10/31 Black widow, closing BC herring fishery, BC transport power, Rock the Park

Western black widow spider

Western Black Widow Spider Latrodoctus hesperus
Probably the most famous but also most reclusive spider is the Western Black Widow. Adult females have very dangerous venom, but will often try to run away rather than confront or bite. They usually are shiny black with a red hourglass marking on their belly, but the belly marking can also be yellowish-orange, and it might be in the shape of an hourglass, two distinct marks, or just a spot. The body of the female is about 1/2 inch long. Their favorite sites for webs are usually in dark, undisturbed areas like woodpiles, piles of rubble, stacks of hay bales, water meter boxes, under eaves and on fences. The typical web of a black widow is very messy looking - not an organized or "pretty" web - and is made of strong, sticky silk. (Eastside Exterminators)

Feds called on to enforce emergency closure of B.C.’s last herring fishery
Conservation groups are calling for the immediate closure of the herring fishery in the Strait of Georgia following the release of new federal government data showing a four-year population biomass decline of almost 60 per cent...Herring once spawned en masse in bays and inlets along the B.C. coast, turning waters chalky with eggs and milt in one of nature’s spectacular events. Today, largely due to overfishing, the only remaining area of spawn is between Qualicum Beach and Comox.  Sarah Cox reports. (The Narwhal)

B.C. will need more power to electrify transportation industry
To electrify transportation, which produces a third of the B.C. greenhouse gas emissions, the province will need to generate up to 60 per cent more electricity, according to a report. The report released Wednesday by the University of Victoria, makes a case for using renewable energy sources such as solar, geothermal and wind power to save on costs to meet the demand of shifting to all zero-emission vehicles in the next three decades. The report by UVic researchers with the Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions says electrifying vehicles would drop greenhouse emissions for the combined electricity and transportation sectors by 38 per cent or 260 million tonnes of CO2, between 2015 and 2055, as long as 93 per cent of electricity continues to come from renewable sources. The province will need to increase its electrical production capacity to 23 gigawatts from a 2015 baseline of 15.6 gigawatts  to meet forecast economic and population growth, the reports says. Tiffany Crawford reports. (Vancouver Sun)

If you like to watch: San Juan Islands: Exploring The Salish Sea (20:14)
Colton and Jack are on the San Juan Island exploring the Salish Sea and discovering the wide variety of land and sea creatures that make up its fragile ecology. They search for Orcas, spot a wide variety of marine life including harbor seals and bald eagles and what lurks underwater in the Salish Sea. (Rock the Park)


Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  300 AM PDT Thu Oct 31 2019   
TODAY  SE wind to 10 kt. Wind waves 1 ft or less. W swell 4 ft  at 12 seconds. 
TONIGHT  Light wind becoming SE to 10 kt after midnight. Wind  waves 1 ft or less. W swell 4 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.

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10/30 Pacific wren, fishers, Thunberg, 'We Are Puget Sound,' Russell Foundation, coal bankruptcy, Ballard Locks

Pacific wren [Julio Molero/BirdNote]

What the Pacific Wren Hears
What does the Pacific Wren hear in a song? It's a long story. What we hear as a blur of sound, the bird hears as a precise sequence of sounds, the visual equivalent of seeing a movie as a series of still pictures. That birds can hear the fine structure of song so acutely allows them to convey much information in a short sound. Pacific Wrens are found most often in closed-canopy conifer forests, nesting in cavities, usually within six feet of the ground. (BirdNote)

More fishers released into North Cascades 
In a continuing effort to restore house cat-like, furry predators called fishers to Washington’s Cascades, another eight of the critters were released last week into forest land east of Darrington. A multiyear project involving federal, state and nonprofit partners, as well as some from Canada, aims to bring 160 fishers from areas of Canada where there is a large population into areas of the Cascades where they’ve been absent since facing hunting pressures and habitat changes throughout the early to mid-1900s. The long-term plan is to release 80 in the North Cascades and another 80 in the South Cascades, largely around Mount Rainier. In the North Cascades, the recent release of eight fishers brings the total released in North Cascades National Park and Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest lands to 44. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Herald) See also: New Fisher Agreements Boost Conservation On 2 Million Acres In Oregon  Federal wildlife officials have entered into agreements with timber companies and the state of Oregon to protect the rare Pacific fisher on nearly 2 million acres of forestland in Oregon. Yes Burns reports. (OPB)

Greta Thunberg rejects Nordic Council environmental award
Greta Thunberg has turned down an environmental award and prize money because "the climate movement does not need any more awards". She said the offer was a "great honour" and thanked the Nordic Council, which said it respected her decision. But, she said, "politicians and the people in power" need to listen to the "current, best-available science". (BBC)

Puget Sound people, places featured in book ‘We Are Puget Sound’
Chris Dunagan in Watching Our Water Ways writes: "Some of my favorite people are reflected in the new book “We Are Puget Sound,” which offers an overview of the geography, history and natural environment of our inland waterway... Folks recognized for their work in special sections of the book include Betsy Peabody, who is leading a group that restores Olympia oysters and other native species; scuba diver Laura James, who has documented the effects of pollution on sea life; former Secretary of State Ralph Munro, who played a key role in ending the commercial capture of killer whales in the 1970s; and former U.S. Rep Norm Dicks, who secured federal funding for many Puget Sound projects, including the removal of two dams on the Elwha River. Also featured are Native American leaders, including Joseph Pavel of the Skokomish Tribe, Sally Brownfield of the Squaxin Island Tribe, and Ron Charles and Jeromy Sullivan of the Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe, all involved in protecting Puget Sound’s natural resources — including salmon and shellfish, guaranteed to the tribes by the federal government.Release of the book last week in Seattle marked the start of the “We are Puget Sound” campaign, which calls on people to go beyond their daily routines to think about what they can do to help recover Puget Sound."

Russell Foundation aids Seabeck salmon effort, other Puget Sound environmental projects
The Gig Harbor-based Russell Family Foundation has announced $6 million in loans, grants and investments in South Puget Sound environmental and social projects. The investments include a $250,000 loan guarantee to the environmental nonprofit Forterra for the purchase of a 297-acre property that formerly housed a University of Washington fishery research laboratory along the shores of Hood Canal near Seabeck. The parcel, known as the Big Beef Creek property, is about four miles east of Bremerton, in a rural area popular for bird-watching. Forterra seeks to acquire the land to preserve salmon habitat. The foundation also announced a $1.5 million loan to Forterra for the purchase and redevelopment of a former Rite-Aid store in Tacoma’s Hilltop that has become a focus of community efforts.(Peninsula Gateway/News Tribune)

Major Coal Producer And Trump Booster Files For Bankruptcy
The Trump administration has spent three years trying to help the coal industry by rolling back environmental regulations and pushing for subsidies for coal-fired power plants. Still, the long list of coal company bankruptcies has continued, and dozens more plants have announced their retirement since President Trump took office. Now the list of bankruptcies includes a company headed by one of Trump's most vocal supporters. Murray Energy Corp. filed for Chapter 11 on Tuesday morning. Jeff Brady reports. (NPR)

Take a look inside the depths of a cavernous chamber at the Ballard Locks
One of the chambers in the Ballard Locks that connects ships with Puget Sound is closed until December for much needed maintenance. The cavernous chamber is now completely empty — aside from a thick layer of barnacles, shells and seaweed. When it's in operation, it connects large ships to the Puget Sound from Salmon Bay. It smells strongly of low tide, and gets worse the deeper into the lock we go. Rebekah Way reports. (KNKX)


Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  300 AM PDT Wed Oct 30 2019   
TODAY  E wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 1 or 2 ft. W swell 3 ft at 12  seconds. 
TONIGHT  E wind to 10 kt becoming SW after midnight. Wind waves 1  ft or less. W swell 3 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.

