2/28 R Haig-Brown, clean water order, sewage woes, Monsanto PCB, 'What's Upstream?,' Wilbur Ross

Roderick Haig-Brown (Vancouver Sun)

Haig-Brown was a pioneering conservationist
B.C. is the epicentre for Canada’s environmental activism. From Greenpeace to Valhalla Wilderness Society, the province has spawned campaigners for biodiversity, conservation and ecological integrity. The father of them all, it could be argued, was a well-connected member of the English gentry who cast aside privilege to fish Vancouver Island’s Campbell River. Today, Roderick Haig-Brown is a figure with international stature. Literary awards grace his name, provincial parks are named after him, and his library is the object of personal pilgrimages by writers, anglers and conservationists. In his own time, he was belittled, insulted and reviled in the home town that now has an official Roderick Haig-Brown Day, hosts an annual Roderick Haig-Brown Festival where the city hands out stewardship awards and sponsors an annual memorial lecture series. Stephen Hume reports. (Vancouver Sun/Canada 150)

New blog: The Business of Real News
Who’d have thought we’d see in our lifetimes the demise of traditional newspapers? That’s what a long-time local reporter said a few years ago before the last issue of the daily Seattle Post-Intelligencer was printed. Today, the Trump Administration is happy to see that demise run its course, calling those who report real news “the enemies of the people” and barring them from last Friday’s news briefing. But, when that demise comes, America will not be great again….

Trump Plans to Begin E.P.A. Rollback With Order on Clean Water
President Trump is expected to sign an executive order on Tuesday aimed at rolling back one of former President Barack Obama’s major environmental regulations to protect American waterways, but it will have almost no immediate legal effect, according to two people familiar with the White House plans. The order will essentially give Mr. Trump a megaphone to direct his new Environmental Protection Agency administrator, Scott Pruitt, to begin the complicated legal process of rewriting the sweeping 2015 rule known as Waters of the United States. But that effort could take longer than a single presidential term, legal experts said…. In the coming week, Mr. Trump is also expected to sign a similar order instructing Mr. Pruitt to begin the process of withdrawing and revising Mr. Obama’s signature 2015 climate-change regulation, aimed at curbing emissions of planet-warming greenhouse gases from coal-fired power plants. Coral Davenport reports. (NY Times) See also: Records show EPA's Pruitt used private email, despite denial   Michael Biesecker and Sean Murphy report. (Associated Press)

Damage to West Point treatment plant could top $25 million
Damage to the crippled West Point wastewater treatment plant in Seattle could cost more than $25 million to repair and might have happened after a power surge knocked out two pumps and led to major flooding, according to new details from King County. The cost and possible cause are all part of an ongoing investigation yet to nail down the extent of the damage and source of the trouble.  Lynda Mapes reports. (Seattle Times)

Judge won't dismiss Seattle's suit against Monsanto over PCB cleanup
A federal judge has refused to dismiss a lawsuit filed last year by the city of Seattle against Monsanto to make the company pay for the cleanup of toxic PCBs from the city’s drainage system and the Duwamish River. U.S. District Judge Robert Lasnik, in denying Monsanto’s motion to dismiss the case, said the city’s claim “plausibly alleges that Monsanto knew that its chemical products were toxic, yet chose not to modify its toxic chemical products, or to warn of their toxicity, in order to maximize its profits.” Mike Carter reports. (Seattle Times)

Agency clears Swinomish in 'What's Upstream?' complaint
The state Public Disclosure Commission is recommending that no action be taken against the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community over how the tribe ran the “What’s Upstream?” campaign. The recommendation comes after a monthslong review of a complaint lodged by Save Family Farming, an agriculture advocacy organization. Save Family Farming filed its complaint in September, alleging the campaign ultimately encourages passage of anti-farming laws, and violates grassroots lobbying laws because the campaign was not registered as a lobbying effort and was being funded by public money. Aaron Weinberg reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Senate confirms billionaire investor as commerce secretary
The Senate on Monday confirmed billionaire investor Wilbur Ross as commerce secretary as President Donald Trump adds to his economic team. The vote was 72-27. Breaking with Republican orthodoxy, Ross said the Trump administration will work quickly to re-do the North American Free Trade Agreement. That’s the massive trade pact with Canada and Mexico that has boosted trade but still stings laid-off workers across the Midwest. Stephan Ohlemacher reports. (Associated Press) And, if you missed it: Trump's billionaire pick for commerce, oceans chief keeping his fleet of oil tankers  John Ryan reported. (KUOW)

Black Hawk flights scour ocean for illegal crabbing
KING 5 flew with the U.S. Coast Guard and Oregon State Police to monitor for illegal Dungeness crab fishery, which is one of the most popular and dangerous fisheries in the Pacific Northwest. There are boundaries over the Pacific Ocean that the naked eye can't see, but they mark where crabbing is not allowed. Radar shows the Coast Guard pilots and fishermen where crabbing is not allowed. Alison Morrow reports. (KING)

Now, your tug weather--
WEST ENTRANCE U.S. WATERS STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA-  300 AM PST TUE FEB 28 2017  

TODAY  W WIND 10 TO 20 KT. WIND WAVES 1 TO 3 FT. W SWELL 6  FT AT 11 SECONDS. A CHANCE OF SHOWERS.
TONIGHT  W WIND 15 TO 25 KT. WIND WAVES 2 TO 4 FT. W SWELL 6 FT AT  12 SECONDS BUILDING TO 8 FT AT 7 SECONDS AFTER MIDNIGHT. RAIN.

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