8/12 Shark cam, sockeye, Red Flag, stormwater, Vic sewer, Phil Anderson, Kinder Morgan, ocean acid, native claims

(PHOTO: Katsufumi Sato/Carl Meyer)

If you like to watch: Strapping a Camera to a Shark Is as Awesome as You’d Expect  
Scientists love to research sharks, probably because they're the badasses of the sea. But despite decades of analysis, some basic behaviors of Earth's most infamous predator remain a mystery. How do sharks move when pursuing prey? Do they avoid other shark species? So a team of biologists from the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology and the University of Tokyo's Atmosphere and Ocean Research Institute decided to try an approach that's popular with extreme athletes: strap on a camera and see what happens. Erin Biba reports. (Wired)

Fraser River sockeye salmon fishery to open for business
Hundreds of  fishing boats are expected to crowd the mouth of the Fraser River today for the season's first opening of the waterway to commercial sockeye salmon fishing. [Monday's] three-hour opening for gillnetters, from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. PT, follows a recreational fishery Friday and First Nations' food and ceremonial fisheries held on the lower Fraser this weekend. Fishermen and cannery operators have been highly anticipating this year's salmon run, which comes four years after a historic return of 30 million sockeye in 2010. Many hoped the four year maturity cycle would bring a repeat in numbers. (CBC) See also: First Nations worry Mount Polley impact not as benign as claimed  (CBC)

Native Groups, Environmentalists Rally To 'Protect Our Salish Sea'
Flanked by Puget Sound on one side and railroad tracks on the other, dozens of people gathered at Seattle’s Olympic Sculpture Park on Monday to bring attention to protecting the Salish Sea — the waters of Puget Sound, Georgia Strait and the Strait of Juan de Fuca.  The coalition of environmental groups and Native Americans voiced their opposition to the increased traffic in coal- and oil trains, as well as the proposed coal terminals that would be built in Longview and on the Great Lummi Nation’s sacred burial ground. Alison Marcotte reports. (KPLU)

Extraordinary Heat Hits Western Washington, Followed by Thunderstorms!
Climate scientist Cliff Mass writes: “A Red Flag Warning is given when the National Weather Service expects extreme burning conditions. Hot temperatures, dry air, some wind, lightning, instability--we will have all the ingredients in the west. Think that the western side of the mountains can't get the big fires we are seeing east of the Cascades?...”

Ferndale appeal has no impact on cost of new stormwater rules
A stricter state stormwater permit that will cost local governments thousands of dollars - if not millions - is on schedule, after an appeal by Ferndale and other small cities was resolved in the state's favor. Minor changes to the requirements that Bellingham, Lynden, Ferndale and parts of Whatcom County must meet are up for public comment until Oct. 6. The permit will be finalized by the end of the year, according to the Department of Ecology... The permit requires cities and counties with storm systems to take more water samples and file more reports to the state. Eventually, it will require all new development to meet low-impact standards that reduce stormwater runoff. Ralph Schwartz reports. (Bellingham Herald)

Is sewage mail-out plan to Esquimalt residents down the tube?
The Capital Regional District has hit the pause button on plans to mail out a flyer that asks Esquimalt residents to reconsider their rejection of a sewage treatment plant at McLoughlin Point. Esquimalt council refused to approve a CRD proposal for a sewage plant at the site, and the B.C. government declined to overrule the township. So CRD directors voted last month to go directly to Esquimalt voters and offer to cover their share of building costs....In light of the opposition, CRD board chairman Alastair Bryson put a hold on the flyers until the board and sewage committee have confirmed their support for the strategy. The matter is slated to come up for debate Wednesday. Lindsay Kines reports. (Times Colonist)

WDFW director to leave at the end of the year
After nearly six years at the helm, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) Director Phil Anderson has informed the state Fish and Wildlife Commission he will resign from his position, effective Dec. 31.

Kinder Morgan’s US$70-billion restructuring could usher in new round of deal-making in energy sector
In a conference call Monday, chairman and CEO Rich Kinder said the newly streamlined company — the largest energy infrastructure company in North America — could grow further through purchases in the natural gas and crude oil pipeline and processing sector. The new structure will have lower borrowing costs and can use its single stock as currency to buy competitors. Claudia Cattaneo reports. (Financial Post)

Calls for global network of buoys to monitor ocean acidification
Does the nation need a national strategy on rising levels of acidity in the oceans?  And can that strategy protect tens of thousands of jobs in the American fishing industry? U.S. Senators Maria Cantwell, (D) Washington and Mark Begich, (D) Alaska, are calling for such a strategy based on data from an expanding network of buoys that will monitor ocean chemistry and acidity levels. Glenn Farley reports. (KING) See also: How Ocean Chemistry Threatens The NW Oyster Industry  (EarthFix)

University of Victoria puts First Nations land claim mapping in the spotlight Native communities across Canada are mapping their lands, a step that is vital in land claim negotiations since many First Nations are running into problems of territorial overlap. But at the University of Victoria researchers have developed sophisticated mapping technologies to try to help clearly show land and resource boundaries as well as shared lands. Kim Pemberton reports. (Vancouver Sun)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 232 AM PDT TUE AUG 12 2014
TODAY
SW WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 5 FT AT 10 SECONDS. A CHANCE OF SHOWERS.
TONIGHT
SW WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 4 FT AT 10 SECONDS. A CHANCE OF SHOWERS.

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