7/8 Forage fish survey, Shell drill, Whytecliff Park E.coli, orcas, Sequim oyster, surf culture

Smelt and Beaches (Ecology)

Forage fish study gets state's full backing
The largest study of Puget Sound’s smallest fish received full funding in the new state budget….the study will take a close look at the sound’s populations of herring, smelt, sand lance and other forage fish that serve as prey for larger predators, including salmon, sea birds and marine mammals. The final budget put $1.9 million toward the study, allowing for both a nearshore survey of spawning grounds and a trawl survey in open water to gauge the survival rate of adult forage fish. Tristan Baurick reports. (Kitsap Sun)

Shell suffers first mishap as Arctic-bound Polar Pioneer drilling rig arrives in Aleutians
Shell Oil is assembling a 29-ship Arctic drilling fleet in Alaska’s Aleutian Islands,  but has suffered an initial mishap weeks before it is scheduled to head north and drill for oil in the Chukchi Sea. The icebreaker Fennica, en route from Dutch Harbor to the drilling area, has returned to Unalaska Bay in the Aleutians with a 39-inch-long hole in its hull and a leak in its ballast tank. Joel Connelly reports. (SeattlePI.Com)

E. coli prompts swimming ban at West Vancouver's Whytecliff Park
Metro Vancouver says Whytecliff Park in West Vancouver is closed to swimming because of a high E. coli count. The water at Whytecliff, which is a popular diving location, has 200 E. coli/100 mL of water, the level at which a no swim advisory is issued. The levels are also significantly higher than other West Vancouver beaches such as Ambleside and Dundarave, which both have 23 E. coli/100 mL. Tiffany Crawford reports. (Vancouver Sun)

Four ‘missing’ orcas return to San Juans; L-54, where are you?
Chris Dunagan writes: "I reported last week in Water Ways (July 1) that nine Southern Resident killer whales had not yet returned to the San Juan Islands this year. I’d like to update you with the news that four of the nine have now been seen, so we’re just waiting for the final group of five…." (Watching Our Water Ways) See also: B.C. orca baby boom offers hope, but population still fragile  Leading scientist warns that B.C.'s killer whale pods could still 'wink out on us' Chris Brown and Chris Corday report. (CBC)

Project restores 131 acres of marsh
New Fir Island dike will protect farmland, snow goose reserve. Sarah Arney reports. (Stanwood/Camano News)

Return of the oyster
Given the signs of success, county and tribal officials partnering in an ongoing effort to restore Olympia oyster populations within Sequim Bay are shifting their focus to monitoring the growth and survival of their previous work….To allow the Clallam County Marine Resources Committee to continue to collaborate with the tribe on the restoration project, Clallam County commissioners unanimously approved the agreement with the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe on June 30. Since 2012 and the initial effort to increase the presence of Olympia oysters in Sequim Bay, an area that historically supported a healthy population, seeded cultch totaling more than 700,000 individuals have been spread within 1.5 acres of tribal tidelands. Alana Linderoth reports. (Sequim Gazette)

Catch a wave: Second Occasional Surf Culture event rolls in July 11
Slip on your flip-flops and slide on down to the Port Townsend Public Library (PTPL) on Saturday evening for the Second Occasional Surf Culture of the Strait of Juan de Fuca & Salish Sea Event. All are welcome for an evening of readings, art and music, 6-9 p.m., July 11 at the library's Carnegie Reading Room. Justin Hocking, author of "The Great Floodgates of the Wonderworld," a 2014 book about surfing, obsession and “Moby Dick,” is to read at the July 11 event, which is cosponsored by Northwind Arts Center…. Also speaking Saturday evening is author and surfing historian Drew Kampion, former editor of Surfer, Surfing, Wind Surf and Wind Tracks magazines. Robin Dudley reports. (Pt Townsend Leader)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 258 AM PDT WED JUL 8 2015
TODAY
W WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 2 FT AT 8 SECONDS. PATCHY FOG IN THE MORNING.
TONIGHT
W WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 2 FT AT 7 SECONDS. PATCHY FOG LATE.

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