6/18 False Solomon's seal, BC pipe, Snohomish estuary, Edmonds connector, 'zero carbon,' Chinook kill

False Solomon's Seal

False Solomon's Seal Smilacina racemoss
The name 'Solomon's-seal' (originally given to Polygonatum multiflorum is traditionally thought to refer to the rhizomes of this species. They bear surface scars, or show markings when freshly cut, which resemble the seal of Solomon: a 6-pointed star. However, Grigson (1974) claims the original medieval Latin refers to one of the flowers hanging like a seal on a document. S.racemosa resembles P.multiflorum-- hence 'false' Solomon's-seal. (Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast)

What to watch for in today's cabinet decision on the TMX pipeline project
The federal cabinet will decide on Tuesday whether to again approve the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion. An outright rejection of the project is thought to be unlikely, given how much political and financial capital the government already has invested in the controversial pipeline — a project that oilpatch boosters have long demanded as a solution to constrained pipeline capacity and perpetually low prices for Canadian oil. The company building the pipeline — now a Crown-owned entity — has already received some 30 per cent of the pipe needed to build the much-delayed project. But even if the Trans Mountain expansion gets approval, it may have a long way to go before shovels can hit the ground. Jon Paul Tasker reports. (CBC)

Snohomish River estuary project an example of why salmon recovery takes so long
When Kurt Nelson started working on restoring a large plot of estuary habitat for salmon on the Snohomish River, his youngest daughter had not yet been born.  Now she's preparing to graduate college. Though Nelson can't believe he's spent so much of his adult career working on a single project, it shows just how painstakingly slow salmon recovery moves. Alison Morrow reports.... The Qwuloolt Estuary project involved nearly two dozen partners, such as Snohomish County and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, and took two decades to complete. (KING)

Waterfront disconnect; Edmonds roadway stirs online outrage
A proposed roadway known as the connector isn’t exactly uniting folks around here. The idea behind Edmonds’ Waterfront Connector was to provide an emergency route over the railroad tracks, when stopped trains cut off the bustling ferry terminal, beaches and marina. That can be a life-or-death matter when police or firefighters need to reach the area in a hurry. The city has spent at least seven years pondering the dilemma. To date, 50 ideas have been discarded, for cost, aesthetics or practicality. By 2017, city leaders had launched initial design work on a possible solution: a one-lane elevated road that would link Sunset Avenue to Brackett’s Landing North, the popular diving destination next to the ferry terminal. Noah Haglund reports. (Everett Herald)

County, Sequim officials get insight on lab’s work
Officials from Clallam County and the city of Sequim toured the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s Marine Sciences Laboratory in Sequim recently, learning about the facility’s research on climate change. During presentations at the laboratory Wednesday, part of the county’s series of events focusing on the impacts of climate change, officials learned about a study in Grays Harbor County on how forests respond to increasing amounts of salt water, what happens to eelgrass as temperatures rise and about how the lab hopes to work with local businesses and organizations. Jesse Major reports. (Peninsula Daily News)

Going 'Zero Carbon' Is All The Rage. But Will It Slow Climate Change?
Despite the growing push to reach “zero carbon,” there are big questions around whether these goals are possible and how much they would actually slow climate change. Here’s an attempt to answer some of them. Nathan Rott reports. (NPR)

Generator failure that killed millions of Chinook salmon was preventable, state finds
A generator failure at a Pierce County hatchery that led to the death of millions of Chinook salmon fry was caused by a loose or cracked connection with the battery, according to a state report released Monday. The Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife investigation, which was conducted by outside contractors, found the poor connection could have been detected and repaired “under normal conditions” if Minter Creek Hatchery staff routinely tested and inspected the generator. (KING)


Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  255 AM PDT Tue Jun 18 2019   
TODAY  W wind 5 to 15 kt becoming 10 to 20 kt in the afternoon.  Wind waves 1 to 3 ft. W swell 5 ft at 11 seconds. 
TONIGHT  W wind 10 to 20 kt. Wind waves 1 to 3 ft. W swell 7 ft  at 10 seconds.



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