5/6 Billy Frank, Jr., GiveBIG, Herring School, sea star wasting, PS climate, oil risks, Skagit fields

Billy Frank, Jr. 1931-2014 (Associated Press)

Billy Frank Jr., Nisqually elder who fought for treaty rights, dies  Craig Welch reports. (Seattle Times)
Thanks, Billy. We fight on.

GiveBIG May 7
Today’s the day you can make a big difference with your donation. Take action, giveBIG.

Check this out: Herring School Web Site
Hakai Herring School is aiming to make "herring" a household word. Learn from knowledge holders from Alaska to Washington about the cultural and ecological importance of this wee fish.

New blog: May 2014: 4 Down, 8 To Go
One third of the way through the year. Where are we with leadership, sea star wasting disease, the Partnership?

Sea Star Wasting Syndrome Arrives In Oregon
he mysterious disease that has caused widespread sea star die-offs in Puget Sound is now killing dozens of sea stars off the Oregon Coast. Divers with the Oregon Coast Aquarium made the discovery during a survey last week that revealed 48 dead and dying sea stars in a 60-square-mile area in Yaquina Bay on Oregon’s central coast. The symptoms of wasting syndrome were seen in sunflower stars, ochre stars and giant pink stars. Cassandra Profita reports. (EarthFix)

Puget Sound feeling impact of climate change
It does not take a report from the White House to tell Laura James something is wrong with Puget Sound. "Incredibly murky," said James, an avid diver and photographer, "It's like diving by braille." James believes increased algae blooms and other environmental damage is making the water around Seattle more cloudy and less healthy. "We're going to run into a situation where a lot of the undersea world is impacted by what is happening on the surface," she said. Her thoughts come the day before President Obama releases a National Climate Assessment, expected to raise more warning signs regarding the country's environmental health and lay a foundation for stricter regulations on fossil fuel emissions. John Langeler reports. (KING)

Confidence in safe transport of oil falls, polls suggest
A series of public opinion polls on the shipment of oil released under Access to Information suggest the federal government is in a tight corner when it comes to convincing Canadians that developing resources is safe for the environment. On the one hand, almost half of Canadians polled think pipelines can transport oil safely. But on the other, people are increasingly wary of the environmental risks of shipping or exporting oil using any kind of infrastructure — pipelines, tankers or rail. And Canadians are split over whether the need for energy outweighs the environmental risks of developing Alberta's oilsands. (CBC) See also: Kinder Morgan backtracks from oil spill benefit claim

State agencies gear up for new oil-spill risks
While two oil-terminal proposals at Hoquiam work through the environmental review process, state agencies are increasing their efforts to gauge the adequacy of Washington’s oil-spill response. Regulators have been hampered by not having access to full details of rail shipments. Democratic lawmakers in the House and Senate this year tried to pass legislation requiring oil terminals to report to the state Department of Ecology on the amount and frequency of shipments. In the end, that legislative effort fell apart as Senate Republicans and House Democrats failed to reach an agreement that satisfied concerns of environmentalists and the rail and oil industries. Brad Shannon reports. (Tacoma News Tribune) See also: State oil trains run into heavy opposition Brad Shannon (Tacoma News Tribune)

Listen to the fields
From family farms established in the late 1800s to habitat restoration efforts to the complex network of dikes and ditches that support agriculture in the delta, Skagit County’s fields are home to a rich tapestry of culture, history, agriculture and wildlife. Looking to shed light into these storied aspects for residents and tourists, Skagitonians to Preserve Farmland has prepared a tech-savvy driving tour called Talking Fields. Mark Stayton reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PDT TUE MAY 6 2014
TODAY
W WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 4 FT AT 13 SECONDS.
TONIGHT
W WIND 5 TO 15 KT...BECOMING SW TO 10 KT AFTER MIDNIGHT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 3 FT AT 11 SECONDS.

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