2/3 Feather duster worm, Navy water, B'ham climate, new ollsands mine, LNG footprint, Point Elliott Treaty, wolverines, Trump's weather, Victoria, hunting, octopus

Feather duster worm [Nick Hobgood/Slater Museum]

Feather Duster Worm Eudistylia vancouveri
This conspicuous and beautiful species is a prominent part of the diverse fauna encrusting the sea bottom in the Pacific Northwest. They may also be seen growing on pilings and floats, where their activities can be watched without the need of a wet suit and scuba tanks. The visible part of the worm consists of a ring of feathery, brightly colored, tentacles that wave gently in the current. Below that is a calcareous tube that may be as much as 45 cm long. When a potential predator such as a fish or diver comes near, the tentacles disappear in a flash, pulled inside a calcareous tube, which then closes over them. (Slater Museum)

Navy to test drinking water from wells bordering Bangor for contamination
The Navy will test the drinking water of residents whose homes border Naval Base-Kitsap to determine whether there are dangerous levels of contamination from firefighting foam once used at Bangor.  If any homes in areas bordering the base are found to have what are commonly called PFAS in dangerous concentrations, they will receive bottled water indefinitely, "until a long-term solution is implemented," the Navy told the Kitsap Sun. Josh Farley reports. (Kitsap Sun)

City of Bellingham takes first steps to meet its climate-change goals  (Paywall)
Bellingham City Council members have started looking at ways that the city can meet its goal of using 100% renewable energy in the next 10 to 15 years. In addition, the city has hired a climate and energy manager for issues related to the Climate Action Task Force recommendations presented in December and the city’s efforts to meet goals set in its 2018 Climate Action Plan. And, council members are now focusing on climate change as they decide how to build a new wastewater treatment plant to replace an aging one at Post Point...All seven members of the City Council attended the new Climate Action Committee’s first meeting Jan. 13, even though only Hannah Stone, Dan Hammill and Pinky Vargas serve on that panel. At that meeting, Stone said the committee was setting priorities and she encouraged residents to stay informed. Robert Mittendorf reports. (Bellingham Herald)

Can a massive new oilsands mine be reconciled with Trudeau's 'net-zero' promise?
The political complexity of the challenge facing Justin Trudeau as the federal cabinet prepares to make a decision on Teck Frontier — a proposed large new oilsands mine in northern Alberta — is underlined by the categorical statements of the project's loudest proponents and opponents. "If this project does not proceed, it would be a clear indication that there is no way forward for this country's largest natural resource," Alberta Premier Jason Kenney declared in a speech in Ottawa in December. A day later, the Canadian environmentalist Tzeporah Berman wrote in The Guardian that "approving Teck Resources' Frontier mine would effectively signal Canada's abandonment of its international climate goals." Aaron Wherry reports. (CBC)

New Study Casts Shadow on LNG Fuel’s Climate Footprint
One of the shipping industry’s great hopes for improving its environmental performance — engines powered by liquefied natural gas — won’t offer the benefits that many vessel owners are hoping for. That’s the conclusion of a nonprofit that analyzed the emissions from different types of vessels that use the fuel. Some types of LNG-powered ships leak so much methane — a contributor to global heating — that the environmental damage they cause over a 20-year period is far more acute than equivalent vessels run on conventional fuels. Jack Wittels and Akshat Rathi report. (Bloomberg)

Point Elliott Treaty returns to tribes here, 165 years later
Their ancestors had signed it generations before. About 150 tribal members gathered to inspect the Treaty of Point Elliott in January, on the anniversary of its creation. Nearly all were seeing it for the first time. After 165 years, the treaty has returned to the land where it was signed. It’s now on display at the Hibulb Cultural Center on the Tulalip Indian Reservation, one of the reservations established by the treaty. On Jan. 22, 1855, thousands were drawn to the shores of what is now Mukilteo to witness the signing of the Treaty of Point Elliott. Today it’s considered one of the most important documents to Native American tribes around the Puget Sound. Stephanie Davey reports. (Everett Herald)

Fight re-emerges over protecting wolverines
Amid discussions about restoring grizzly bears to the North Cascades and the recent reintroduction of cat-like creatures called fishers to the region, conservation groups are seeking protection for another elusive carnivore that was historically more common in area mountains. Nine groups are calling on the federal government to list the wolverine as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. The wolverine is a creature between about 20 and 40 pounds, with a bushy tail and white markings on its otherwise dark brown body, according to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. They will hunt small animals, scavenge what’s left of carcasses hunted by other predators, and eat fruit when available. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Heald)

NOAA Leaders Privately Disowned Agency’s Rebuke of Scientists Who Contradicted Trump
Senior officials with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration privately disavowed an unsigned statement issued by the agency last year that rebuked its own weather forecasters for contradicting President Trump’s false warnings that Hurricane Dorian would most likely hit Alabama, new documents show. Lisa Friedman, John Schwartz and Mark Walker report. (NY Times)

Like Its 2 Royal Guests, Canada’s Most English City Reinvents Itself 
Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, have retreated from royal life to Victoria, which has long embraced its queenly name. But the city, like the duke and duchess, is breaking with tradition. Dan Bilefsky reports. (NY Times)

Hunting is ‘slowly dying off,’ and that has created a crisis for the nation’s many endangered species
....Americans’ interest in hunting is on the decline, cutting into funding for conservation, which stems largely from hunting licenses, permits and taxes on firearms, bows and other equipment. Even as more people are engaging in outdoor activities, hunting license sales have fallen from a peak of about 17 million in the early ’80s to 15 million last year, according to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service data. The agency’s 2016 survey suggested a steeper decline to 11.5 million Americans who say they hunt, down more than 2 million from five years earlier. Frances Stead Sellers reports. (Washington Post)

If you like to watch: Why an octopus might think like an alien
Researcher Dominic Sivitilli goes to the bottom of the sea to study the bizarre mind of the giant pacific octopus. Sarah Hoffman and Ted Alvarez report. (Crosscut)


Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  256 AM PST Mon Feb 3 2020   
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT THROUGH THIS AFTERNOON   
TODAY  NW wind 15 to 20 kt easing to 5 to 15 kt in the  afternoon. Wind waves 2 to 3 ft subsiding to 2 ft or less in the  afternoon. W swell 9 ft at 12 seconds. 
TONIGHT  SW wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell  8 ft at 11 seconds subsiding to 6 ft at 11 seconds after  midnight.



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