5/17 Priest Point Park, plankton,Skagit water, Salish Sea

Ellis Cove, Priest Point Park [Tori Sloane]

Priest Point Park
Priest Point Park is a 314-acre regional nature park on Budd Inlet in Olympia. The land upon which Priest Point Park sits has been used for generations by the Indigenous peoples of our region, which include the Squaxin, Nisqually, Quinault, Puyallup, Chehalis, Suquamish, and Duwamish. Priest Point Park is named for a small group of Catholic missionaries, the Oblate Fathers, who came to the area in 1848. They cleared the land, planted a large garden, built a chapel, and established the St. Joseph d’Olympia mission. The Squaxin, Nisqually, Puyallup, and Snoqualmie tribes used the mission as a trading center during this time. (City of Olympia) Priest Point, a rocky point at the northern entrance to the Snohomish River, was called Schuh-tlahks, meaning "stony nose," by the Indians. The present name refers to a Catholic mission established on the site in 1959. (Washington State Place Names)

Tiny Plankton, Big Threat To Puget Sound Food Chain
A tomato soup-colored plankton bloom going on now in Puget Sound will have repercussions reaching up to salmon and orcas, ecologists say. Neal McNamara reports. (Patch)

Seattle City Light agrees to provide water to mitigate wells
An agreement between Seattle City Light and the state Department of Ecology will remove legal uncertainty over water use for hundreds of homes in portions of Skagit and Snohomish counties. The electric utility and state agency announced the agreement this week. Through the agreement, Ecology is purchasing some of Seattle City Light’s senior water rights, Ecology Water Resources Program Regional Supervisor Rita Berns said. Seattle City Light will then continuously release 0.5 cubic feet of water per second from Gorge Dam — the lowest of three hydroelectric dams on the Skagit River — specifically to offset the impact on the river by the use of area wells. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Where On Earth Is the Salish Sea?
Less than half of the people in Washington and British Columbia have heard of the Salish Sea, even though they live alongside it. That’s according to a recent report  from The SeaDoc Society, a program of the University of California, Davis’ School of Veterinary Medicine, and Oregon State University. The study reveals that only 5 percent of people in Washington and 14 percent of British Columbians can identify the Salish Sea—the marine ecosystem that spans the United States-Canada border and includes both Seattle and Vancouver. Ustin Cox reports. (UC Davis)


Now, your weekend tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  247 AM PDT Fri May 17 2019   
TODAY  W wind 10 to 20 kt becoming SW 5 to 15 kt in the  afternoon. Wind waves 1 to 3 ft. W swell 5 ft at 12 seconds. A  chance of showers in the morning then a slight chance of showers  in the afternoon. 
TONIGHT  SE wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 2 ft or less. SW swell  4 ft at 12 seconds. A chance of showers. 
SAT  E wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 2 ft or less. SW swell 5 ft  at 11 seconds building to 7 ft at 14 seconds in the afternoon. A  chance of showers. 
SAT NIGHT  SE wind 15 to 20 kt becoming E to 10 kt after  midnight. Wind waves 2 to 3 ft subsiding to 1 ft or less after  midnight. W swell 8 ft at 13 seconds. 
SUN  NE wind to 10 kt becoming SW in the afternoon. Wind waves  1 ft or less. W swell 7 ft at 12 seconds.

--
"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.

Salish Sea News: Communicate, Educate, Advocate

Follow on Twitter. 

Salish Sea Communications: Truth Well Told