3/14 Session ends, BC parks, geoduck talks, BC sewage, salmon fishing, gene banks, oil trains, Exxon Valdez, Whidbey 'wall,' Kurt Musgrove, PA stormwater

Olympia Oyster (VIUDeepBay/Flickr)

An almost forgotten history of Native Oysters on Vancouver Island
We have been searching through 1800′s literature and newspapers to track the exploitation and disappearance of Native (Olympia) oysters from Baynes Sound and Vancouver Island as a whole. This is our longest post to date but is some research we are very excited about. We hope you enjoy this almost forgotten chapter of Vancouver Island estuarine ecosystems. (Deep Bay Marine Field Station Updates)

New blog: Hey, Puget Sound! It’s A “New Path Forward!”  
That’s what the Puget Sound Partnership says Governor Inslee has done by reconstituting the Partnership’s Leadership Council. And, having named a new executive director, Governor Jay has his new team now to make or break Puget Sound recovery on his watch...

Legislative session ends without tackling some major issues
As legislative sessions go, this was largely a forgettable one. State lawmakers finished their two-month session Thursday night by passing an operating budget that slightly increased state spending and then heading home without dealing with a plethora of other major issues. Brian M. Rosenthal and Andrew Garber report. (Seattle Times)

And, since you didn’t ask: The True Meaning of Pi Day

Province adds 55,000 hectares to B.C. parks
The province introduced a bill in the legislature Thursday that, if passed, would add more than 55,000 hectares to B.C.’s parks, conservancies and other protected areas. This will add to more than 14 million hectares the province has already protected. Among the changes announced Thursday is the addition of marine waters amassing 6,438 hectares of Queen Charlotte Strait to Mahpahkum-Ahkwuna/ Deserters-Walker Conservancy. At nearby Qwiquallaaq/ Boat Bay Conservancy, 72 kilometres southeast of Port Hardy, an addition of 736 hectares of marine water includes kelp and seagrass beds and important marine mammal habitat. Sandra McCulloch reports. (Times Colonist)

Talks Set In Beijing On West Coast Shellfish Ban
There are signs of a thaw in the icy trade relations between the United States and China over a Chinese ban on imported shellfish from the West Coast of the U.S. Chinese officials have agreed to meet next week with U.S. counterparts to discuss China’s import ban on shellfish harvested from Alaska, Washington, Oregon and part of California. China banned shellfish imports from most of the West Coast in December over concerns about contamination. The move has cost the shellfish industry in Washington hundreds of thousands of dollars. Ashley Ahearn reports. (EarthFix)

Sewage spill could cost Greater Vancouver district $110,000
Spilling 650 cubic metres of raw sewage into the waters off Stanley Park will likely cost the Greater Vancouver Sewerage and Drainage District $110,000. The district pleaded guilty this week to a violation under the Fisheries Act for dumping the untreated waste water into waters frequented by fish — in this case, into the waters off Brockton Point from the Chilco Pump Station. Kim Pemberton reports. (Vancouver Sun)

Salmon fishing ocean limits at levels not seen since late ’70s
“Here we are in 2014, and it’s like a time machine going back to the good old days of salmon fishing,” says Tony Floor, director of fishing affairs for the Northwest Marine Trade Association. Mark Yuasa reports. (Seattle Times)

Wild Fish In Gene Banks, Hatchery Fish In Elwha — Why The Two-Headed Strategy?
Washington state has banned hatchery-raised steelhead from three tributaries of the Upper Columbia River basin. The aim of these so-called "gene banks" is to maintain strongholds for wild fish, and the state plans to designate additional gene banks in the future. So why were the state and federal governments back in court this week, defending the decision to place a new hatchery on the Elwha River as part of the dam removal process? Bellamy Pailthorp reports. (KPLU)

Oil-by-rail bills die for lack of support by Senate majority
A bill slapping a 5-cent per barrel tax on crude oil entering Washington by rail car died in the state Senate late Thursday as lawmakers moved toward adjournment by midnight. Republican Sen. Doug Ericksen of Ferndale said it appeared a $300,000 study of oil-by-rail impacts in the state - which budget writers inserted into the supplemental budget - was the only move lawmakers would make this year to deal with the increasing oil traffic on state rail lines.... Sen. Kevin Ranker, D-Orcas Island, said he was prepared to add amendments to Senate Bill 6567 that would have let the Department of Ecology collect better data on rail shipments from oil refineries. But Ericksen, who has close ties to the oil industry and has a refinery in his hometown, lacked votes from his caucus to bring the oil-fee measure to a floor vote - as long as Ranker and fellow Democrats were pushing amendments. Brad Shannon reports. (Tacoma News Tribune)

