5/29 Coastal strawberry, Nooksack water, Big Bar landslide, BC logging, Trump's wildlife refuges, Ruston sewage

Coastal strawberry

Coastal strawberry Fragaria chiloensis
Coastal strawberry is one of two species of wild strawberry that were hybridized to create the modern garden strawberry. Its natural range is the Pacific Ocean coasts of North and South America, and also Hawaii. Migratory birds are thought to have dispersed F. chiloensis from the Pacific coast of North America to the mountains of Hawaii, Chile, and Argentina. Coastal strawberries can be made into jam or other preserves but probably the most satisfying way to eat them is to pop them into the mouth as soon as they are picked. (Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast/Wikipedia

Ecology amends Nooksack River watershed rules on streamflow and Whatcom rural wells
The Washington Department of Ecology has amended an instream flow rule that attempts to provide water for new rural Whatcom County residents and benefit streamflows in the Nooksack River watershed, according to a news release. The amendment allows for excess water to be saved during high flow periods to be released during the summer during typically low flowing periods to help bolster streams. The amendment also creates a new standard for domestic permit-exempt wells and makes minor technical updates to the existing rule. WRIA 1, the Nooksack River watershed, did not meet a Feb. 1, 2019, deadline to present the plan, so the Department of Ecology took action and began rulemaking, a formal process to change the law. Shaun Holkko reports. (Sacramento Bee)

Feds' handling of Big Bar landslide cleanup needs more scrutiny, NDP critic says
The federal NDP critic for fisheries is calling for more oversight of the cleanup project at B.C.'s Big Bar landslide following news of tripling contract costs and worker safety concerns. Construction giant Peter Kiewit Sons' contract to clear the slide from the Fraser River was awarded in December at $17.6 million, but has since been amended more than a dozen times and is now worth more than $52.5 million. Courtenay-Alberni MP Gord Johns told CBC he's deeply concerned about what's happening on this crucial salmon migration route. Bethany Lindsay reports. (CBC)

B.C. lax on forestry practices that harm fish habitat: watchdog report
A new report from the Forest Practices Board found logging roads are sending sediment into streams and damaging salmon habitat. Stephanie Wood reports. (The Narwhal)

Trump Administration Pushes Expanded Hunting, Fishing In Wildlife Refuges
A proposed rule to open or expand millions of acres of hunting and fishing opportunities in national wildlife refuges and national fish hatcheries is open for public comment. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has proposed to open or expand more than 2.3 million acres to hunting and fishing opportunities in 97 national wildlife refuges throughout the nation — eight which have never been opened before.  The rule would introduce or expand hunting in three national wildlife refuges in Oregon. It would also open and expand fishing and hunting opportunities on the lands and rivers associated with nine fish hatcheries, five which are in Washington. This proposed rule would result in the service’s largest expansion of hunting and fishing in history, creating what the Trump administration is calling nearly 900 “distinct new hunting and fishing opportunities.” Monica Samayoa reports. (OPB)

Landslide sends sewage into water along Tacoma’s Ruston Way
A landslide broke a pipe and spilled raw sewage into Commencement Bay on Tuesday evening along the Ruston Way waterfront, according to the city of Tacoma. Swimmers and others are being advised to stay out of the water. The line broke near the 3700 block of North Union Ave., according to city spokeswoman Stacy Ellifritt. An unknown amount of sewage then flowed down the slope and into the bay. The sewage came from a collection system line that leads to the North End Treatment Plant. Craig Sailor reports. (Tacoma News Tribune)



Now, your weekend tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  216 AM PDT Fri May 29 2020   
TODAY  W wind 5 to 15 kt becoming 10 to 20 kt in the afternoon.  Wind waves 1 to 3 ft. W swell 9 ft at 13 seconds. 
TONIGHT  W wind 10 to 20 kt. Wind waves 2 to 4 ft. W swell 9 ft  at 12 seconds. 
SAT  W wind 5 to 15 kt becoming 10 to 20 kt in the afternoon.  Wind waves 1 to 3 ft. W swell 7 ft at 11 seconds. A slight chance  of showers in the morning then a chance of showers in the  afternoon. 
SAT NIGHT  W wind 15 to 25 kt. Wind waves 2 to 4 ft. W swell  7 ft at 10 seconds. 
SUN  W wind 15 to 25 kt easing to 5 to 15 kt in the afternoon.  Wind waves 2 to 4 ft subsiding to 1 to 2 ft in the afternoon. W  swell 7 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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5/28 Thimbleberry, gray orca, giant hornet, Trump's emissions, Big Bar slide, sslmon predators, sewage spill, Trump's rollbacks, Kelly Andersen, BC Ferries, LA oil

