FOR HAZARDOUS SEAS IN EFFECT THROUGH THIS EVENING
TODAY
W WIND TO 10 KT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 11 FT AT 13 SECONDS.
TONIGHT
E WIND TO 10 KT...BECOMING SE 10 TO 20 KT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS BUILDING TO 1 TO 3 FT. W SWELL 11 FT AT 13 SECONDS.
 PATCHY FOG.
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