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10/29/19 Bird's Nest fungi, porcupine fish, 'shroom poisonings, Olympic Pipeline, Trump's emissions

Bird's Nest Fungi [Alex Harris]

Bird's Nest Fungi Nidulariaceae
Nidulariaceae, commonly referred to as the “Bird’s Nest Fungi” have cup-like 'nests', called peridia which contain spore-filled 'eggs' called periodoles. Nidulariaceae count on raindrops to splash their eggs out of nests and onto decomposing matter such as twigs, leaves or soil. Here, it is pictured growing on a fir cone. (Alex Harris)

'It's a first': Poisonous porcupine fish washes up on Vancouver Island
A rare poisonous fish, usually found in tropical waters, was found earlier this month washed up on shore near a Vancouver Island community. The tissues of the spotted porcupine fish contain tetrodotoxin, which can cause paralysis and eventually asphyxiation, according to Gavin Hanke, the curator of vertebrate zoology at the Royal B.C. Museum.  It's the first time the species has been found in B.C., he said. It's been preserved as part of the museum's collection. (CBC)

B.C. on a record pace for mushroom poisonings
The B.C. Centre for Disease Control says 2019 is tracking to be a record year for mushroom poisonings in the province. The centre has received 201 mushroom poisoning calls as of Sept. 30.  Comparatively, there were 202 calls for all of 2018, which was an increase from the 161 calls received in 2017... Amanita phalloides, also known as the death cap and the most poisonous mushroom in the world, has been increasingly popping up in parts of B.C., including Victoria and south Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands, Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley region. Scott Brown reports. (Vancouver rSun)

Work planned for Olympic Pipeline
About $7.3 million in maintenance work is being planned along the Olympic Pipeline in Skagit County. The 400-mile Olympic Pipeline runs north to south through Washington and into Oregon, carrying petroleum products as far as Portland. It is supplied by two refineries in Whatcom County and two in Skagit County at March Point. The pipeline is operated by BP, an international oil and energy company that also operates one of the refineries in Whatcom County, at Cherry Point. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

General Motors Sides With Trump in Emissions Fight, Splitting the Industry
Breaking with some of their biggest rivals, General Motors, Fiat Chrysler and Toyota said Monday they were intervening on the side of the Trump administration in an escalating battle with California over fuel economy standards for automobiles. Their decision pits them against leading competitors, including Honda and Ford, who this year reached a deal to follow California’s stricter rules. It represents the latest twist in one of the Trump administration’s most consequential rollbacks of regulations designed to fight climate change. It has also opened a rift among the world’s biggest automakers — the very industrial giants that the Trump administration maintains it was trying to help with regulatory relief. The Trump administration has proposed a major weakening of federal auto emissions standards set during the Obama administration, prompting California to declare that it will go its own course and keep enforcing the earlier, stricter standards. Hiroko Tabuchi reports. (NY Times)


Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  300 AM PDT Tue Oct 29 2019   
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT THROUGH THIS AFTERNOON   
TODAY  E wind 20 to 30 kt easing to 15 to 25 kt in the afternoon.  Wind waves 2 to 5 ft. W swell 4 ft at 14 seconds. 
TONIGHT  SE wind 5 to 15 kt becoming E to 10 kt after midnight.  Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell 3 ft at 13 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.

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10/28 Elwha, Greta Thunberg, buying WA water, rising waters, otters, shorelines, Columbia sturgeon, Growlers, climate change tools

Elwha 10/25/19 [Lindsey Howard/CWI, Lighthawk]

Environmental allies: Teen protesters, civil disobedience groups and climate scientists demand action
It may take the combined efforts of protests like the one Friday that brought teenage activist Greta Thunberg to Vancouver, increasingly dire reports, and even the Canadian election results to finally move the dial on climate action, experts predict. ”Absolutely, people are starting to pay attention,” said Kai Chan, a University of B.C. professor and the Canada Research Chair in biodiversity and ecosystem services. But from the perspective of experts like Chan, it has taken an agonizingly long time for people to heed the warnings from the United Nations and other organizations that we now have just 11 years to save the planet before it suffers irreversible damage from climate change. In May, Chan was one of the co-authors of an 1,800-page international report — the most authoritative study ever produced on the impacts of human activity on the Earth — that drew many dire conclusions, including that a million animal and plant species could be extinct within decades. Lori Culbert reports. (Vancouver Sun) See also: Read Greta Thunberg’s full speech from the Vancouver climate rally  (Vancouver Sun)

Wall Street spends millions to buy up Washington state water
Follow the water and you’ll find the money. That’s how it often works in the dusty rural corners of Washington, where a Wall Street-backed firm is staking an ambitious venture on the state’s water. Crown Columbia Water Resources since 2017 has targeted the water rights of farms on tributaries of the mighty Columbia River...Follow the water and you’ll find the money. That’s how it often works in the dusty rural corners of Washington, where a Wall Street-backed firm is staking an ambitious venture on the state’s water. Crown Columbia Water Resources since 2017 has targeted the water rights of farms on tributaries of the mighty Columbia River...Amid a changing climate, a population boom in Washington and churning development, Peterson’s client plans to buy, lease and sell water in a privately operated water market of its own creation. Crown’s activities here are unprecedented in scope for a private firm. Evan Bush reports. (Seattle Times) See also: Wall Street seeks a valuable resource from Washington state's aging farmers: their water  Evan Bush reports. (Seattle Times)

Rising waters bring tough choice: fight or flight
Fight or flight. That’s the dilemma people living at water’s edge face as a hotter climate pushes Puget Sound and nearby rivers higher. Fleeing to higher, drier ground can be wrenching, while digging in and trying to hold the waters back can be costly, if not dangerous. Neighbors of the Skagit and Stillaguamish rivers, just north of Seattle, have been tackling this 21st-century dilemma for years — though in opposite ways. John Ryan reports. (KUOW)

Whidbey Island study takes a look at area otters
Studying one of the region’s cutest and perhaps most sly critters requires binoculars, wildlife cameras and, for researcher Heide Island, containers to hold feces...Island, of Pacific University in Oregon, has been scooping up as much fresh otter poop as she can find. She’s also been collecting another otter excrement called digestive mucus. Island is committed to following around Whidbey Island otters and gathering their droppings because the cute critters can reveal insights into the health of the environment because they are sensitive to pollutants. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Survey shows Puget Sound residents prefer natural shorelines to armored ones
Shoreline armoring not only damages the ecosystem, it may also impact our ‘sense of place’ and enjoyment of the environment, according to a 2019 report from Oregon State University. The report is based on surveys of both property owners and non-property owners in Puget Sound. More than 66% of survey respondents indicated that natural attributes were a strong part of their connection to Puget Sound’s shorelines. The report’s author, Dr. David Trimbach of Oregon State University’s Human Dimensions Lab, argues that environmentally damaging shoreline development such as seawalls and bulkheads could diminish that connection...Scientific studies have shown that shoreline armoring along Puget Sound’s beaches destroys habitat for salmon and forage fish, leads to beach erosion and lowers overall biodiversity. Approximately 30% of Puget Sound’s shorelines are considered to be armored. Jeff Rice writes. (Puget Sound Institute)

