8/6 Pit-to-pier, Elwha smelt, plankton, Rainer butterflies, captive breeding

Baker River impressionism (PHOTO: Rick Haley)

'Pit to pier' open house appears to draw more foes than supporters
Some 200 people turned out at an open house on a proposal to build a 4-mile-long conveyor belt and a 998-foot pier on the Hood Canal to move gravel from a quarry to ships. Some carried signs against the Thorndyke Resources project, known as “pit-to-pier,” at Monday night's open house on a draft environmental impact statement at the Port Ludlow Bay Club. The “overwhelming majority” of those he spoke with opposed it, said David Wayne Johnson of the Jefferson County Department of Community Development. Charlie Bermant reports. (Peninsula Daily News)

New Life After Dam Removal: Surf Smelt Spawning In Mouth Of Elwha
Tiny forage fish don’t have the iconic status of Northwest species such as salmon or orcas, but the marine creatures at the bottom of the food chain play a critical role. So scientists are excited to see signs they’re spawning in new habitat created by the Elwha dam removals.  At the mouth of the Elwha River, a new stretch of sandy beach has formed over the past two years. Sediment that had been held back by two dams for nearly a century has washed down the river into the near shore environment. Bellamy Pailthorp reports. (KPLU)

Salmon scientists zoom in on plankton
The crew aboard a Nisqually Tribal research vessel pulled up a net from 400 feet down in Puget Sound.... For the first time, tribes, agencies and groups in Canada are giving plankton a serious look as part of the massive Salish Sea Marine Survival Project. Phytoplankton is the plant form of plankton; zooplankton are the tiny animals that eat phytoplankton. Gary Chittim reports. (KING)

Scientist on Rainier chases climate change’s butterfly effect
A biologist hikes around Mount Rainier to log butterfly populations at risk because of climate change. Lynda Mapes reports. (Seattle Times)

UBC expert pans Vancouver aquarium breeding ban
Forcing whales, dolphins and porpoises at Vancouver Aquarium to abstain from sex or manipulating them so they can’t produce offspring smacks of Big Brother, according to a University of B.C. expert. The Vancouver park board voted last week to let the aquarium keep marine mammals but ordered an end to the breeding of them unless they’re a threatened species. (Vancouver Sun)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PDT WED AUG 6 2014
TODAY
LIGHT WIND...BECOMING W 5 TO 15 KT IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 2 FT AT 8 SECONDS...BUILDING TO
 4 FT AT 7 SECONDS IN THE AFTERNOON. PATCHY FOG IN THE MORNING.
TONIGHT
W WIND 5 TO 15 KT...BECOMING SW TO 10 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 4 FT AT 7 SECONDS.
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