4/29 Early bugs, BC CG, plastic bags, natural gas, bad clams, Bill McKibben

Black carpenter ant

Ants, other insects emerging in large numbers this year
It's not something you want to hear inside your walls on a quiet night: a slight crackle, almost like milk being poured over a bowl of Rice Krispies. That's the sound an infestation of carpenter ants will make… A mild winter coupled with a sudden burst of warm weather has many insects — including carpenter ants — coming out a bit early this year in the Vancouver area, and the colonies will be healthier than other years. Rafferty Baker reports. (CBC) See also: Pine beetles not responsible for wildfires, research shows  Mark Hume reports. (Globe and Mail)

Kitsilano Coast Guard station reopening with inflatable boat
When the Kitsilano Coast Guard Station reopens next month it will only have a single inflatable boat and limited staff, according to the head of the union representing coast guard employees. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau  promised to reopen the base after winning the last election, but the union says when it actually does officially reopen sometime in May, it won't be staffed with a full crew immediately or the larger rescue boat that used to be there. Instead, it will have an inshore inflatable rescue boat and a seasonal crew from the HMCS Discovery Navy Reserve base. (CBC)

The Bag Bill
Saving America from Plastic Bags. The advocates taking on a ubiquitous ecological blight. Ian Frazier reports. (The New Yorker)

Tacoma plastic bag ban advances, but with help for families on cost
Tacoma’s proposed ban on disposable bags took a step forward late Wednesday, but with an adjustment intended to help low-income households prepare for a change that could have them paying a few extra nickels every time they buy groceries. The vote by a City Council committee that oversees environmental issues keeps the plastic bag ban on track to take effect by the start of next year. Adam Ashton reports. (Tacoma News Tribune)

How safe is natural gas?
Pierce County Superior Court Judge Frank E. Cuthbertson is set to decide today, April 29, whether his previous temporary decision will become permanent to keep the City of Tacoma from releasing the city’s hazardous response plans for a planned liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant. Puget Sound Energy wants the information to remain secret out of fear that releasing details about the proposed plant’s safety assessment would make it a potential target for terrorist attacks as well as disclose confidential company plans. Red Line Tacoma activist John Carlton sought the details so the environmental group could better understand the potential destruction a blast or fire could have on the surrounding area. Steve Dunkelberge reports. (Tacoma Weekly)

Clams from area closed due to fecal contamination believed sold in Victoria's Chinatown
Clams harvested from an area closed due to fecal contamination may have been sold in Victoria's Chinatown, Fisheries and Oceans Canada said Thursday in a statement. The agency is warning consumers the contaminated clams could be "dangerous and potentially fatal," and says cooking them will not make them safe to eat. The B.C. Centre for Disease control says shellfish contaminated by sewage could result in Hepatitis A and norovirus. (CBC)

Bill McKibben: Sorry for bumming you out about climate change
On his recent visit to Seattle, author and environmentalist Bill McKibben apologized for his “life’s work of bumming people out” about climate change. He continued with that sobering work in this talk at Town Hall Seattle, but not without sharing his optimism about the successes and the future of the environmental movement. McKibben has been a major force in shaping and inspiring the climate change protest movement. He is an author, journalist and the founder of the activist network 350.org. Jennie Cecil Moore recorded this talk at Town Hall Seattle on April 4. John O'Brien reports. (KUOW)

Now, your weekend tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA-  300 AM PDT FRI APR 29 2016  

SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 11 AM PDT THIS MORNING  THROUGH LATE TONIGHT  

TODAY  NW WIND TO 10 KT...BECOMING W 15 TO 25 KT IN THE  AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS...BUILDING TO 2 TO 4 FT IN THE  AFTERNOON. W SWELL 6 FT AT 12 SECONDS. A CHANCE OF SHOWERS THROUGH  THE DAY.

TONIGHT  W WIND 20 TO 30 KT...EASING TO 15 TO 25 KT AFTER  MIDNIGHT. WIND WAVES 3 TO 5 FT...SUBSIDING TO 2 TO 4 FT AFTER  MIDNIGHT. W SWELL 7 FT AT 12 SECONDS...BUILDING TO 9 FT AT 9  SECONDS AFTER MIDNIGHT.

SAT  W WIND TO 10 KT...BECOMING NW 10 TO 20 KT IN THE AFTERNOON.  WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS...BUILDING TO 1 TO 3 FT IN THE AFTERNOON. W  SWELL 6 FT AT 10 SECONDS.

SAT NIGHT  W WIND 15 TO 25 KT...EASING TO 5 TO 15 KT AFTER  MIDNIGHT. WIND WAVES 2 TO 4 FT...SUBSIDING TO 2 FT OR LESS AFTER  MIDNIGHT. W SWELL 6 FT AT 12 SECONDS.

SUN  SE WIND 5 TO 15 KT. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 6 FT AT  13 SECONDS.

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