Could Columbia River sturgeon become a source of high-end caviar? The Yakama Nation is counting on it
Last December, Crafted Restaurant in Yakima served up an Instagram-ready dish of roe on a creme fraiche-dappled blini. Festive in presentation, the caviar was in keeping with the holiday season. But these were no ordinary eggs. Instead of black market Caspian Sea beluga caviar, which has been banned in the United States since 2005, guests were enjoying $80-an-ounce caviar sourced from Columbia River white sturgeon. These nutty pearls were a product of the Yakama Nation’s sturgeon hatchery, the only one to produce commercial caviar in the state that once was an epicenter of the American caviar industry. And if Donella Miller, fish biologist and manager of the Yakama White Sturgeon Management Project, has her way, the salt-cured delicacy will help offset the cost of operating the hatchery. Maintaining the Columbia’s white sturgeon fishery is necessary to providing a traditional food for Northwest tribes. But it’s also a harbinger of the overall health of the Columbia River Basin — and the people who call it home.  Kinsey Gidick reports. (Bitterroot/Crosscut)

The Navy's Growler jets bring noise to a quiet place: Olympic National Park
"THE SOUND OF FREEDOM" is a message known to all who drive past the entrance to Naval Air Station Whidbey, on Whidbey Island, but takes on a different meaning when Navy Growler jets fly over visitors enjoying the wildness and quiet which define Olympic National Park. From campers in the Hoh rain forest to Lake Quinault Lodge guests, there is growing discontent that the sound of freedom is competing with solitude and silence in a crown jewel of America's national park system. The park draws those who want to hear bugling Roosevelt Elk, not Growler jets. Joel Connely reports. (SeattlePI.Com)

Giving Schools — And Students — The Tools They Need In The Fight To Save The Planet
If you want to get students fired up about climate change, poop is a good place to start. At a conference on climate and education at the Omega Institute in Rhinebeck, N.Y., participants got to see that principle in action. A highlight of the gathering was a tour of the Omega Center for Sustainable Living, which features an ultra-modern, chemical-free wastewater treatment system. It’s a long room with stone walls and large windows that uses plants, bacteria, algae and snails to treat the wastewater from 25,000 visitors a year and return it to the local aquifer. It looks more like a botanical garden than a sewage plant...Over the years, hundreds of students — from elementary grades through graduate school — have come to see how it works, and it serves as a reminder of the importance of teaching climate change from the point of view of solutions, says Laura Weiland, the center’s director: “Unless we actually engage people and have the necessary training and outreach, the critical nature of what needs to happen in the next decade is not going to be possible.” Anya Kamenetz reports. (NPR)



Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  213 AM PDT Mon Oct 28 2019   
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM THIS EVENING THROUGH  TUESDAY EVENING   
TODAY  NW wind to 10 kt becoming E 5 to 15 kt in the afternoon.  Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell 5 ft at 17 seconds. 
TONIGHT  E wind 20 to 30 kt. Wind waves 3 to 5 ft. W swell 5 ft  at 15 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.

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10/25 Malibu Rapids, Greta Thunberg, indigenous rights, sea urchins, geoduck market, Appletree Cove sewage, Big Beef Creek protection, Fawn Sharp, Anacortes bag ban, Trump's climate

Malibu Rapids [Wikipedia]

Malibu Rapids (British Columbia)
The Malibu Rapids forms the entrance to Princess Louisa Inlet and is also connected to the Jervis Inlet. The tidal flow of both inlets pass through this narrow and shallow passage that creates a fast moving (approximately 9 kn or 17 km/h) and strong tidal rapids during the peak flows. At slack tide, the entrance is virtually flat calm similar to the Skookumchuck Narrows near the entrance of the Jervis Inlet...This was the site of the Malibu Club, formerly a private resort which is today a Young Life camp. (Wikipedia)

Greta Thunberg set to speak at climate rally in Vancouver
Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg is expected to attend a rally in downtown Vancouver on Friday, an event billed as a post-election demonstration to push Canadian leaders to take action on the climate crisis. Thunberg, 16, is expected to speak and appear at the march late Friday morning.  She began her weekly school climate strikes in her native Stockholm more than a year ago and her following has grown to tens of thousands in recent months. The Vancouver rally coincides with the filing of a lawsuit from 15 youth across Canada, who say the federal government's policies have contributed to high levels of greenhouse gas emissions and "dangerous" contributions to climate change. (CBC) See also: ’Utterly fearless:’ Greta Thunberg visits glacier in Jasper National Park  Climate change activist Greta Thunberg braved a blizzard on a snow-covered glacier in Jasper National Park to learn from the scientists who study the ice. (Canadian Press)

B.C. tables historic Indigenous rights bill in move to implement UN declaration
B.C.'s promised bill on Indigenous rights has been tabled in the legislature, and if passed, the province will be the first in Canada to legally implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP). Since the province committed to the legislation more than a year ago, a team from the Ministry of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation has been working with the First Nations Leadership Council to draft the historic bill. Chantelle Bellrichard reports. (CBC)

Swarm of sea urchins wreaks destruction on US West Coast
Tens of millions of voracious purple sea urchins that have already chomped their way through towering underwater kelp forests in California are spreading north to Oregon, sending the delicate marine ecosystem off the shore into such disarray that other critical species are starving to death. A recent count found 350 million purple sea urchins on one Oregon reef alone — more than a 10,000% increase since 2014. And in Northern California, 90% of the giant bull kelp forests have been devoured by the urchins, perhaps never to return. Vast “urchin barrens” — stretches of denuded seafloor dotted with nothing but hundreds of the spiny orbs — have spread to coastal Oregon, where kelp forests were once so thick it was impossible to navigate some areas by boat. Gillian Flaccus and Terence Chea report. (Associated Press)

Export markets cool for Washington's giant clam, the geoduck, as tariffs mount and Chinese consumers get picky
Some 40 feet down, diver Walter Lorentz Jr. groped along the bottom of Puget Sound, searching in the weak undersea light for small dimples that mark the site of a buried geoduck. He wielded a “stinger” — a high-pressure water wand — to help pry these giant clams loose from the sand and cobble where they may have resided for decades....By the next day, these geoducks — still alive — would be on sale in China. There, they are a costly delicacy viewed by some as an aphrodisiac and often served — simmered in a hot pot — at weddings, business banquets and high-end restaurants, where a 2-pound geoduck may fetch more than $100. For more than a decade, surging demand in China and high prices have fueled black market as well as legal harvests. But this year, the Asian market has cooled, and U.S. producers are finding it’s more difficult to wrest big profits from the Chinese geoduck market. That also means a sharp cut in revenue for the state of Washington, which has earned millions of dollars annually by auctioning off geoduck harvest rights. Hal Bernton reports. (Seattle Times)