Thimbleberry [Walter Siegmund]

Thimbleberry Rubus parviflorus
Thimbleberry is a species of Rubus native to northern temperate regions of North America. It bears edible red fruit similar in appearance to a raspberry. Thimbleberries were eaten by all Northwest Coast peoples. The berries are coarse and seedy, lending themselves to drying. The Nuu-chah-nulth dried the berries with smoked clams. (Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast/Wikipedia)

Rare gray orca, Tl’uk, spotted with transient pod in Bellingham Bay Tuesday
Not only was Bellingham Bay treated to a rare visit by a family of orca on Tuesday, May 26, one of the rarest and most well-known whales of all was part of the group. Tl’uk — the juvenile gray or white killer whale occasionally spotted around the Puget Sound when his family travels through the area — was part of a transient pod of at least five orca spotted swimming and splashing not far off shore from Bellingham, according to numerous social media posts of people lucky enough to be outdoors on a sunny afternoon. David Rasbach reports. (Bellingham Herald)

The Giant 'Murder Hornet' Resurfaces in British Columbia
The Asian giant hornet has resurfaced in the Canadian province of British Columbia, miles away from traps placed to contain it, suggesting that the invasive insect has already established itself in a broader territory than previously known. Paul van Westendorp, a provincial apiculturist for British Columbia, said he had confirmed that one of the large hornets was discovered in the city of Langley this month. The specimen, collected after a woman killed an unusual-looking insect at her home, was found about eight miles north of where two other hornets were discovered last year near Blaine, Wash. Mike Baker reports. (NY Times)

Oregon And Washington Join Multi-State Lawsuit Over Federal Fuel Emissions Rollback
Oregon and Washington have joined 26 states and cities in suing the Trump administration over a new rule that weakens emission standards for cars and trucks. In a lawsuit filed on Wednesday, the states argue the new federal rule relaxing fuel-efficiency standards for cars and trucks isn’t scientifically sound, increases public health risks and violates the federal Clean Air Act. In a statement, Washington Department of Ecology Director Laura Watson said the federal government “cooked the books” in its rush to pass a rule that was “rife with flawed science, shaky math, and faulty conclusions.” Cassandra Profita reports. (OPB)

Contract to clear B.C.'s Big Bar landslide balloons to $52.5M as crews race to allow for salmon migration
The cost of the federal contract for clearing out the Big Bar landslide has tripled to $52.5 million as crews try to meet the "very, very difficult" goal of allowing salmon to migrate naturally along the Fraser River in B.C.'s southern Interior. Peter Kiewit Sons' contract with the federal government has now been amended 17 times since it was awarded to the construction giant on Dec. 31 at an original value of $17.6 million. On a call with reporters earlier this week, Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) project leader Gwil Roberts said Kiewit has fulfilled the terms of the original contract, but it became obvious early on that more work would be necessary. Bethany Lindsay reports. (CBC)

Seals and sea lions may not be the scourge of the Salish Sea according to scientists
...Photos of decapitated pinnipeds that were posted by a group proposing a seal and sea lion commercial fishery got the attention of scientists, conservation groups and animal rights groups...One of the reasons for the proposed fishery is to stop a perceived overpopulation of the seals and sea lions which, according to [Tom] Sewid, are one of the main causes of salmon depletion in the area. However, scientists do not agree, even amongst themselves, whether the pinnipeds are the cause for salmon depletion.  Marc Kitteringham reports. (Victoria News)

