9/4 Pit-to-pier, culvert work, Dabob Bay woods, Inslee's climate plan

This September, Salish Sea News and Weather begins its 5th year of publishing its weekday news clippings. There are 537 subscribers receiving this post by email-- thank you for reading. The web link is tweeted and, depending on what interest it generates in retweets, web pageviews can range up to the hundreds. Some readers have asked how long I expect to continue Salish Sea News and Weather as a community service; my answer usually is for as long as I'm able to and as long as I'm interested in the health and well-being of the Salish Sea. (News paywalls are a bother but not insurmountable.) A few have asked if I'd ask for financial support from readers or advertisers; my answer has been that I'd prefer to remain as independent as I can and to continue this endeavor as a labor of love: I labor and readers love it if it pleases. Two things you, as reader, can do for this endeavor: the first is to let others who might be interested know they can subscribe for free and receive the compilation by email (compiling one posting and sending out to one reader is the same labor as sending out to a thousand); the second is to send me news and feature links (no polemics, however) you think other readers might find interesting. Thanks for your support! Mike Sato

Judge dismisses lawsuit against easement that blocks 'pit-to-pier' project on Hood Canal
A federal court judge has dismissed a lawsuit against the Navy challenging a conservation easement that would block development of a 998-foot pier and gravel-loading project sought by Hood Canal Sand and Gravel. U. S. District Judge Benjamin Settle on Tuesday granted a motion to dismiss, ruling that the Navy did not exceed its authority in granting the 55-year easement on state-owned tidelands along Hood Canal…. The easement is an agreement between the Navy and the state Department of Natural Resources announced in July 2014 that would block development on more than 4,800 acres of state land along Hood Canal, stretching from the Hood Canal Bridge south to just below the border between Jefferson and Mason counties. (Peninsula Daily News)

Progress made on fish barrier project on Highway 9
A bridge is taking shape where Highway 9 crosses Lake Creek near Lake McMurray, as work progresses on the state Department of Transportation’s first court-mandated culvert replacement project. Crews started pouring the concrete deck for the bridge last week, according to a Department of Transportation news release. The project is expected to be completed in mid-September. The $2.5 million Lake Creek project is one of many to come. In response to litigation between area tribes and the state, the U.S. District Court ruled in 2013 that undersized culverts on certain state lands must be fixed by 2030. The rule requires the Department of Transportation to correct 825 such culverts that are barriers to fish. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

State to buy 1,310 acres of forest land near Dabob Bay for $3.96 million
The state will buy 1,310 acres of working forest near Dabob Bay. The state Board of Natural Resources approved the $3.96 million purchase Tuesday. Jefferson County will receive $65,000 as compensation for lost tax revenue. The state Department of Natural Resources will purchase the land from Ecotrust Forest Management, an Oregon forest investment management and advisory services company. No recreational uses for the forest are planned, according to Bob Redling, DNR spokesman, although the public will be allowed to enter it. Mark Swanson reports. (Peninsula Daily News)

Another strike against Inslee’s climate plans
A top state Republican lawmaker says Gov. Jay Inslee’s plan to use executive action to trim carbon emissions is not supported by state law, citing an informal opinion released this week by the state’s attorney general. The opinion concluded that specific targets for reducing climate changing gases, set in a 2008 law, are not legally binding. It’s the latest move in a two-year chess game between a green wonk governor who has made fighting climate change one of his top priorities, and a Republican-controlled Senate that says carbon emission caps will cripple state industries. John Stang reports. (Crosscut)

Now, your weekend tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 236 AM PDT FRI SEP 4 2015
TODAY
E WIND 5 TO 15 KT...BECOMING NW IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. NW SWELL 4 FT AT 10 SECONDS.
TONIGHT
NW WIND 10 TO 20 KT...EASING TO 10 KT AFTER MIDNIGHT. WIND WAVES 1 TO 3 FT. NW SWELL 4 FT AT 10 SECONDS.
SAT
LIGHT WIND...BECOMING W 5 TO 15 KT IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES LESS 2 FT OR LESS. NW SWELL 3 FT AT 11 SECONDS.
SAT NIGHT
W WIND 5 TO 15 KT...BECOMING S AFTER MIDNIGHT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. SW SWELL 4 FT AT 16 SECONDS.
SUN
SW WIND TO 10 KT...BECOMING W 5 TO 15 KT IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. SW SWELL 3 FT AT 17 SECONDS.

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