No-contact advisory issued for Appletree Cove after sewage spill dumps more than 6,000 gallons of waste
A no-contact advisory has been issued for Appletree Cove after a sewage spill dumped more than 6,000 gallons of waste in Kingston. The Kitsap Public Health District is warning residents to avoid contact with the water —  including swimming, wading, or recreation where water could be swallowed or get in the mouth, nose or eyes — according to an advisory announced Wednesday. The advisory is in place through Nov. 12...The spill happened on a sewage line that connects a pump station in the area to the Kingston Wastewater Treatment Plant, said Kitsap County Public Works sewer utility manager Stella Vakarcs.   Austen Macalus reports. (Kitsap Sun)

Purchase of Big Beef Creek property preserves habitat, research projects
Nearly 300 acres along Big Beef Creek near Seabeck will be protected from development and could maintain its research facilities, thanks to a $3.5-million land purchase arranged by the Hood Canal Salmon Enhancement Group. The property, owned by the University of Washington, contains the Big Beef Creek Research Station, known for its studies of salmon and steelhead. The UW purchased the land, including most of the estuary, in 1965. Various research projects have continued there, despite the university’s decision to sell the property. Chris Dunagan reports (Watching Our Water Ways)

Quinault leader is elected president of Indian Country
Fawn Sharp, president of the Quinault Indian Nation, is the new president of the National Congress of American Indians. She won by a landslide with 61 percent of the vote. She is the third woman to lead the organization, which was founded in 1944. Bellamy Pailthorp reports. (KNKX)

Anacortes looking at plastic bag ban 
Anacortes is considering banning single-use plastic bags at grocery and retail stores, something at least 25 other jurisdictions throughout the state have done. An ordinance presented Monday night to the Anacortes City Council proposed a ban on single-use plastic bags used for transport or carry-away purchases at grocery or retail stores larger than 10,000 square feet. About a dozen people gave public comments in support of a ban, and two stated they opposed a ban. Jacqueline Allison reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Justice Dept. Sues California to Stop Climate Initiative From Extending to Canada
The Trump administration took another legal shot at California on Wednesday, suing to block part of the state’s greenhouse gas reduction program and limit its ability to take international leadership in curbing planet warming emissions. In a lawsuit filed in the Eastern District of California, the Justice Department said that a regional system created by California’s air resources board, which caps planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions but lets corporations trade emissions credits within that cap, was unlawful because it included Quebec, Canada. The Justice Department cited the constitutional prohibition on states making their own treaties or agreements with foreign governments. Lisa Friedman and Katie Penner report. (NY Times)


Now, your weekend tug weather--West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  227 AM PDT Fri Oct 25 2019   
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 5 AM PDT EARLY THIS  MORNING THROUGH THIS EVENING   
TODAY  S wind 10 to 20 kt becoming W wind 20 to 30 kt. Wind  waves 1 to 3 ft building to 3 to 5 ft. W swell 5 ft at 11 seconds  building to 10 ft at 8 seconds in the afternoon. Rain in the  morning then a chance of showers in the afternoon. 
TONIGHT  NW wind 15 to 25 kt easing to 5 to 15 kt after  midnight. Wind waves 2 to 4 ft subsiding to 1 to 2 ft after  midnight. W swell 13 ft at 10 seconds. 
SAT  N wind 5 to 15 kt becoming SE 10 to 20 kt in the  afternoon. Wind waves 1 to 3 ft. W swell 9 ft at 11 seconds. 
SAT NIGHT  E wind to 10 kt rising to 10 to 20 kt after  midnight. Wind waves 1 ft or less building to 1 to 3 ft after  midnight. W swell 6 ft at 11 seconds. 
SUN  SE wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell 5 ft  at 11 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.

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10/24 Geese in V, Trudeau's pipe, NOAA whale watching, LNG ship-refueling, McClatchy news

[PHOTO: Ted BoBosh/BirdNote]

Geese in V-formation
Autumn…and geese fly high overhead in V-formation. But what about that V-formation, angling outward through the sky? This phenomenon — a kind of synchronized, aerial tailgating — marks the flight of flocks of larger birds, like geese or pelicans. Most observers believe that each bird behind the leader is taking advantage of the lift of a corkscrew of air coming off the wingtips of the bird in front. This corkscrew updraft is called a tip vortex, and it enables the geese to save considerable energy during long flights. The V-formation may also enhance birds’ ability to see and hear each other, thus avoiding mid-air collisions. Small birds probably do not create enough of an updraft to help others in the flock and don’t fly in vees. (BirdNote)

Trudeau extends olive branch to Western Canada, vows to build Trans Mountain despite opposition
Two days after much of Western Canada rejected the Liberals on election day, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau today vowed to be more sensitive to the needs of Alberta and Saskatchewan and to build the Trans Mountain expansion pipeline in the face of entrenched opposition from environmentalists. Trudeau told a press conference in Ottawa this afternoon he clearly has to do more to earn the trust of people in the two resource-rich provinces. He said that work will start with ensuring more pipeline capacity is brought online so that oil producers can sell their product abroad at prices closer to the going world rate. While Trudeau campaigned on a promise of more aggressive action to fight climate change, he said nothing has changed with respect to the government-owned Trans Mountain project and insisted it will be built after years of legal wrangling. John Paul Tasker reports. (CBC) See also: Trans Mountain pipeline could fund $500 million a year in clean energy projects: Liberals  The Liberal government expects to get $500 million a year out of the expanded Trans Mountain pipeline and is promising to spend it all on cleaner sources of energy and projects that pull carbon out of the atmosphere. Mia Rabson reports. (Canadian Press)

Feds ask public to weigh in on whale-watching regulations near endangered orcas 
The federal government is asking the public to weigh in on current and potentially new regulations for whale watching near endangered southern resident orcas. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has opened a so-called scoping period for 60 days to take public comment on whether existing federal regulations adequately protect killer whales from the impacts of vessels and noise in the inland waters of Washington state, and if not, what action the agency should take...NOAA’s existing rules have been eclipsed by more strict regulations imposed both by the state of Washington and interim rules in Canada that sunset after this season. The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife also is launching a process under the direction of the Legislature to enact further restrictions on whale watching. Lynda Makes reports. (Seattle Times)

B.C. hopes to build first LNG ship-refuelling facility on West Coast
The Port of Vancouver is expected to become home to the first LNG ship-refuelling facility on North America’s west coast. The B.C. government, the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority and FortisBC are studying options for the facility, hoping future cargo ships and cruise ships will be powered by natural gas instead of heavy bunker fuel or diesel. Officials with the province and the Port of Vancouver said the exact location of the proposed facility has not been decided. It would be a full-service jetty that would fill up smaller refuelling vessels, which would in turn fuel the oceangoing vessels. However, a good bet for location is the Fortis LNG plant on Delta’s Tilbury Island in the Fraser River, which already fuels five B.C. Ferries vessels and two Seaspan cargo ferries. A statement from the Premier’s office said Fortis is partnering with WesPac to develop a full-service jetty on Tilbury Island in the Fraser River. WesPac, meanwhile, lists among the major projects on its website a proposal, still in the pre-application phase, for a marine jetty right next to Fortis’s existing LNG production and storage facility on a brownfield site previously home to the Northwest Hardwood Mill. Harrison Mooney reports. (Vancouver Sun)