Water tests underway after Percival Creek sewage spill
Thurston County Environmental Health staff is conducting water sampling and people are urged to avoid Percival Creek, Capitol Lake and lower Budd Inlet after a weekend raw sewage spill into the creek, which feeds the lake and inlet. The spill, which started sometime over Memorial Day weekend, was discovered Tuesday and repaired. The county could get the water testing results as early as Thursday, said Art Starry, Environmental Health division director. Rolf Boone reports. (Olympian) See also: Fecal Matters: Closure to water contact near Les Davis Pier, Pierce County  (Ecology)

Trump Environmental Rollbacks Roll On Despite Pandemic. Opponents Cry Foul
Do public hearings over Zoom unfairly suppress opponents’ comments, or allow even more people to engage? That’s just one point of dispute as the Trump administration pushes ahead with some of its most controversial environmental policy changes this spring despite the coronavirus pandemic. November’s vote is driving momentum, since policies finalized too late could be overturned more easily should President Trump lose re-election or Democrats gain control of the Senate. But environmentalists, state regulators and lawmakers say the public is distracted by the coronavirus pandemic. They’ve asked the government to hit pause on a host of proposals, with little success so far.  Cassandra Profita, Liz Ruskin, and Jennifer Ludden report. (OPB/NPR)

Fisheries society director resigns after allegations of abuse from observers of B.C. trawl industry
Kelly Andersen’s resignation from the Canadian Groundfish Research and Conservation Society follows an investigation by The Narwhal documenting threats and harassment faced by observers while gathering data out at sea. Jimmy Thomson reports. (The Narwhal)

BC Ferries cuts daily losses to $1 million amid sinking revenue
The president and CEO of BC Ferries is hoping that increased travel on the ferry system over the next 12 to 18 months will help put it back on firmer financial footing...Traffic is down substantially for the corporation: there was a 92 per cent drop in passenger travel during the Easter long weekend, for example, compared to 2019.  The corporation has resumed service on previously shuttered routes because demand is slowly increasing and  moving passengers and goods deemed essential remains a priority. Roshini Nair reports. (CBC)

In Louisiana, Covid-19 Has Achieved What Big Oil Protesters Could Not
A plunge in oil prices has hammered the state’s economy — but also shown a glimpse of a different possible future. Nathaniel Rich reports. (NY Times)


Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  221 AM PDT Thu May 28 2020   
TODAY  E wind to 10 kt becoming NE in the afternoon. Wind waves  1 ft or less. SW swell 3 ft at 15 seconds. 
TONIGHT  W wind 10 to 20 kt. Wind waves 1 to 3 ft. W swell 6 ft  at 15 seconds building to 9 ft at 14 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.

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5/27 Trailing blackberry, green crab, salmon season, flushables, novel virus, WA zoos

Trailing blackberry [Shaun Hubbard/Burke Museum]

Trailing blackberry Rubus ursinus
The Stl'atl'imx and some Coast Salish have an origin myth for trailing blackberry. A woman was chased up a tree by a jealous husband.The blood of the woman fell from the tree and became blackberry. Trailing blackberry is a commonly (and often unpleasantly) encountered blackberry. Its 'clinging' tendencies are more than compensated for by its excellent late summer fruit. Trailing blackberry is our only native blackberry. (Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast)

Search for invasive green crab continues during pandemic
This is a story of a region struggling to withstand a menace that recently arrived—one that, by the time you realize it is here, may have already spread beyond any hope of containing it. Now, officials at all levels of government scramble to detect it as quickly as they can, which may be the only way to forestall the most devastating of its consequences. Whether or not they succeed will have profound implications both for local lives and livelihoods. We refer, of course, to the European green crab. Eric Wagner writes. (Salish Sea Currents Magazine)

Comment period opens for salmon seasons
The state Department of Fish and Wildlife is seeking public comment on proposed rules for this year’s recreational and commercial salmon fishing seasons. These fishing rules are a culmination of the annual North of Falcon process, which gathers state, federal and tribal fishery managers to plan the Northwest’s recreational and commercial salmon fisheries. To see the full rules package, go here.  The public can submit comments online here. Vince Richardson reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Clogged sewer problems made worse by coronavirus pandemic
Local utility districts have been warning for some time of issues with so-called ‘flushable’ wet wipes. Despite what the labels on many packages say, they are much too durable to be flushed. If sent down the loo, they damage pipes, pumps and entire sewer systems. Bellamy Pailthorp reports. (KNKX)

