7/18 Tomcod, orcas, B'ham Bay cleanup, parasites, blocked Fraser, vineyard snail, pay-per-mile, BC old growth, train fire, Strait swim

Pacific tomcod [John Merck]

Pacific tomcod Microgadus proximus
Pacific tomcod can be found from the Bering Sea to Pt. Sal, California. They are a schooling fish that live on or near soft bottoms of mud, silt or find sand. As adults Pacific tomcod are found at water depths of 27 to 219 m (90-720 ft). Caught incidentally in the commercial fishery off the Washington coast with otter-trawls. Rarely caught by recreational harvesters in Puget Sound. Pacific tomcod can grow up to 30 cm (12 in) in length. (WDFW)

Killer collapse
For the Tsleil-Waututh First Nation, killer whales are traditionally seen as messengers from the other side, appearing in B.C.'s Burrard Inlet just before the death of an important leader. The Lummi people of Washington state call them “Qwe ‘lhol mechen,” roughly translated to “our relations below the waves.” But this deep cultural significance is just one reason members of both Nations are alarmed by the current troubles facing the southern resident orca population, which seems to be struggling to find enough food. They also worry that the loss of these beloved whales could signal a downward spiral for marine ecosystems along the West Coast. Beth Lindsay reports. (CBC) See also: Salish Sea Orcas are going elsewhere for fish  It looks like endangered Orcas that reside around Puget Sound… may be residing somewhere else. Anna Boiko-Weyrauch reports. (KUOW) And: Inslee visits Whale Trail site  Gov. Jay Inslee visited a new site Wednesday along what is known as The Whale Trail when he made a stop at West Beach in Deception Pass State Park. The trail has about 100 sites from British Columbia to Southern California.(Skagit Valley Herald)

State accepting public comment on central waterfront cleanup plan in Bellingham
It’s been more than a dozen years since the Georgia Pacific pulp mill on Bellingham’s waterfront shut down and the local port district took ownership of 137 heavily polluted acres. Residents recently got a chance to tour the central waterfront parcel and learn about a new cleanup plan that they hope will ultimately lead to revitalization. Near the railroad tracks, not far from Bellingham Bay, a couple dozen people gathered on a paved lot to see what the City of Bellingham and its port are doing to clean up more than 100 years' worth of pollution. Right now, it appears not much is happening around this site, geographically at the heart of the waterfront. Bellamy Pailthorp reports. (KNKX)

'Packed full of worms': Parasites wriggling in fish no cause for panic, experts say
Cassandra Coates is still squirming with disgust after pulling dozens of tiny white wriggling worms from a raw fillet of wild sockeye salmon.... Coates, who purchased the fillet from Save-On-Foods in south Edmonton on Saturday, complained to store management and posted a video to social media showing her pulling dozens of the worms out with a fork.... But experts say the worms are unwittingly eaten by plenty of seafood lovers and only pose a health risk if alive.  The parasites, anisakid nematodes, sometimes called herring worms or cod worms, are among the most common parasites found in fish and the majority of wild salmon are infected, said Michael Gänzle, Canada Research Chair in food microbiology and probiotics at the University of Alberta. Data cited by the B.C. Centre for Disease Control suggests 75 per cent of wild Pacific salmon are infected with the parasite. (CBC)

'We're losing time': Tl'azt'en First Nation very concerned about rock slide blocking salmon run
A rock slide blocking a narrow part of Fraser River just west of Clinton, about 100 kilometres northwest of Kamloops, has members of the Tl'azt'en First Nation very concerned that salmon that are already endangered won't be able to migrate to Northern B.C. this summer. The province discovered the rock slide late June and has since been trying to decide on a solution to help get the salmon past the blocked area in the river. So far, rock scalers have been working on stabilizing the area above the slide, but no concrete plan on how to move the salmon past the obstruction has been announced. Dominika Lirette reports. (CBC)

Fighting invasive snail a slow go for Port of Tacoma
The Port of Tacoma has been waging a slow war against (wait for it) a snail for more than a decade. Somehow, the Mediterranean vineyard snail found its way from Europe to the port. Since 2006, port and agriculture officials have been trying to make sure this slow-moving but fast-reproducing invader doesn't spread and threaten Washington crops and exports. John Ryan reports. (KUOW)

Washington drivers might be charged by the mile to make up for lagging gas-tax revenue
Washington state would move toward replacing the gas tax with a pay-per-mile system under a proposal the state Transportation Commission is expected to vote on late this year. The commission expects to receive a report in October from a panel that has studied the new type of tax. The time line calls for commission members to debate the details and vote Dec. 17 on its recommendations to the Legislature, which convenes on Jan. 13, 2020. It’s too early to say how the commission will vote, said chairman Jerry Litt. He said he expects many state residents would pay more under a pay-per-mile tax, which the state calls a “road usage charge.” James Drew reports. (News Tribune of Tacoma)

Dozens of B.C.'s largest old-growth trees now on the protection list
The British Columbia government is protecting 54 of the province's largest and oldest trees along with a one-hectare buffer zone surrounding each of the giants. Forests Minister Doug Donaldson says the announcement is also the start of a broader conversation about the future of old-growth management in the province. The trees are on the University of B.C.'s Big Tree Registry that has identified 347 of the largest of each species in the province. (Canadian Press)

For the second time this year, a passing train started fires along Highways 9 and 12
A train started six small fires along a 2-mile stretch of railroad tracks near Old Highway 9 and Highway 12 Tuesday, according to the West Thurston Regional Fire Authority. It’s the second occurrence of its kind along that stretch so far this year. A similar incident occurred on April 30, when fire was reported in six places along tracks in the same general area. In April, wind spread the fire and it reached about 3 acres. This time, Fire Chief Russ Kaleiwahea told The Olympian each “spot fire” was roughly 100-feet-by-100-feet or smaller. He said one tree ignited, but firefighters from his department and the state Department of Natural Resources extinguished the fires before they caused any damage to structures. Sara Gentzler reports. (Olympian)

Swimmer to attempt long route across Strait 
A Port Angeles native aims to be the 14th known person to have swum across the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Rob DeCou, an ultra-endurance athlete now living in Los Angeles, plans to swim more than 18 miles across the Strait of Juan de Fuca on Saturday, starting at the Dungeness Spit and ending at Ogden Point in Victoria. Jesse Major reports. (Peninsula Daily News)


Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  259 AM PDT Thu Jul 18 2019  
TODAY  W wind 5 to 15 kt becoming 10 to 20 kt in the afternoon.  Wind waves 1 to 3 ft. SW swell 7 ft at 13 seconds. A slight  chance of showers. 
TONIGHT  W wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell 6  ft at 9 seconds. A slight chance of showers.



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