For readers in Tacoma and Olympia, a Saturday newspaper will soon be a thing of the past
Starting in late January, readers of The News Tribune of Tacoma and its sister publication, The Olympian, will have to do without paper editions on Saturday. On Wednesday, the McClatchy Company, which owns The News Tribune and The Olympian, announced it will cease their Saturday print editions on January 25. Instead, readers will get an expanded “weekend edition” on Friday that carries additional features such as comics and a regular paper on Sunday–but only digital news in between....The changes in Tacoma and Olympia mirror similar moves at 19 other McClatchy-owned papers, including the Tri-City Herald, which will start “digital Saturdays” in November, and the Bellingham Herald, which began in July. The company runs 30 newspapers across the nation. Paul Roberts reports. (Seattle Times)


Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  232 AM PDT Thu Oct 24 2019   
TODAY  E wind to 10 kt. Wind waves 1 ft or less. W swell 3 ft  at 9 seconds. A slight chance of rain in the afternoon. 
TONIGHT  Light wind becoming S 10 to 20 kt after midnight. Wind  waves less than 1 ft becoming 1 to 3 ft after midnight. W swell  4 ft at 10 seconds. A slight chance of rain in the evening then a  chance of rain after midnight.



--
"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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10/23 Oregon frog, minority government, Greta Thunberg, saving orcas, Kimberly-Clark property, sinking ships, Cooke Aqua Bainbridge, Trump's California water, Jim Ellis

Oregon spotted frog [Fish & Wildlife Service]

Oregon spotted frog Rana pretiosa
The Oregon spotted frog has been lost from at least 78 percent of its former range. Precise historic data is lacking, but this species has been documented in British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, and California. It is believed to have been extirpated (locally extinct but exists elsewhere) from California. It is currently known to occur from extreme southwestern British Columbia, south through the eastern side of the Puget Trough and in the Cascades Range from south-central Washington at least to Klamath Basin in southern Oregon. In Washington, the Oregon spotted frog is known to occur in Whatcom, Skagit, Thurston, Klickitat, and Skamania counties, although historically were also found in Snohomish, King, Pierce, and Clark counties. (USFWS/WAFWS)

What a Liberal minority government means for Canada’s environment
From the carbon tax to fossil fuel subsidies, here are eight things we can expect from a minority government. Well, well, well, the dust has settled (kind of) and Canada has a Liberal minority government...What we know is this: the Liberals need 13 extra seats to stay in power. As of Tuesday morning, the Conservatives won 121 seats, the NDP won 24 seats, the Bloc Quebecois won 32 seats and the Greens won three seats....Both the NDP and the Bloc have strong environmental platforms — arguably stronger than the Liberals — so if anything the Liberals can be expected to take a stronger stance on environmental issues. There’s much we don’t know, but here are a few things we can reasonably expect to happen on the environment file. Emma Gilchrist writes, 10/21. (The Narwhal) See also: As the dusts settles in Canada's elections, Trans Mountain Pipeline controversy rages on  Craig McCulloch reports. (KNKX)

Greta Thunberg to attend Vancouver climate strike, organizers say
Climate activist Greta Thunberg will be in Vancouver for a post-election climate strike in the city's downtown core on Friday, according to rally organizers. Thunberg, 16, has been abandoning school on Fridays in favour of climate demonstrations since August 2018. Her once-individual movement has grown into a worldwide youth effort, including climate strikes held in unison across Canada and the rest of the world to demand world leaders do more to combat the climate crisis. The Swedish activist will be outside the Vancouver Art Gallery for her 62nd school strike on Friday, according to Sustainabiliteens, a group of teenagers that has organized previous climate strikes in Vancouver. (CBC)

Learning how endangered orcas hunt could be the key to saving them
....Historically, our understanding of how that foraging journey actually works has been limited to what we can see at sea level: surface kills, fecal samples, discarded floating prey. Without being able to follow orcas underwater ourselves, the process of hunting was opaque. But in 2003, researchers at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts developed a novel temporary tool to help researchers noninvasively track orcas throughout their day. About the size of a cellphone, “DTags” are effectively suction cup-based whale Fitbits. Once attached to a whale, they track whale movement patterns, depth and hunting sounds up to 1,150 feet underwater...NOAA’s scientists realized they had a shot at tracking, codifying and analyzing the breadth of orca foraging tactics to create a picture of an orca salmon hunt, from length of the hunt to types of behaviors used. Hannah Weinberger reports. (Crosscut)

Port of Everett secures mill property, inks shipyard lease
The Port of Everett has authorized a $33 million agreement to buy Kimberly-Clark’s former waterfront mill property as part of a plan to clean up a contaminated stretch of industrial shoreline for redevelopment. Port commissioners voted 3-0 Tuesday afternoon to authorize port CEO Lisa Lefeber to sign the deal. The port had been pursuing the purchase since the pulp mill closed nearly eight years ago...The deal is expected to close by December...Kimberly-Clark’s Everett pulp mill and tissue plant had been in operation for about 80 years when the Dallas-based company shut it down back in 2012. About 700 people lost jobs. Noah Haglund reports. (Everett Herald)

‘It’s a real peach,’ Whatcom home owner says after second derelict boat sinks
For the past three years, Sandy Point resident Howard Gilbert has endured looking at what remains of the F/V Coral Sea sitting on the bottom of the channel a couple of docks down from his house along Saltspring Drive...On Thursday morning, Oct. 17, Gilbert told The Bellingham Herald that he woke up to find the F/V Furious Sea, a 60-foot boat he said is derelict, taking on water while still tied to the dock right in front of the Coral Sea. Gilbert said he could see a sheen on the water from what he suspected is leaking oil and diesel on the boat. The dock is adjacent to an empty lot on Saltspring Drive on the Lummi Reservation...After the Furious Sea sank Thursday, Ecology put out a boom as a precaution against leaking hazardous materials from the vessel while it determined if there is any fuel was on board, Ecology’s Spill Prevention, Preparedness and Response Communications Manager Ty Keltner said. David Rasbach reports. (Bellingham Herald)

No Atlantic salmon released from sinking Cooke Aquaculture pen
The Washington State Department of Ecology said no Atlantic salmon were released into the waters near Bainbridge Island when a Cooke Aquaculture pen with the fish started to sink. On Sunday, a pen owned by Cooke Aquaculture started to sink near Fort Ward Park. The Department of Ecology said the salmon were not in the sinking portion of the pen, so they did not escape into Washington waters.  (KING)

Trump Administration Moves to Lift Protections for Fish and Divert Water to Farms
The Trump administration on Tuesday moved to weaken protections for a threatened California fish, a change that would allow large amounts of water to be diverted from the San Francisco Bay Delta to irrigate arid farmland and could harm the region’s fragile ecosystem. The plan, which administration officials expect to be finalized in January, is a major victory for a wealthy group of California farmers that had lobbied to weaken protections on the fish, the delta smelt. It also might intensify ethics questions about Interior Secretary David Bernhardt, who was the lobbyist for those farmers until just months before he joined the Trump administration. Federal investigators are looking into whether Mr. Bernhardt’s efforts at the Interior Department to weaken protections for the fish violated “revolving-door” rules designed to prevent former lobbyists from helping past clients from within the government. Investigators also are looking into whether he improperly continued lobbying for those farmers even after he de-registered as a lobbyist just before joining the Trump administration. Coral Davenport reports. (NY Times)