Novel virus could spread rapidly among endangered orcas
Some Northwest residents don’t do social distancing well, which leaves them vulnerable to an outbreak of a highly contagious respiratory virus. These residents are orcas. The virus is called cetacean morbillivirus. John Ryan reports. (KUOW)

Washington’s zoos can reopen in limited capacity under second phase of Inslee’s four-part coronavirus reopening plan
Washington zoos will be able to reopen outdoor exhibits and allow people back under limited capacity during the second phase of Gov. Jay Inslee’s four-part coronavirus recovery plan. Zoos with safety plans can reopen immediately, as long as they are in a county already approved for the plan’s second phase. according to guidance released Tuesday by Inslee’s office. Neither Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle nor Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium in Tacoma are in counties cleared to proceed to the second phase. The guidelines say zoos can only reopen outdoor exhibits, with their crowd capacity capped at 25%. Joseph O'Sullivan reports. (Seattle Times)



Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  237 AM PDT Wed May 27 2020   
TODAY  E wind to 10 kt. Wind waves 1 ft or less. W swell 4 ft  at 13 seconds. 
TONIGHT  NW wind to 10 kt becoming W after midnight. Wind waves  1 ft or less. SW swell 3 ft at 14 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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5/26 Blackcap, BC fjords, methane, building pipeline, wildfires, wood waste, BC ferries, fed dam water, sport fishing

Black raspberry [Zoya Akulova/CalPhoto]

Black raspberry Rubus leucodermis
Black raspberries, along with the fruits of salad, black twinberry, and wild raspberry, were mashed and used as a purple stain by the Coast Salish. In spring, the young shoots were sometimes peeled and eaten raw or cooked, but they were rarely stored. Rubus leucodermis is native to western North America and is closely related to the eastern black raspberry Rubus occidentalis. (Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast/Wikipedia)

How the Blob Is Warming British Columbia’s Fjords
For those who have braved swimming in British Columbia’s spectacular, glacier-fed fjords, “warm” is probably not a word that springs to mind. But at least four of British Columbia’s fjords are real hotspots for climate change. Since the 1950s, they’ve warmed up to six times faster than the rest of the ocean, according to new data. Nicola Jones reports. (Hakai Magazine)

‘I don’t think we will ever catch up’: B.C. methane targets out of reach amid growing LNG, fracking
The province committed to a 45 per cent reduction in methane emissions by 2025, but an explosion in fracking to feed a growing LNG industry has experts saying that goal is not achievable. Natalia Balcerzak reports. (The Narwhal)

Trans Mountain pipeline: Protest ban is 'great time' to build, says minister
A top Canadian official has said this is a "great time" to build a pipeline because coronavirus-related restrictions ban large public protests. Alberta's Energy Minister Sonya Savage said people needed jobs and "ideological protests" would not be "tolerated" by ordinary Canadians. She was referring to the Trans Mountain oil pipeline, opposed by indigenous groups and environmentalists. (BBC)

Western Washington wildfire: What are we facing this year and beyond?
Trying to predict the likelihood that Western Washington will be scorched with severe forest fires this summer must be an overwhelming job for our region’s meteorologists. In the midst of a pandemic, fire managers and fire crews desperately would like to know what kinds of fire conditions they will face this year, not only in Western Washington but wherever they might be sent. Will firefighters be able to ward off the COVID-19 disease as they battle one blaze after another? How many times might they be called out to fight fires this year? Chris Dunagan writes. (Puget Sound Institute)

Up in smoke: B.C. backtracks on promise to deter logging industry from burning wood waste
Nearly three years ago the province promised to rein in the air pollution and unwanted emissions from slash-pile burning by introducing a carbon tax that has yet to materialize — to the great frustration of rural communities and a small mill operator who says valuable wood fibre is needlessly going up in smoke. Ben Parfitt reports. (The Narwhal)

BC Ferries to resume service between Nanaimo and Vancouver at half capacity
BC Ferries is set to resume service between Horseshoe Bay in West Vancouver and Departure Bay in Nanaimo after COVID-19 forced the route's suspension in early April. The ferry service says there will be four round-trip sailings every day starting June 3. Sailings will operate at 50 per cent capacity for passengers and B.C. Ferries recommends reserving a spot ahead of time. (Canadian Press)