Exxon Valdez: disaster remembered, series of events in store
On March 24, 1989, the tanker Exxon Valdez was steered onto a reef in Prince William Sound, Alaska, resulting in an oil spill of 11 million gallons of crude oil. The 25th anniversary of the disaster, a continuing environmental nightmare and human tragedy, will be memorialized in San Juan County with a series of events and activities beginning Friday, March 14, and ending with a unique oil spill simulation on March 24. The commemoration is being produced by the San Juans Alliance, a new consortium of the Lopez NO COALition, the Orcas NO COALition, the Friends of the San Juans and San Juan Islanders for Safe Shipping. (Journal of the San Juans)

'Wall of Whidbey' blocking 100 years of public beach access
The wealthy homeowner who built a wall to block a century of public access to a cherished Whidbey Island beach tells KOMO 4 News it's his land and he's got the documents to prove it. Bruce Montgomery, a successful developer of pharmaceuticals who lives in Medina, has two beach homes near Greenbank at the end of Wonn Road. And now there is a stone wall crossing the foot of Wonn Road that once extended an additional 15 yards providing access to the beach. He says there may have been 100 years of public access to the beach. But he says he has documents showing Island County has billed the landowners for taxes for 100 years as well. Jeff Burnside reports. (KOMO-TV)

Orca lovers mourn loss of dedicated researcher Kurt Musgrove
Orca lovers are mourning the loss of a dedicated whale researcher. Martin (Kurt) Musgrove is being remembered as a kind, considerate man who often hand-carved a wooden mushroom as a parting gift for fellow volunteers at OrcaLab, a remote B.C. orca monitoring station. “For the moment, we just want to share this incredibly sad news, so the many friends Kurt has made at OrcaLab over the past 30 years will know, and be able to remember him with us,” wrote Paul Spong and Helena Symonds on the OrcaLab blog. Ian Austin reports. (The Province)

Design of Port Angeles stormwater treatment system over budget by 50 percent
Design of a stormwater treatment system for 42 acres of Port of Port Angeles industrial property will cost $150,000 — 50 percent more than budgeted. Tenant lease rates and rates for users of the port's marine terminals and log yard might have to increase to help pay for the system, which is targeted for completion between 2015 and 2016 and does not yet have an estimated cost, port Engineer Chris Hartman said Wednesday. Paul Gottlieb reports. (Peninsula Daily News)

Now, your weekend tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PDT FRI MAR 14 2014
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT THROUGH THIS AFTERNOON
TODAY
W WIND 15 TO 25 KT...BECOMING 15 TO 20 KT IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 2 TO 4 FT. W SWELL 6 FT AT 12
 SECONDS...BUILDING TO 8 FT AT 11 SECONDS IN THE AFTERNOON. RAIN EARLY...THEN A CHANCE OF SHOWERS.
TONIGHT
W WIND 10 TO 20 KT...BECOMING S TO 10 KT AFTER MIDNIGHT. WIND WAVES 1 TO 3 FT...SUBSIDING TO 1 FT OR LESS AFTER MIDNIGHT. W
 SWELL 9 FT AT 13 SECONDS. A CHANCE OF SHOWERS...THEN A CHANCE OF RAIN AFTER MIDNIGHT.
SAT
SE WIND 15 TO 25 KT. WIND WAVES 2 TO 4 FT. W SWELL 10 FT AT 15 SECONDS. RAIN.
SAT NIGHT
SW WIND 10 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 1 TO 2 FT. W SWELL 11 FT AT 15 SECONDS.
SUN
SW WIND 15 TO 25 KT...EASING TO 10 TO 15 KT IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 2 TO 4 FT...SUBSIDING TO 1 TO 2 FT IN THE
 AFTERNOON. W SWELL 10 FT AT 20 SECONDS...BUILDING TO 12 FT AT 18 SECONDS IN THE AFTERNOON.
--
"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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