4/9 Basket star, Roberts Bank, stay home, plastic, water sample, B'ham park, Skagit dams, fish watchers, gas glut, 'Water 100,' BC farmworkers

Basket star [Shape of Life]

If you like to watch: Four Bits of Wonder
A roundup of nature videos from the Hakai Institute to provide a little much-needed distraction and beauty: Rock greenling, wolf eel, basket star, and mushrooms. (Hakai Institute)


*EDITOR'S NOTE: Access updates on the COVID-19 virus at national and regional print publications like the CBC, the Seattle Times, the Peninsula Daily News, the New York Times, and the Washington Post.
 

Vancouver Fraser Port Authority calls panel findings on Terminal 2 'workable'
The Vancouver Fraser Port Authority has responded to the environmental impact report of a federally appointed panel last month, saying the findings - that the Roberts Bank Terminal 2 project would cause significant adverse impact - are "sensible and workable." Chuck Chiang reports. (Business In Vancouver)

Tempting long-weekend weather forecast prompts COVID-19 warnings from health officials, rescue crews 
A swath of provincial and municipal parks have shut down, but that hasn't calmed concerns from leaders, health officials and search and rescue crews that outdoor enthusiasts will be out in force over the long weekend — to the detriment of public health. On Wednesday, the province closed all provincial parks to stop the spread of COVID-19. Municipalities and regional districts have asked visitors to stay home over the long weekend. But warm weather means many will be tempted to get out of the city. Jon Hernandez reports. (CBC)

An Unexpected Coronavirus Casualty: Plastic Reduction Efforts
Just weeks ago, cities and even states across the U.S. were busy banning straws, limiting takeout containers and mandating that shoppers bring reusable bags or pay a small fee as the movement to eliminate single-use plastics took hold in mainstream America. What a difference a pandemic makes. In a matter of days, hard-won bans to reduce the use of plastics — and particularly plastic shopping sacks — across the U.S. have come under fire amid worries about the virus clinging to reusable bags, cups and straws. Gillian Flaccus reports. (Associated Press)

Water quality sampling suspended during pandemic
While the risk of person-to-person transmission of COVID-19 persists, the Skagit County Natural Resources Division is suspending its water quality sampling programs....Through one program, teams of two typically visit about 20 sampling sites along local rivers, creeks and sloughs each week. Through that effort, called ambient monitoring, about 40 sites total are checked every other week. The work, involving office time, driving time and lab visits, involves several points of contact with others...Through another program, groups venture into stormy weather to sample in areas of the Samish River watershed, where bacterial pollution has long been a problem for shellfish growers downstream and has often coincided with heavy rain that causes the river to rise. Because the storm sampling is required in order to determine whether shellfish can be harvested from those farms, that effort is being continued by Taylor Shellfish Farms in the interim. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Bellingham purchases 29 acres for northern park, trails as part of Greenway program
The city of Bellingham has purchased 29 acres of land for a neighborhood park and public trails in a northern part of the city, according to a city press release. The closure of the $2,310,000 sale, which was announced Tuesday, April 7, by Bellingham Mayor Seth Fleetwood, is for land in the Bakerview/Telegraph corridor, north of Interstate 5 and east of Meridian, according to the release Money from the voter-approved Greenway levy is paying for the acquisition, the release states. With Greenway, Bellingham voters decided to tax themselves to pay for parks, trails and other green spaces for people and wildlife. It is a property tax levy, and was last before the voters in 2016. Denver Pratt reports. (Bellingham Herald)

Skagit River dam relicensing meeting rescheduled
A public meeting to discuss relicensing plans for the Skagit River Hydroelectric Project has been rescheduled for 3 p.m. Thursday, April 30, by phone and web. An in-person meeting was originally planned in Mount Vernon for March 5, but was called off due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Skagit River Hydroelectric Project is a three-dam system including the Ross, Diablo and Gorge dams on the upper Skagit River. The dams have been operating since the 1920s. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has oversight of permitting for the dams. The current permit, issued in 1995, expires April 30, 2025. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Fisheries and Oceans Canada pulls at-sea observers from fishing boats due to coronavirus pandemic
Fishermen rely on observers to keep the industry honest. Now they’re worried about maintaining a level playing field. Jimmy Thomson reports. (The Narwhal)

Natural Gas Glut Moves Offshore
Liquefied natural gas traders are following the latest trend in the oil market by storing huge amounts of the commodity on tankers, hoping prices will rise before the ship docks. But while crude can sit for months or even years in a tank, super-chilled LNG tends to evaporate even in the specialized vessels that handle it. That limits the amount of time “floating storage” is feasible. Liquefied natural gas traders are following the latest trend in the oil market by storing huge amounts of the commodity on tankers, hoping prices will rise before the ship docks. Anna Shiryaevskaya and Naureen S. Malik report. (Bloomberg)

‘Water 100 Project’ seeks to enlist region’s tech industry
Few cities in the world can rival Seattle’s combination of money and brain power. It’s a town where the world’s two richest men live within walking distance. Amazon and Microsoft and hundreds of other leading tech companies call this region home, driving the economy and influencing the way we live. Could this same corporate culture also find a way to clean up Puget Sound? That’s the question behind The Nature Conservancy’s Water 100 Project. The project, with the input of scientists and policymakers and support from Boeing, is curating a list of 100+ innovative ways to curb water pollution in the Puget Sound region. The goal is to enlist the help of Puget Sound’s tech industry to tackle problems ranging from stormwater runoff to sewage spills. Jeff Rice reports. (Puget Sound Institute)

B.C. farmers adjust to new government rules for temporary foreign workers
B.C.'s Ministry of Agriculture has released protocols for farmers who employ temporary foreign workers during the coronavirus pandemic. These rules come more than a week after 14 migrant workers tested positive for COVID-19 in an outbreak that was announced at a farm in West Kelowna in the province's Okanagan region. All employers must now ensure that temporary foreign workers self-isolate for 14 days before they begin work. Workers who exhibit common cold or flu symptoms at any point must self-isolate for 10 days. (CBC)


Now, your tug weather--West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  206 AM PDT Thu Apr 9 2020   
TODAY  Light wind becoming NW 5 to 15 kt in the afternoon. Wind  waves2 ft or less. SW swell 4 ft at 14 seconds. 
TONIGHT  W wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell  4 ft at 14 seconds building to 6 ft at 7 seconds 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.

Salish Sea News: Communicate, Educate, Advocate

Follow on Twitter. 

Salish Sea Communications: Truth Well Told