6/5 Chinook, ocean acid, quakes, ocean plan, BC pipe, LEO Net, Cauvel, GBH, Somers, closed beach

Swimming Belcarra eagle [photo & video Cheryl Papove]

If you like to watch: Bald eagles spotted swimming in Belcarra, B.C.
Most people will never see a swimming bald eagle in their lifetime. Cheryl Papove, however, has seen it twice — with more than one bird. The Belcarra, B.C., homeowner woke up Saturday morning to find a pair of eagles taking a dip at the end of her dock. (CBC)

Facing challenges that could save chinook salmon from extinction
Nineteen years ago this month, then-Governor Gary Locke made a bold declaration about salmon that would echo through time: “Extinction is not an option.” It was a call to action that would lead to major protection and restoration efforts throughout Puget Sound. Still, today, chinook salmon have not experienced a population rebound, as many people had hoped. The failure to thrive has been a disappointment to many, yet we are often reminded that it took 150 years to push salmon to the brink of extinction and it will not be easy to ensure their future. Chris Dunagan reports. (Watching Our Water Ways)

Ocean acidity increasing along Pacific coast, study finds
The results of a study along the west coast of North America shows acidified ocean water is widespread along the shoreline and is having devastating impacts on coastal species.  The three-year study of ocean currents was conducted along the California and Oregon coasts by researchers from Oregon State University. Team member and marine ecologist Francis Chan said they found pH levels were among the lowest ever recorded in surface water in some spots (note: the lower the pH, the higher the acidity).  He said the results are concerning because it showed ocean acidification is no longer confined to deep water, but "had made landfall and is lapping up right on the shores."  Roshini Nair reports. (CBC)

Experts plumb depths of quake-causing cracks off west coast 
New research focused off the west coast of North America is giving seismologists a better understanding of what one scientist describes as "the single greatest geophysical hazard to the continental United States." Zach Eilon, a geophysicist at the University of California Santa Barbara, has developed a new method that uses an array of scientific instruments spread across the sea floor to measure shock waves that travel through the planet's crust. The rate at which the waves lose energy, called attenuation, provides clues about rock temperatures deep below the surface of the Earth, which is important for understanding the friction that builds up between tectonic plates as they rub against one another, he said. The amount of friction affects the size of an earthquake created when the plates give way, as well as the destructiveness of an accompanying tsunami. Geordon Omand reports. (Canadian Press)

B.C. to benefit from oceans plan which includes boost to coast guard
New lifeboat stations, support for coastal habitat restoration and a bolstering of the federal Fisheries Department and Canadian Coast Guard were all part of a significant funding announcement that Federal Fisheries Minister Dominic LeBlanc made in Victoria Wednesday. The announcement comes at the same time that local salmon enhancement groups say they were blindsided by news their program funding would be cancelled and the Canadian Coast Guard’s dive team would be reassigned to other duties. Amy Smart reports. (Times Colonist)

Kinder Morgan: Will BC Trans Mountain oil pipeline expansion be built? 
British Columbia appears headed for a showdown with Ottawa and others, including Alberta, over Kinder Morgan’s $7.4-billion Trans Mountain oil pipeline expansion. The Houston, Texas-based company seems to have everything in place to proceed, including approval from the National Energy Board, the backing of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and an environmental certificate from B.C. But is it enough? Gordon Hoekstra reports. (Vancouver Sun) See also: No further concessions on Trans Mountain pipeline: company president  Kinder Morgan Canada won’t make further concessions on its Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, the company’s president said Friday, setting the stage for a showdown with British Columbia’s potential government-in-waiting. (Canadian Press)

Crossing the Border To Protest A Canadian Pipeline
On the ferry ride from Washington to British Columbia ten activists sang songs they’d written about water that surrounded them: the Salish Sea. They were crossing the international border for a combination march and ferry ride that would take them from Victoria to Vancouver. Their goal was to protest the expansion of a Canadian oil pipeline. Eilís O'Neill reports. (KUOW)

Online hub launched in Victoria to watch for environmental changes
A new online hub is launching in Victoria that brings citizens, scientists and indigenous communities together to identify signs of environmental change. The Local Environmental Observer Network, which has roots in indigenous Alaskan communities, expanded to Victoria, Yellowknife and Ensenada, Mexico, last week. People can make observations — such as posting photos of sea-star die-offs — and experts will give feedback and help put the observation into context…. In Victoria, the LEO Project has partnered with the First Nations Health Network and the University of Victoria to contact communities. People can also participate by visiting LEO Network. Amy Smart reports. (Times Colonist)

Congratulations!
Congratulations to Kimberly Cauvel, environmental reporter at the Skagit Valley Herald, for being named one of ten environmental journalists this week attending the University of Rhode Island's Metcalf Institute for Marine & Environmental Reporting Annual Science Immersion Workshop for Journalists. See more at Metcalf Institute.

Groups work to save March Point herons knocked from nests
An effort is underway to save a handful of baby great blue herons that were knocked from their nests at March Point during an Anacortes-area windstorm last week. Following the May 23 windstorm, Skagit Land Trust volunteer stewards Jim Scheltens and LaVerne “Levy” Scheltens, who care for the March Point heronry, noticed the wildlife camera that typically shows footage of nesting herons was not working. When they visited the site May 25, they found a downed maple tree and about 25 dead baby herons that had been tossed from their nests when the tree fell. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

County Executive Somers to head Puget Sound Regional Council 
Snohomish County’s top elected leader now has some extra regional clout. Executive Dave Somers last week was elected by his peers as president of the Puget Sound Regional Council. Somers’ ascension at the four-county planning agency comes on top of his role as chairman of Sound Transit’s Board of Directors. Noah Haglund reports. (Everett Herald)

Tolmie State Park closed to shellfish harvesting after sewage spill  Lauren Smith reports. (Olympian) Bay View Park beach closed to swimming  Bay View State Park was closed to swimming Thursday because of a high level of fecal bacteria in the water. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  231 AM PDT Mon Jun 5 2017  
Today  NW wind to 10 kt rising to 10 to 20 kt in the afternoon.  Wind waves 1 ft or less building to 1 to 3 ft in the afternoon. W  swell 5 ft at 10 seconds.
TONIGHT  W wind 10 to 20 kt becoming 5 to 15 kt after midnight.  Wind waves 1 to 3 ft. W swell 5 ft at 10 seconds.

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"Salish Sea News & Weather" is compiled as a community service by Mike Sato. To subscribe, send your name and email to msato (@) salishseacom.com. Your email information is never shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.

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