Jim Ellis, who preserved Washington's nature and spearheaded public works, dies at 98
James Reed “Jim” Ellis never held elected office in his 98 years, but his legacy as a citizen — cleaning up Lake Washington and preserving public land for King County residents — rivals that of some of King County’s most accomplished officials. Mr. Ellis died in his Bellevue home Monday, after spending his final evening surrounded by family, said his son, Robert Ellis...Mr. Ellis led the charge to clean up Lake Washington in the 1950s; sparked the formation of King County Metro that earned him the moniker “Father of Metro” in the 1960s; and drove “Forward Thrust,” a series of bond measures to fund highway improvements and public amenities including the Kingdome, fire departments, parks and trails, public swimming pools and a youth service center. He encouraged development of the convention center in downtown Seattle and founded the Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust, a nonprofit dedicated to preserving 1.5 million acres of land — most of it public — around the Interstate 90 corridor between Seattle and Ellensburg.  Michelle Baruchman reports. (Seattle Times)


Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  145 AM PDT Wed Oct 23 2019   
TODAY  Light wind becoming SE 5 to 15 kt in the afternoon. Wind  waves less than 1 ft becoming 2 ft or less in the afternoon. W  swell 6 ft at 10 seconds. 
TONIGHT  SE wind to 10 kt. Wind waves 1 ft or less. W swell  4 ft at 10 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.

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10/22 Yellow-browed warbler, Canada elections, clingfish, humpbacks, media literacy

Yellow-browed warbler [Geoffrey Newell]

Birders flocking to Greater Victoria after rare warbler sighting
No bigger than the palm of your hand, a tiny bird seen in Greater Victoria has caused a big commotion for birders across North America. A yellow-browed warbler was spotted Friday at noon in the Panama Flats by two dedicated birders, Geoffrey Newell and Jeff Gaskin. The pair quickly realized they were looking at an ‘old world warbler’ from outside North America. Nina Grossman reports. (Victoria News)

Canada election: Trudeau's Liberals win but lose majority
Justin Trudeau's Liberal Party has retained power in a narrow Canadian election win but he will now be prime minister of a minority government. The Liberals are projected to win 157 seats, 13 short of a majority, and will find it harder to pass legislation in Mr Trudeau's second term. The opposition Conservatives are expected to win the popular vote but have not translated that into seats. They are projected to take 121, up from the 95 they held before. (BBC) See also: How B.C. voted: Liberals punished, Green breakthrough fades  The Conservatives increased their seat count in B.C. with a healthy lead in the popular vote, which increased to 34 per cent from 30. Randy Shore reports. (Vancouver Sun)

Let small fish help the big ones: Northern clingfish inspire scientists to develop non-invasive tagging methods for whales 
Though small as a finger, Northern clingfish have incredible suction power, using a disc on their bellies to closely attach to smooth and rough surfaces. These fish are inspiring scientists to study and apply their suction ability to artificial suction cups. A research team at the UW published an article about the first bio-inspired suction cup in Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B. The study is conducted by Petra Ditsche, University of Alaska postdoctoral researcher, and Adam Summers, a biology professor who teaches the biomechanics of fish at Friday Harbor Laboratories. Sunny Wang reports. (UW Daily)

Whale sanctuary area proposed for humpbacks
There's another whale of concern in West Coast waters: the humpback whale. Federal ocean officials are now proposing critical habitat for three populations of humpbacks to make the Washington waters they visit safer and quieter.... NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, says some are in trouble. Four of 14 worldwide humpback populations are listed as federally threatened or endangered, primarily due to boat collisions, fishing gear and some regional issues like whaling. Three of the troubled populations visit West Coast waters. Paige Browning reports. (KUOW)

Media Literacy Week challenges students to be critical media consumers. Adults, too.
Educators in Washington state — and around the world — are spending time this week talking about media literacy. It’s part of a special week designed to boost students’ understanding of how different forms of media function...Washington state officially recognized Media Literacy Week when Gov. Jay Inslee signed a proclamation in 2016. It encourages teachers across the state to talk about media literacy in their classrooms. Ed Ronco reports. (KNKX)




Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  202 AM PDT Tue Oct 22 2019   
TODAY  W wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell 8 ft  at 10 seconds building to 10 ft at 11 seconds in the afternoon. 
TONIGHT  W wind 5 to 15 kt becoming SW after midnight. Wind  waves 2 ft or less. W swell 9 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

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10/21 Golden dirona, Canada vote, imidacloprid, green crab count, spotted frog, antibiotic resistance, Kirkland poop, March Point restoration

Golden dirona [Mary Jo Adams]

Golden dirona Dirona pellucida
This strikingly beautiful nudibranch is reddish to golden orange with white spots on the body and white markings on the cerata that lend a frosted appearance.  Although usually smaller, it can attain a length of 5 inches/12 cm.  This species feeds on bryozoans.  Its range extends from Norton Sound, Alaska to Puget Sound, Washington.  This nudibranch has also been known as Dirona aurantia.  (Mary Jo Adams/Sound Water Stewards)

Time to vote: Polls are open across Canada
After a 40-day campaign, it's time for Canadians to decide on the next federal government. Polls have opened across the country to vote in this 43rd general election. The first ballots were cast at 8:30 a.m. local time in Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick, and the last will be cast at 7 p.m. PT (10 p.m. ET) in British Columbia. John Paul Tasker reports. (CBC) See: From both ends of the pipeline, Canadians worry about Trans Mountain's future ahead of election  (CBC)

Oyster growers agree to abandon quest to use controversial insecticide in Southwest Washington tidelands
A Southwest Washington oyster growers association has abandoned a quest to use a controversial insecticide that combats burrowing shrimp, a creature that can make tidelands unfit for shellfish farming. In a settlement reached last week, the Willapa Grays Harbor Growers Association agreed to accept a 2018 state Ecology Department denial of the proposed use of imidacloprid and drop an appeal to the state Pollution Control Hearings Board. The growers wanted to use the insecticide to spray up to 500 annually of the more than 12,000 acres of tidelands used for shellfish cultivation in Willapa Bay and Grays Harbor. Without the spray, the growers say they lose productive tidelands to the shrimp, which churn up sediment and can cause oysters, as well as clams, to suffocate in the muck. The proposed imidacloprid spraying was opposed by National Marine Fisheries Service because of risks to other marine life, and it triggered a public backlash led by some high-profile Seattle chefs. Hal Bernton reports. (Seattle Times)

European green crab totals climb in Neah Bay, decline in Dungeness
Keep trapping or not: that’s the dilemma facing the Makah Tribe in Neah Bay. The tribe’s totals for European green crab, an invasive species known for edging out local sea life such as Dungeness crab and eelgrass beds, have surpassed the high mark from last year. From April 1 to Oct. 2, Adrianne Akmajian, a marine ecologist with Makah Fisheries, and her crews caught 1,262 green crab between the Tsoo-Yess River, Wa’atch River and near Tsoo-Yess Beach. That’s more than 20 times the Sequim area’s totals, an area that in 2018 shared with Neah Bay the distinction of having the largest totals for European green crab captures across the Salish Sea. Last year, the Makah Tribe captured 1,030 green crabs. Matthew Nash reports. (Peninsula Daily News)