Washington state aims to regulate water temperature at federal dams, wading into controversy
....Today Columbia and Snake River salmon, and orcas that depend on them, are at risk of extinction. And Washington state regulators are taking a new regulatory role to chill fish-killing hot water at four dams in the lower Columbia, and four in the lower Snake. Regulators also have a new tool to work with, in a just-published analysis of heat pollution in the river by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), open to public comment until July 21. Temperatures always have spiked in the rivers at times in summer, even before the dams. But today, the effects of the dams combined with the cumulative effects of climate change, push temperatures in the Columbia and lower Snake rivers over the state maximum temperature of 68 degrees for weeks on end, the EPA found. Lynda Mapes reports. (Seattle Times)

Some coastal recreational fishing reopens Tuesday in Washington
Much of the Washington coast reopens for recreational fishing on Tuesday after two months of coronavirus closures. The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife says Marine Areas 1-3 will open for bottomfish, shellfish, mussels, clams, oysters starting May 26. This stretch includes waters from the mouth of the Columbia River to Cape Alava. Crabbing on the Columbia is also set to resume. Some restrictions remain though: halibut and razor clam harvest will remain closed in those areas, and Marine Area 4 (Neah Bay) is still closed to all recreational fishing and shellfish harvesting. More details are available here. Coastal razor clam digs also remain closed. WDFW says this is because there are concerns that the digs draw too many people to small coastal communities and beaches. WDFW previously opened all freshwater fisheries and many on Puget Sound on May 5. Some spot shrimp fishing is scheduled to open May 28. Michael Crowe reports. (KING)


Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  239 AM PDT Tue May 26 2020   
TODAY  W wind to 10 kt becoming NW in the afternoon. Wind waves  2 ft or less. W swell 5 ft at 13 seconds. 
TONIGHT  W wind 5 to 15 kt easing to 10 kt after midnight. 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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5/25 Salmonberry bird, humpbacks, cherry blight, Scotch broom, Black Ball, whale watch licensing, SeaTac travel, testing sewage, LA marshes

Swainson's thrush [Gregg Thompson/BirdNote]

Salmonberry Bird
The native names of birds sometimes distill the essence of their appearance or behavior. In the Cherokee language, for instance, the Meadowlark is called "star," because of the way the bird's tail spreads out when it soars. To the Northwest Coastal people, this Swainson's Thrush is known as the "Salmonberry Bird." The name derives from its annual arrival in the Pacific Northwest in May, when salmonberries ripen in the forests. (BirdNote)


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



Humpback sightings in Vancouver harbour a welcome sign of recovery
Two recent humpback whale sightings in Vancouver’s harbour have delighted a UBC marine biologist who says they are a welcome sign of recovery following overhunting more than a century ago. Andrew Trites, a professor at the Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries at the University of B.C., said it’s possible both sightings this month involved the same whale, which could be swimming up and down the shoreline looking for food such as krill, herring and sardines. Nick Eagland reports. (Vancouver Sun)

A Disease Outbreak Among Northwest Cherry Crops Means Less Fruit Than Usual This Year
Just as a farmer’s fruit should be turning juicy and sweet, an old foe called “little cherry disease” robs the harvest. From The Dalles, Oregon, to Brewster, Washington, Northwest cherry growers are checking their orchards now, just before harvest. Infected trees have to be cut down. And the disease can spread like wildfire from tree to tree until an entire orchard is just stumps.  Anna King reports (Northwest News Network)

Help eradicate Scotch broom, the pretty pest lining WA highways
The coronavirus hasn’t stopped the first-ever census of the invasive yellow bush, which can displace forests and increase wildfire risks. Mandy Godwin reports. (Crosscut)

Will Coho ferry service be stalled for the rest of the year?
Black Ball Ferry Line’s Coho ferry could be shut down through December and might not be back in service until spring 2021, severely jeopardizing the Port Angeles company’s ability to stay afloat, co-owner Ryan Malane said Thursday. Canadian restrictions on nonessential travel due to the coronavirus pandemic, which have corralled the 1,000-passenger ferry since March 29, have a 20 percent chance to be eased by December in a best-case scenario, according to Destination BC, the provincial government’s tourism marketing corporation. Those restrictions are 60 percent likely to continue until spring 2021, according to estimates presented during an April 30 online meeting recorded at tinyurl.com/PDN-CohoBC. Paul Gottlieb reports. (Peninsula Daily News)

