2/13 Port Gamble cleanup, Inslee on climate, Victoria sewage, 'Namgis fish farm, Cedar Grove, BC pipeline, WA parks, Richmond farm

Port Gamble Bay (Kitsap Sun)

New blog: “Amy and I stopping for a drink at the Fog City Diner on San Francisco’s Embarcadero last weekend about half way on a trek from downtown to Fisherman’s Wharf via Chinatown and back to downtown. What a fine oasis on the shady side of the Embarcadero on a sunny day at 2 in the afternoon....” Farewell, Fog City Diner. I Hardly Knew You.

Negotiations over the cleanup of Port Gamble Bay have broken down, endangering a $9 million appropriation from the Legislature for the purchase of property around the waterway, officials say. Washington Department of Ecology had worked out extensive plans with Pope Resources to clean up polluted sediments in the bay and to purchase and restore habitat along the shore, according to Tim Nord of the agency. But Ecology could not accommodate the company’s insistence that two large docks over the cleanup area be left in place. Chris Dunagan reports. Ecology-Port Gamble deal appears to be in trouble  

Gov. Jay Inslee sounded the alarm on climate change Tuesday morning at a Capitol Land Trust fundraising breakfast that drew some 500 people to the Marcus Pavilion on the St. Martin's University campus in Lacey. The Democratic governor sang the praises of the land trust's efforts to preserve and protect thousands of acres of critical fish and wildlife habitat and working forests and farms in South Sound, but said the work could be for naught if global warming continues at the current pace. John Dodge reports. Gov. Inslee cautions Land Trust about global warming at fundraiser  See also: Wash. Gov. Inslee Sets Sights On ‘Defeating’ Climate Change  

Greater Victoria taxpayers may soon be getting their first bill for sewage treatment, even though shovels have yet to hit the ground on the megaproject. Local homeowners will face tax hikes of between $39 and $65 this year for sewage, if local politicians approve a new multi-year cost formula at a Wednesday sewage committee meeting. Rob Shaw reports. To pay for sewage plant, tax hikes could begin this year  See also: Politicians call proposed sewage plant an eyesore

The People of the Salmon are preparing to show there is a different way to farm fish — and that it can make money without hurting the environment. ‘Namgis First Nation, whose 4,000-year-old traditions are tied to the Pacific salmon of the Nimpkish River, is about to open the first phase of a unique $8.5-million closed-containment Atlantic salmon farm on reserve land south of Port McNeill. The aim is to prove it is economically viable to raise Atlantic salmon on a commercial scale in tanks on land, rather than in open net pens in the ocean. The project is being watched intently by the salmon-farming industry and conservation groups. The facility will be the first commercial-scale, land-based Atlantic salmon farm in Canada, although there is a small pilot project in West Virginia.  Judith Lavoie reports. Namgis First Nation to open land-based fish farm

Cedar Grove composting, which recycles Seattle’s food and yard waste into compost, is facing two new class-action lawsuits on behalf of people who live near its Everett and Maple Valley plants. Cedar Grove’s neighbors in Maple Valley and in Marysville, just across the city line from its Everett plant, have long complained about a sweet, pungent smell that fills the air seasonally. They blame the compost plant. The class-action suits follow two other suits filed against Cedar Grove about a month ago on behalf of about 280 people in the Maple Valley area and 80 near Everett. Emily Heffter reports. Cedar Grove composting faces two new suits over ‘sickening odor’

A fundamental misunderstanding is developing between British Columbia and the rest of Canada over the Enbridge Northern Gateway pipeline proposal, a senior B.C. business leader said Tuesday. Jock Finlayson, chief policy officer at the Business Council of B.C., said although there is a strong national interest in developing pipelines through this province to connect the country’s energy resources with Asian markets, it is unrealistic for the rest of Canada to assume B.C. is as absorbed with the oil issue as are national business and government leaders, and should simply step aside. Gordon Hamilton reports. Growing disconnect between gas-focused B.C., rest of Canada on pipeline, business leader says

Officials at Washington State Parks are observing the system's 100th birthday this year, but some have warned that, after over a decade of budget cuts, the state's 138 parks are in danger of serious operations reductions if the system's funding problems aren't solved. According to parks officials, the costs of a large budget shortfall could include staff layoffs, visitor services cuts, less reliable law enforcement and maintenance delays. The first in a series of bills by Sen. Kirk Pearson (R-39th District, Monroe) intended to address the enormous shortfall in parks funding, SB 5575 would use money raised by an existing litter tax to fund parks maintenance, and redirect some grant money used for acquiring and developing new land to instead be used for renovating current parks. Zoey Palmer reports. State parks' funding salvation may be hidden under litter tax  

The owners of a historic Richmond farm have listed the property for sale at $55 million — twice its agricultural value — after failing in the past to remove it from the Agriculture Land Reserve and either subdivide the land or turn it into a golf course. Colliers Canada, which is marketing the 324.5-acre property dubbed Gilmore Estates, suggested the deal is a “rare opportunity to acquire a unique site within the urban core with the potential for the development of numerous estate lots.”  Waterfront Richmond property’s future as urban farmland in doubt

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 251 AM PST WED FEB 13 2013
TODAY
W WIND 10 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 1 OR 2 FT. W SWELL 8 FT AT 11 SECONDS. CHANCE OF RAIN.
TONIGHT
W WIND 10 KT...BECOMING SE. WIND WAVES 1 FT. W SWELL 7 FT AT 11 SECONDS. RAIN LIKELY.
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