4/28 Heat wave, Grays Harbor oil, Shell air, Clallam septics, derelict vessels, Roger Wilson

Tulips (Linda Quinn/Skagit Valley Herald)

Temperatures in the 80s expected for Puget Sound area
The Puget Sound area’s first taste of warm weather in 2014 is on the way, with temperatures that could reach into the 80s by midweek. Jack Broom reports. (Seattle Times)

Residents Voice Fear And Concern Over Grays Harbor Oil Terminals
More than 100 people gathered at the local high school Thursday night with questions and concerns about proposals to build train-to-ship oil terminals in their community. The projects proposed for Grays Harbor are part of a regional increase in oil train traffic from North Dakota to the Pacific Northwest. And although the Bakken oil fields are more than 1,000 miles away, the boom is raising a lot of concern in this small city on Washington’s coast. The Westway and Imperium terminals would be serviced by roughly two trains per day, each one a mile long. Their payloads of crude oil would bring more than 300 ships and barges to Grays Harbor each year year. The third and newest project, proposed by US Development, could draw three or four trains per week and up to 60 vessels per year, each 1,000 feet long. If all three terminals are built, Grays Harbor would have storage capacity for almost 3 million barrels of oil. Ashley Ahearn reports. (EarthFix)

The Northwest Clean Air Agency will hold a public hearing on April 30 at the Skagit County Administration Building, 700 S. 2nd St., Mount Vernon, on a clean air permit for Shell’s Puget Sound Refinery. For the first time ever, this permit will include limits on greenhouse gas emissions. Rally at 9:30 AM; hearing begins at 10.

New law: Septic system inspections required at time of property sale in Clallam County
A septic system inspection will be required at the time of a property sale under a revised Clallam County sewage code that takes effect Thursday (May 1). The revised on-site sewage system code governs the design, operation and maintenance of septic systems in the county. It broadens continuing education requirements for licensed professionals to keep their certifications and gives the county more authority to enforce sewage system violations. Violators can be ticketed with $125 or $250 civil infractions under the revised code. (Peninsula Daily News)

Decision on building moratorium near landslide areas postponed
The Snohomish County Council has again postponed a decision about whether to impose an emergency moratorium on homebuilding construction near landslide hazards. The discussion is now scheduled for the council’s regular Monday-morning meeting at 10:30 May 5. The meeting will be held on the eighth floor of the county’s Robert Drewel Building, 3000 Rockefeller Ave., Everett.

Local pollution prevention program makes statewide splash
Prevention of derelict vessels is becoming the new paradigm in dealing with sinking, abandoned or illegally moored boats in Washington. Because identification and removal of derelict boats has been such a success in San Juan County, the Puget Sound Partnership in 2013 awarded the county more than $300,000 to develop and coordinate a derelict vessel prevention program in other Puget Sound counties. The county was chosen to administer the money because it is the only county in the state, and perhaps the nation, to create a prevention program to identify vessels at risk before they become a hazard to navigation, a burden to taxpayers and a danger to the environment. Steve Wehrly reports. (San Juan Journal)

Port Townsend Marine Science Center volunteer honored with governor's service award
Roger Wilson, a volunteer with the Port Townsend Marine Science Center, has received the Governor's Volunteer Service Award. He was one of 44 honorees in the state and the only one from the North Olympic Peninsula to be given the award at the governor's mansion April 21.... He began volunteering with the center in 2002 and has given more than 2,000 volunteer hours. (Peninsula Daily News)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PDT MON APR 28 2014
TODAY
SE WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 1 OR 2 FT. W SWELL 9 FT AT 12 SECONDS.
TONIGHT
SE WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 1 OR 2 FT. W SWELL 8 FT AT 12 SECONDS. CHANCE OF RAIN AFTER MIDNIGHT.
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