6/5 Hot times, Wild Olympics, BC LNG, BC pipe, CG fines, orca track, fake killer, sick water, fracking

Feeling like summer!
One word — sunscreen!  Keep it handy today and this weekend.  Also, drink lots of water.  And enjoy what will be the warmest weekend of the year so far. High pressure aloft will dominate today and through the weekend for sunny skies and warm temps.  We’ll top out close to 80 today and get into the mid 80s over the weekend.  Some of our foothills communities and perhaps Olympia southward it could nudge 90. M.J. McDermott forecasts (KCPQ) See also: Heat wave coming to Vancouver Saturday and Sunday will be the hottest days of this spell  (CBC) And if you really care: When forecasts disagree who do you trust?  Cliff Mass explains. (Weather Blog)

Murray, Kilmer reintroduce Wild Olympics wilderness bill; familiar opponents begin to take aim at legislation
Wild Olympics legislation is headed for its fourth go-around — and fourth sequence of opposition from North Olympic Peninsula timber interests. The federal Wild Olympic and Wild and Scenic Rivers Act of 2015 was introduced in the House on Thursday by U.S. Rep Derek Kilmer, D-Gig Harbor, and in the Senate by U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Seattle. Like its 2014 predecessor, the proposed bill would protect 125,554 acres of Olympic National Forest and 464 miles of 19 rivers and major tributaries on the North Olympic Peninsula. Paul Gottlieb reports. (Peninsula Daily News)

B.C. LNG facilities may not be built until after 2020, report says
The provincial government and the gas industry are continuing to send a positive message about LNG development in British Columbia, but critics are saying a new report has exposed a harsh reality. B.C. may not see any LNG facilities built until after 2020, according to the International Energy Agency, which reported Thursday that the world market is flooded with liquefied natural gas. Mark Hume reports. (Globe and Mail)

Kinder Morgan pledges to protect against oil spills
Kinder Morgan is pledging to protect against any threat of oil spills caused by its Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, as opposition to the project mounts in British Columbia. The energy-shipping giant showed off its marine and storage terminals in Burnaby, B.C., on Thursday, detailing new safety measures it is promising to introduce if the $5.4-billion expansion is approved. Senior director of marine development Michael Davies said Western Canada Marine Response Corp., the agency responsible for spill cleanup, will invest $100-million in new equipment. Laura Kane reports. (Globe and Mail)

Oil, gas, coal industries want Washington, British Columbia as permanent home ports
Shell’s exploration fleet is due to depart Seattle soon for the Arctic, but other energy industries are planning their own home ports up and down the West Coast, from the Columbia River to the Salish Sea to British Columbia’s North Coast. The public’s attention will wane at its peril.  Public understanding of the gains and pains of Big Oil and Big Coal’s plans for the Northwest is strongly advised. The waters of Puget Sound, Georgia Strait and the Inland Passage are fast becoming a chosen path for shipment of coal, liquid natural gas, and — if many in Congress have their way — oil to China and other fast-developing Asian markets. Joel Connelly reports. (SeattlePI.Com)

Coast Guard could fine Bellingham Shell protesters
The Coast Guard is seeking fines against four protestors who approached or attached themselves to Shell’s Arctic Challenger in Bellingham Bay. Two of the protestors, Chiara D’Angelo and Matthew Fuller, clipped onto the oil spill response vessel’s anchor chain at various times between May 22 and 24. D’Angelo stayed on the chain for three nights, while Fuller joined her for part of one night. Both were eventually assisted down from the chain by the Coast Guard. During the three-day protest, geared against Shell’s plans to drill for oil in the Arctic, Cody Erdman and Paul Adler also drove boats or rafts into the 100-yard safety zone the Coast Guard had set up around the ship. Erdman also was on the anchor chain at one point, said Lt. Dana Warr, a Coast Guard spokesman. Samantha Wohlfeil reports. (Bellingham Herald)

Orcas back at Columbia River as 2015 tracking comes to an end
Orcas made it back to the vicinity of the Long Beach Peninsula in time for the Memorial Day weekend as this year’s satellite-tracking program came to an end…. Orca L84, an adult male member of the L pod of Southern Resident Killer Whales usually identified with Puget Sound, along with other family members, made a rapid swim from the west coast of Canada’s Vancouver Island to the Columbia River plume between May 11 and May 17, NOAA Fisheries West Coast-Science & Management reported. (Daily Astorian)

Fake orca runs into trouble before it can scare sea lions
An effort to use a fake orca to scare off hundreds of sea lions crowding docks off the Oregon coast has ended, at least temporarily, with the fiberglass creature belly-up after it was swamped by a passing ship. Still, Port of Astoria Executive Director Jim Knight says the sea lions briefly "got deathly silent" Thursday evening when the orca sailed into view. That was just before it started listing and tipped over. He says there's "a chance" they'll try the orca again Friday. Earlier Thursday, officials had to find a replacement motor for the 32-foot killer whale replica that belongs to a whale watching business. It was brought overland from Bellingham, Washington. (Associated Press)

Health officials warn swimmers of bacteria in Thea Foss Waterway
Health officials are warning swimmers to avoid the Thea Foss Waterway for the time being. Wading or swimming near the dock at Johnnys or the Esplanade downtown is inadvisable, because high levels of bacteria in the water could increase the risk of gastrointestinal illness, the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department said in a notice Thursday. Alexis Krell reports. (Tacoma News Tribune)

EPA Finds No Widespread Drinking Water Pollution From Fracking
The Environmental Protection Agency says it finds no evidence that hydraulic fracturing — better known as fracking — has led to widespread pollution of drinking water. The oil industry and its backers welcome the long-awaited study while environmental groups criticize it. Jeff Brady reports. (NPR)

Now, your weekend tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 248 AM PDT FRI JUN 5 2015
TODAY
W WIND 10 KT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS. SW SWELL 3 FT AT 15 SECONDS.
TONIGHT
W WIND 10 TO 20 KT...BECOMING 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 1 TO 3 FT. W SWELL 4 FT AT 11 SECONDS.
SAT
W WIND 10 KT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 5 FT AT 10 SECONDS.
SAT NIGHT
W WIND 10 TO 15 KT...BECOMING SW TO 10 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 6 FT AT 10 SECONDS.
SUN
W WIND TO 10 KT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 6 FT AT 9 SECONDS.

--
"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.

Salish Sea News: Communicate, Educate, Advocate

Follow on Twitter.

Salish Sea Communications: Truth Well Told