Commercial whale-watching licensing program
Department of Fish and Wildlife is developing rules for a new commercial whale-watching licensing program to enable sustainable whale watching while reducing the impacts of vessel noise and disturbance so whales can effectively forage, rest, and socialize...Draft language will be shared and refined over the summer of 2020, and the public comment period will follow in fall 2020, with expected adoption of the rules by Jan. 1, 2021. (WDFW)

Travel falls 90% at Washington’s busiest airport - a 50-year low, Port of Seattle says
The Port of Seattle released a report detailing the difference in the number of travelers this year compared to April 2019 and the impact of the pandemic is clear, according to the agency’s website. Seattle-Tacoma International Airport— Washington’s busiest airport — saw passenger volume drop to a 53-year low, Port of Seattle said. “About 260,000 passengers traveled through SEA in April of 2020, which is a decrease of 93.6 percent from the same month last year,” the Port of Seattle said in a news release. Brooke Wolford reports. (Tacoma News Tribune)

Honolulu Is Testing Sewage To Watch For The Spread Of COVID-19
Oahu this month became one of many communities across the world testing wastewater for the new coronavirus. Scientists are finding that the amount of the virus detected in a community’s sewage could predict the rise and fall of infections, raising hopes for a cheap and reliable early warning tool. The virus that causes COVID-19 can be detected in a person’s fecal matter within three days of infection, much earlier than the 14 days it can take to develop symptoms. Claire Caulfield reports. (Honolulu Civil Beat)

Loss of Louisiana marshes that protect New Orleans is ‘probably inevitable,’ study finds
Rising seas are likely to overwhelm the wetlands that line the coast of Louisiana, destroying the protection they offer the city of New Orleans as well as the fisheries and tourism that contribute heavily to the state’s economy, a new study says. The imperiled wetlands at the base of the Mississippi River have crossed a critical tipping point, according to the new research, which was published in Science Advances and is based on hundreds of measurements that revealed the fate of ancient marshes in this region. Chris Mooney reports. (Washington Post)


Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  243 AM PDT Mon May 25 2020   
TODAY  W wind to 10 kt. Wind waves 1 ft or less. W swell 5 ft  at 12 seconds. Rain likely in the morning then a chance of rain  in the afternoon. 
TONIGHT  W wind 5 to 15 kt becoming to 10 kt after midnight.  Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell 5 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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5/22 Royal Wulff, BC parks, whale watching, Trump's reg rollback, electric buses

Royal Wulff

Royal Wulff
Despite the name, Lee Wulff did not invent this fly. It's based on a version of the hair-wing Royal Coachman called the Quack Coachman. It took Wulff's renown to make his adapted Royal Wulff a huge success. The Royal Wulff is a trout-stream standard not because it imitates anything in particular but because the white wings make it easy for fishermen to see. Use the larger sizes when dry-fly fishing for browns after dark in the summer. You can see it. The fish can, too. (Fish and Stream)


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



B.C. closes provincial campsites to non-residents this summer
Campsites in B.C. provincial parks will be closed to people from outside the province this summer, as officials continue to adjust the rules to the coronavirus pandemic. BC Parks said in a statement on Thursday that non-B.C. residents who already have reservations should call before June 15 to cancel and receive a full refund. Reservations made after next Monday by non-residents will be subject to immediate cancellation without refund. (CBC)

Whales Get a Break from Watchers
The COVID-19 pandemic is giving whales some respite from boat traffic and whale watching tours, but some say associated shutdowns are impacting research and conservation. Larry Pynn reports. (Hakai Magazine) See also: Whale watch industry sits dockside during COVID-19 pandemic  With the turn of the season, as the sun more often lights up area waters with a sparkle, locals and visitors alike are usually drawn to the docks to pursue a glimpse of the region’s whales. Over the past decade, upwards of 500,000 people have boarded whale watching boats in the Salish Sea each year. Not this year. Kimberly Cauvel reports.(Salish Current)

