7/19 Billy Frank, Jr., Tesoro, old growth, canoe journey, orca plan, no fish farm, GBH, port stormwater

Billy Frank, Jr. (NW Treaty Tribes)

A Native American Leader's Legacy Lives On At Nisqually Wildlife Refuge
Top Northwest officials and a member of President Obama’s cabinet will gather Tuesday for the renaming of a wildlife refuge near Olympia in honor of one of the region’s best known Native American leaders. The Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge is being renamed in honor of late Nisqually tribal leader Billy Frank Jr. In the 1960s and ‘70s, Frank helped organize protests, or “fish-ins,” to advocate for south Puget Sound tribes’ fishing rights based on the 1854 Medicine Creek Treaty. Ken Christensen reports. (OPB)

Tesoro Anacortes Refinery included in national emissions settlement
A $425 million Clean Air Act settlement announced Monday will require Tesoro Corp. and Par Hawaii Refining to reduce emissions at six of their oil refineries, including the Tesoro Anacortes Refinery. The settlement is between the two oil companies, the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Other refineries in the region, including the Shell Puget Sound Refinery, previously entered into similar settlements with the EPA.... Most of the changes required for refinery operations in the latest settlement will apply to the Tesoro Anacortes Refinery, said Mark Asmundson, executive director of the Northwest Clean Air Agency, which regulates air quality in Whatcom, Skagit and Island counties. Changes will include a reduction in the threshold for sulfur emissions during the refining process, and closer scrutiny of the refinery’s wastewater treatment system and equipment performance. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Vancouver Island old growth on brink of collapse, environmental group claims
Vancouver Island's forests are on pace for an ecological and economic collapse, according to new data collected by the Sierra Club of B.C.  The environmental advocacy group is calling on the B.C. government to help phase out old growth logging in favour of younger second growth trees…. But the B.C. government is leery of sudden changes that might negatively affect the industry — one that contributes $2.5 billion to three levels of government and employs nearly 150,000 people. Stefan Labbé reports. (CBC)

Nisqually tribe prepares for upcoming Canoe Journey
…Thousands of people are expected to descend on the Port of Olympia on July 30 to watch more than 100 tribal canoes arrive at the tip of the Port Of Olympia peninsula. Given the tide predictions, the landing ceremonies are expected to begin about 1 p.m. that day, according to organizers. Nearly a dozen tribes and First Nations from Alaska, Canada and the Pacific Northwest have already begun their journey along the saltwater highway to Nisqually’s traditional territory known as the Salish Sea. They are stopping at coastal tribal communities along the way. From the west, the canoes were scheduled to land at Neah Bay on Monday and head down the Strait of Juan de Fuca this week, according to a map posted on the Canoe Journey Facebook page. From the north, they are scheduled to arrive at Lummi, near Bellingham, on Wednesday. Several of Nisqually’s canoe family members plan to leave for Lummi on Tuesday to join in the last part of the journey, which includes stops hosted by the Muckleshoot and Puyallup tribes. Lisa Pemberton reports. (Olympian)

CRD directors decline to condemn orca action plan
Capital Regional District directors want to be consulted before the federal government implements a proposed action plan to protect endangered orca populations. But they stopped short of endorsing a letter penned by Juan de Fuca director Mike Hicks, who said the action plan “although well intentioned, is potentially disastrous for our residents and First Nations.” Fisheries and Oceans Canada has posted the proposed plan, which includes fishery closures and marine habitat protection, and is accepting public comment until Aug. 14. Bill Cleverley reports. (Times Colonist)

Pamela Anderson and Sea Shepherd Society join anti-salmon farming push in B.C.
Celebrity and animal-rights activist Pamela Anderson joined David Suzuki and others to urge consumers not to eat B.C. farmed salmon on Monday, at the launch of a new campaign aiming at highlighting problems in the industry…. The event was held in Vancouver aboard a sailboat owned by the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, a controversial direct-action marine conservation group that will be flying its pirate-inspired flag along the B.C. coast this summer. The Sea Shepherd's R/V Martin Sheen will be travelling from Vancouver to Port Hardy, B.C., carrying biologist and activist Alexandra Morton as she carries out field research on a virus found on B.C. salmon farms and in the wild. Lisa Johnson reports. (CBC)

Herons’ baby boom fills tiny park near Ballard Locks after eagles made them move 
It’s the sounds that give it away: a steady clacking of bills, and raucous, prehistoric- sounding squawks. Seattle’s biggest, newest heronry is burgeoning with the city’s official bird, the great blue heron. After a series of devastating eagle attacks in nearby Kiwanis Ravine, where herons had been nesting since at least 1982, the colony abandoned all 86 nests there and moved house to tiny Commodore Park. In just two weeks in May 2013, the herons added about 55 new nests to the seven already established at Commodore Park. Despite the late start — breeding season usually starts in January — the herons managed to raise and fledge 87 young in their new colony in 2013. Lynda Mapes reports. (Seattle Times)

Port of Port Angeles signs off on contract for stormwater project
Port of Port Angeles commissioners approved Monday a $1.4 million contract to complete stormwater conveyance improvements on Terminal 3. The port will contract through Glacier Environment Service Inc., a Lynwood construction company that specializes in remedial site work and mechanical system installation. The project will be over budget because the port’s 2016 budget only allocated $1.2 million for the improvements. Port staff expect to make up the extra costs through other projects that won’t be completed this year or will come in under budget, according to port documents. Jesse Major reports. (Peninsula Daily News)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA-  240 AM PDT TUE JUL 19 2016  

TODAY  E WIND TO 10 KT IN THE MORNING...BECOMING LIGHT. WIND  WAVES 1 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 3 FT AT 8 SECONDS. A CHANCE OF  SHOWERS.
TONIGHT  W WIND TO 10 KT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 3 FT  AT 8 SECONDS.

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