Working being done to restore habitat for the Oregon spotted frog
Under gray skies and framed by hills adorned in fall foliage, a group spent Thursday unrolling rafts of vegetation much like one might unroll a new lawn. The rafts, which were made of grasses native to area wetlands and stitched together with rope made of coconut fibers, were hauled through knee- to waist-deep water and put down with a splash in the upper Samish River watershed. The goal of the work: To provide habitat for a rare frog species few know is found here, and fewer are working to document and restore. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Why growing antibiotic resistance in the Salish Sea's marine mammals is bad news for humans
To learn how antibiotic-resistant bacteria jump from wildlife to livestock to pets to humans, researchers are collecting samples from a wide range of species — including those in the ocean. Jane C. Hu reports. (High Country News)

6,000 pounds of dog poop a day: Kirkland locked in dirty war 
A French bulldog trots along Kirkland’s Juanita Beach Park, followed by his walker who is chatting on her cell phone. The plump dog stops, snorts and gets in position. Snout up, hips back, bear down. Plop. The dog walker, distracted by her conversation, pulls on the leash, seemingly unaware that the dog just did his business on the grass. The pair exit, leaving another casualty in Kirkland’s War on Dog Poop. The bulldog’s feces, along with other unscooped piles, will eventually be cataloged by Kirkland city officials, who have been working since September to monitor how much dog poop is left at two of the city’s parks. Yellow flags now dot Juanita Beach Park and Hazen Hills Park, which the poop monitors — they volunteered for this task — used to mark every pile of dog waste. Over a three-week period, they documented more than 250 “findings” in the two parks. Paige Cornwall reports. (Seattle Times)

Volunteers plant trees to help salmon, orcas
In about two hours Saturday morning, 80 volunteers planted more than 1,400 trees on a 3-acre strip of shoreline on March Point — one small piece of the effort to add habitat for salmon and the orca whales that depend on them for food. The event, hosted by the Skagit Conservation District, was part of the second annual Orca Recovery Day. Jacqueline Allison report. (Skagit Valley Herald)


Now, your tug weather--West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  143 AM PDT Mon Oct 21 2019   
TODAY  S wind 5 to 15 kt becoming E 10 to 20 kt in the  afternoon. Wind waves 1 to 3 ft. W swell 8 ft at 11 seconds.  Rain. 
TONIGHT  W wind 10 to 20 kt. Wind waves 1 to 3 ft. W swell 8 ft  at 11 seconds. Rain in the evening then rain likely after  midnight.



--
"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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10/18 Ancient murrelet, no plastic bags, Salish Sea Wild, 'The Moment,' climate bank risks, Skagit invasive snails, Salish Sea climate model, oil protest, Rick Perry

Ancient murrelet [Peter Tepke]

Ancient Murrelet Synthliboramphus antiquus
More pelagic and gregarious than Marbled Murrelets, Ancient Murrelets are typically found farther out, with flocks of up to 30 birds a common sight in the winter. From October through December, they are numerous in offshore areas, are often visible from shore, and are the most likely of Washington's alcids to be found inland (especially in October and November). (Seattle Audubon)

Seattle, King County to stop taking plastic bags in recycling
Seattle and King County will no longer accept plastic bags in recycling, beginning next year.  “They don’t end up getting recycled and they become an inefficient barrier to the recycling process,” said Pat McLaughlin, director of King County’s Solid Waste Division, of plastic bags and film. “The processing stream isn’t optimized to handle them.” Plastic bags can tangle recycling collection machinery and contaminate otherwise marketable recyclables, said Kevin Kelly, the general manager of Recology King County, a recycling contractor in Seattle and King County. Evan Bush reports. (Seattle Times)

If you like to watch: Salish Sea Wild: The Scoop on Southern Resident Killer Whales
Team SeaDoc works with scientists trying to save the Salish Sea’s most iconic and endangered species: the Southern Resident killer whale. The goal is to collect critical health and diet data from each of the 73 surviving animals. So how does a wildlife veterinarian make a house call to do non-invasive medical tests on 10-ton killer whales in the open sea? It takes sharp eyes and a fine mesh net. (SeaDoc Society)

A marmot’s final moment before becoming fox food wins an award — and tells us about climate change
“The Moment” was rare yet relatable. In a picture captured by Chinese photographer Yongqing Bao, a female Tibetan fox and a Himalayan marmot meet. The fox, hunting to feed her three cubs, crouches, ready to pounce. The marmot, upright and pivoting on one small claw, opens its mouth in a silent screech. The creatures face each other — suspended in what Roz Kidman Cox, chair of the judging panel for Wildlife Photographer of the Year, called an “extraordinary” natural moment. Katie Mettler reports.(Washington Post)

Bank Regulators Present a Dire Warning of Financial Risks From Climate Change
Home values could fall significantly. Banks could stop lending to flood-prone communities. Towns could lose the tax money they need to build sea walls and other protections. These are a few of the warnings published on Thursday by the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco regarding the financial risks of climate change. The collection of 18 papers by outside experts amounts to one of the most specific and dire accountings of the dangers posed to businesses and communities in the United States — a threat so significant that the nation’s central bank seems increasingly compelled to address it. Christopher Flavelle reports. (NY Times)

More invasive snails found in Skagit County
Invasive New Zealand mudsnails first found in Skagit County a year ago are now confirmed to be in three separate waterways where they could pose a risk to fish and infrastructure. The tiny mudsnails were first found in Big Indian Slough south of Bay View in September 2018, then in August in Carpenter Creek south of Mount Vernon and in Joe Leary Slough north of Bay View in September. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

PNNL develops research model to help predict effects of climate change in Washington waterways
With climate change on the rise, scientists at PNNL [Pacific Northwest National Laboratory] are developing a model to better understand the future of the Puget Sound and how waterways in the Pacific Northwest will be impacted by this issue.  A research team set out to find out what the Salish Sea or Puget Sound will look like in 95 years and to understand how much the ecology will have changed in that time because of climate change.... Using the "Salish Sea Model" researchers found a resilient Salish Sea. This means changes in the Salish Sea because of climate change will be less severe than they are predicted to be in the open ocean...The results showed that instead of a 3° increase in sea surface temperatures like are predicted for the open ocean, the Salish Sea will only be seeing roughly a 1.7° increase...This model should be available in three years. (NBC Right Now)

Man sentenced for 2017 Kinder Morgan break-in | Local New
A 30-year-old Michigan man was sentenced Wednesday to 60 days in jail after he was convicted earlier this month on charges related to a 2017 break-in at the Kinder Morgan oil pipeline facility west of Burlington. Donald Zepeda and another person broke into the facility on Oct. 24, 2017, in an effort to perform what he called an “emergency shut off” of the pipeline, court documents state. The other person was not charged. Kera Wanielista reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Trans Mountain protesters block train tracks at Port of Vancouver
Activists with the environmental group Portland Rising Tide staged a protest Thursday at the Port of Vancouver, blocking train tracks to disrupt the transport of pipe segments bound for the Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion project in Canada. The group began posting photos on social media at about 10:30 a.m., showing people standing on a rail crossing at Terminal 5 near the port’s western truck entrance. They held signs with messages calling for climate justice and accusing Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Gov. Jay Inslee of allowing the project despite their stances on climate change. Anthony Macuk and will Campbell report. (Columbian)

