9/8 L122, fin whale, VanAquarium, Malinak swims, fish ladder, sea stars, bad soil, religion

L91 with calf L122 (Monika Weiland/Orca Watcher)

Baby boom continues for Puget Sound orcas
Puget Sound’s orcas have added another baby girl to their ranks, bringing to five the number of whales born this year to the Sound’s three resident pods. The calf was spotted Monday, swimming with L-Pod and her mother, L91, a 20-year-old orca. The pod is one of three in Puget Sound’s endangered Southern Resident Community, according to the Pacific Whale Watch Association (PWWA), which spotted the calf. The baby — named L122 — is the fifth calf born since Dec. 30… (Seattle Times)

Rarely-seen fin whale spotted in nearby waters
A rare sighting of the world’s second-largest whale in north Puget Sound makes marine experts hopeful for a recolonization on the West Coast. A fin whale was spotted and photographed Thursday morning south of Minor Island, near Whidbey Island, about 50 kilometres east of Victoria. The sighting was made by naturalists aboard the Chilkat Express, part of a Seattle-area whale-watching fleet. It appeared to be a young fin whale, healthy but on the thin side, according to Jonathan Stern, a marine biology professor at San Francisco State University. Adrian Chamberlain reports. (Times Colonist)

Vancouver Aquarium wants to mix conservation with commercial aquaculture
For decades, the Vancouver Aquarium has trumpeted its conservation programs. Now, it is hoping to make some cash at the same time. In an experimental program that is certain to stir controversy, the aquarium is raising rock fish and wolf eels in hopes of kickstarting a commercial aquaculture program, selling the crop to commercial markets while reducing pressure on wild stocks. Larry Pynn reports. (Vancouver Sun)

Seattle man becomes only 8th person to swim across Strait of Juan de Fuca without a wetsuit
A Seattle man became the eighth person to complete a swim across the Strait of Juan de Fuca without a wetsuit on Sunday.  Andrew Malinak, a 28-year-old civil engineer from Seattle, wore only a neon pink bathing suit and a bright orange swim cap and took just under 7 hours to swim 12 miles across the 54 degree waters of the Strait in his second attempt to conquer the waterway.  Arwyn Rice reports. (Peninsula Daily News)

Capitol Lake dam fish ladder to be repaired beginning Tuesday
Repair work that will begin on the Capitol Lake dam fish ladder early Tuesday morning (Sept. 8) will require the temporary closure of the sidewalk next to the dam. The state’s Enterprise Services Department will lower the lake by about 2 feet during the repairs. The work will be done by Rognlin’s Inc. of Aberdeen. The fish ladder was damaged earlier this year. While the cause of the damage is unknown, officials say it was likely caused by logs or other debris passing through the ladder. (Olympian)

Point Defiance loses half its sea stars to a wasting aquatic disease
The disease responsible for the largest die-off of sea stars ever recorded has popped back up along the West Coast. Last year, Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium lost more than half of its 369 sea stars. Now, they number fewer than 100…. An exact total of how many sea stars have shown signs of wasting at Point Defiance was not immediately available. Stacia Glenn reports. (Tacoma News Tribune)

No legal teeth in 2008 state law on gas emissions, analysis says
A 2008 state law seeking big cuts in greenhouse-gas emissions is toothless and does not require the Legislature or other officials to meet its targets, according to a legal analysis by Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson’s office. But aides to Democratic Gov. Jay Inslee say that won’t stop him from using his executive authority to set a statewide cap on carbon emissions through the Department of Ecology. Citing the governor’s authority under the state Clean Air Act — a separate law — the aides rejected calls by state Sen. Doug Ericksen, R-Ferndale, to suspend the Ecology Department’s work. Jim Brunner reports. (Seattle Times)

Toxic soil transport across Duwamish draws critics
Duwamish River activists are concerned about a Waste Management proposal to transport toxic soil across the river…. Waste Management is working to secure permits to transport soil dredged from the Port of Bellingham. It's contaminated after years of industrial waste and headed for a landfill. It will be barged through the Duwamish to the Waste Management site, and then loaded onto trains. Alison Morrow reports. (KING)

Live In A Beautiful Region? You're Less Likely To Be Religious
A new study says beautiful places like King County have so many people who claim to be nones -- having no religion -- because the natural world provides a "spiritual resource." Ross Reynolds speaks with Todd Ferguson, co-author with Jeffrey Tamborello, about their finding that counties with high levels of natural amenities also have low rates of religious adherence. Posey Gruener and Ross Reynolds report. (KUOW)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA- 300 AM PDT TUE SEP 8 2015
TODAY
W WIND TO 10 KT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 5 FT AT 9 SECONDS. A CHANCE OF RAIN.
TONIGHT
W WIND TO 10 KT IN THE EVENING...BECOMING LIGHT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 4 FT AT 9 SECONDS.
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