Perry Tells Trump He Will Resign as Energy Secretary
Rick Perry, the energy secretary who has drawn scrutiny for his role in the controversy surrounding President Trump’s efforts to push Ukraine officials to investigate the son of a political rival, told the president on Thursday that he would resign from the cabinet. The Perry resignation had been anticipated for several weeks, even before the news emerged of his involvement in efforts to pressure the new president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, to investigate a company that had worked with Hunter Biden, the younger son of former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. Maggie Haberman and Lisa Friedman report. (NY Times)


Now, your weekend tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  236 AM PDT Fri Oct 18 2019   
TODAY  SW wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell  18 ft at 15 seconds subsiding to 15 ft at 14 seconds in the  afternoon. Rain. 
TONIGHT  SE wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell  13 ft at 14 seconds subsiding to 11 ft at 14 seconds after  midnight. Rain. A slight chance of tstms after midnight. 
SAT  W wind 5 to 15 kt rising to 15 to 25 kt in the afternoon.  Wind waves 2 ft or less building to 2 to 4 ft in the afternoon. W  swell 10 ft at 14 seconds. Rain likely in the morning. A slight  chance of tstms. A chance of rain in the afternoon. 
SAT NIGHT  W wind 5 to 15 kt becoming SW to 10 kt after  midnight. Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell 11 ft at 12 seconds. 
SUN  SE wind 10 to 20 kt. Wind waves 1 to 3 ft. W swell 9 ft at  13 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.

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10/17 Race Rocks Light, WA shellfish permit, Marathon Anacortes Refinery legal battle, Vancouver quake map, Victoria cruise ships, Cooke Aqua steelheads, Extinction Rebellion Vancouver, Big Oil natural gas burn off

Race Rocks Light [WikiCommons]

Race Rocks Light
Race Rocks Light is one of the first two lighthouses that were built on the west coast of Canada, financed by the British Government and illuminated in 1860. It is the only lighthouse on that coast built of rock, (granite) purportedly quarried in Scotland, and topped with sandstone quarried on Gabriola Island. The Islands of Race Rocks are located just off the southern tip of Vancouver Island, about 16 km (10 mi) southwest of Victoria, British Columbia. (Wikipedia)

Judge tosses federal permit for Washington shellfish industry, saying it doesn't do enough to protect environment
A federal judge has thrown out a federal permit for the state’s shellfish industry, saying the Army Corps of Engineers failed to give enough environmental scrutiny to aquaculture farms. U.S. District Judge Robert Lasnik found federal regulators did not comply with the Clean Water and  National Environmental Policy acts in granting a general permit in 2017 that authorizes most of the state’s shellfish operations. What happens next is unclear. Lasnik, in a ruling released Friday, wrote that he has the power to vacate the permit outright. But to avoid the disruption of the industry, he left open the option of continuing current operations while the Army Corps “performs an adequate analysis to correct its unlawful actions.” Hal Bernton reports. (Seattle Times)

Environment groups score court win over refinery project
A legal battle continues over the Marathon Anacortes Refinery's plans to produce a chemical compound for A legal battle continues over the Marathon Anacortes Refinery’s plans to produce a chemical compound for shipment overseas and to reduce the sulfur content of its fuels. A Thurston County Superior Court judge recently ruled in favor of a coalition of environment groups that argued it was unfairly denied the right to appeal Skagit County’s Environmental Impact Statement, or EIS, for the project. That earlier appeal, made to the state Shorelines Hearings Board in October 2018, may now be revisited, according to a news release from Crag Law Center that is representing the environment groups. The appeal to Thurston County Superior Court was the third from the coalition of environment groups, which unsuccessfully appealed the project to the Skagit County Board of Commissioners and to the state Shorelines Hearings Board. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Map shows Vancouver areas likely to see quake damage
A map released by the City of Vancouver highlights areas that would see the most severe damage during a significant earthquake. The map has been produced as part of the city’s ongoing investments to assess earthquake risk and upgrade infrastructure. It shows a magnitude 7.3 earthquake would cause the most damage to Vancouver’s older, multi-family residential and commercial areas. Neighbourhoods in Chinatown, the west end, Kitsilano, and south Granville would be hit the hardest, with pockets of damage also highlighted in the Point Grey, Strathcona, Mount Pleasant and Marpole areas. (Canadian Press)

Cruise ship industry responds to Victoria's motion to reduce emissions
The cruise ship industry says everybody has a role to play in response to a City of Victoria motion to regulate the industry's environmental impact. Victoria's mayor and two councillors have tabled a motion asking for, among other things, a limit on the number of cruise ships entering the city until a plan can be found to limit their emissions and waste. Lisa Helps and councillors Marianne Alto and Ben Isitt tabled the motion which will go before council Thursday. The city declared a climate emergency in February and has been looking at ways to achieve carbon neutrality by 2030 and zero carbon emissions by 2050. (CBC)

Cooke Aquaculture partners with Jamestown S'Klallam Tribe to farm native fish in the Salish Sea
It’s been more than two years since Cooke Aquaculture’s net pens collapsed at Cypress Island near Anacortes. The fallout led the state Legislature to ban net-pen farming of non-native fish in Washington waters. Now, Cooke is back with plans to farm two native species in its pens in Port Angeles Harbor. Cooke is able to forge ahead with its plans here because it has switched species. Instead of non-native Atlantic salmon, it wants to farm steelhead. And it has a partner in a joint venture to do so: the Jamestown S’Klallum Tribe. Bellamy Pailthorp reports. (KNKX)

Vancouver climate activists to ‘snake march’ through Friday rush hour
Climate change activists plan to ‘snake march’ through downtown Vancouver during rush hour on Friday, in protest of government inaction on the climate crisis. Members of the Vancouver chapter of Extinction Rebellion will gather at the intersection of West Georgia and Hamilton streets on Friday at 4:30 p.m. before marching into the streets and winding their way through downtown Vancouver. Stephanie Ip reports. (Vancouver Sun)

Despite Their Promises, Giant Energy Companies Burn Away Vast Amounts of Natural Gas
When leaders from Exxon Mobil and BP gathered last month with other fossil-fuel executives to declare they were serious about climate change, they cited progress in curbing an energy-wasting practice called flaring — the intentional burning of natural gas as companies drill faster than pipelines can move the energy away. But in recent years, some of these same companies have significantly increased their flaring, as well as the venting of natural gas and other potent greenhouse gases directly into the atmosphere, according to data from the three largest shale-oil fields in the United States. The practice has consequence for climate change because natural gas is a potent contributor to global warming. It also wastes vast amounts of energy: Last year in Texas, venting and flaring in the Permian Basin oil field alone consumed more natural gas than states like Arizona and South Carolina use in a year. Hiroko Tabuchi reports. (NY Times)



Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  227 AM PDT Thu Oct 17 2019   
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH  LATE TONIGHT   
TODAY  SW wind 15 to 25 kt. Wind waves 2 to 4 ft. W swell 14 ft  at 15 seconds building to 17 ft at 16 seconds in the afternoon.  Rain. 
TONIGHT  W wind 15 to 25 kt becoming SW 5 to 15 kt after  midnight. Wind waves 2 to 4 ft subsiding to 2 ft or less after  midnight. W swell 16 ft at 15 seconds. Rain likely.



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