Wheeler defends pandemic rollbacks
EPA's moves to roll back a number of regulations during the COVID-19 pandemic came under fire (Wednesday) on Capitol Hill. EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler, who appeared (Wednesday) morning before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee for an oversight hearing, faced questions over the agency's recent actions to roll back tougher Obama-era clean car standards, revoke the justification behind toxic mercury air emissions standards and the continued sale of less stringent wood stoves. Wheeler mounted a vocal defense of his agency's work and praised EPA employees carrying out their duties during the pandemic. Yet Democratic senators pressed him often, leading to some fierce exchanges in the cavernous hearing room that was being used to stick to social distancing guidelines. Kevin Bogardus reports. (E&E News)

Washington School Districts Set To Deploy New Electric Buses This Fall
Earlier this year, there was only one electric school bus in the entire state of Washington. By this fall, the electric school bus fleet should be vastly expanding. Forty new buses may transport students in districts throughout the state possibly starting in the fall — assuming in-person classes are back on. Courtney Flatt reports. (NW News Network)

Salish Sea News Week in Review May 22 2020
This week's selection of weekday news clips collected in Salish Sea News and Weather which is compiled as a community service.



Now, your weekend tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  227 AM PDT Fri May 22 2020   
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT THROUGH THIS AFTERNOON   
TODAY  W wind 15 to 20 kt becoming 15 to 25 kt in the  afternoon. Wind waves 2 to 4 ft. W swell 8 ft at 8 seconds. A  slight chance of rain in the afternoon. 
TONIGHT  W wind 10 to 20 kt becoming 5 to 15 kt after midnight.  Wind waves 1 to 3 ft. W swell 6 ft at 12 seconds. 
SAT  SW wind to 10 kt becoming W 5 to 15 kt in the afternoon.  Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell 4 ft at 12 seconds. 
SAT NIGHT  W wind 10 to 20 kt becoming S to 10 kt after  midnight. Wind waves 1 to 3 ft subsiding to 1 ft or less after  midnight. W swell 4 ft at 13 seconds. 
SUN  SE wind to 10 kt. Wind waves 1 ft or less. W swell 6 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.

Salish Sea News: Communicate, Educate, Advocate

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5/21 Royal Coachman, sockeye season, cool river water, sea otters, cleaner air, Cedar LNG

Royal Coachman

Royal Coachman fly
The Royal Coachman is an artificial fly that has been tied as a wet fly, dry fly and streamer pattern. Today, the Royal Coachman and its variations are tied mostly as dry flies and fished floating on the water surface. It is a popular and widely used pattern for freshwater game fish, particularly trout and grayling. (Wikipedia)


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



A sockeye season like no other — because Covid-19
...Bristol Bay Native and community groups said on Sunday that without better protections and enforcement, including mandatory Covid-19 testing upon arrival, the commercial fishery should be shut down. The city of Dillingham, the main fishing hub for Bristol Bay, requires testing upon arrival but smaller villages and the state of Alaska do not. John Ryan reports. (KUOW)

EPA releases plan to keep water in Columbia, Snake rivers cool enough for salmon
Salmon need cold water to survive. Dams on the Columbia and Snake Rivers are making the water too hot, in some places by as much as 5 degrees. Now, after a drawn-out lawsuit and direction from the state of Washington, the federal Environmental Protection Agency has released plan to change that.   Last week, the state Department of Ecology used its authority under the Clean Water Act to require the federal operators of eight dams on the lower Columbia and Snake rivers to keep the water at 68 degrees or lower. Right now, it’s routinely hitting 72 or 73 degrees in parts of the system, says Brett VandenHeuvel, executive director of Columbia Riverkeeper, which sued to get the plan. Bellamy Pailthorp reports. (KNKX)

SFU study recommends coastal First Nations' input and leadership in managing sea-otter recovery
A recent study by Simon Fraser University researchers and West Coast First Nations collaborators recommends a transformation of current environmental-management procedures to allow greater Indigenous input and authority in controlling sea otter populations. Martin Dunphy reports. (Georgia Straight) See also: Living with Sea Otters Next Door Ecologists and Indigenous leaders are developing strategies to help communities cope with resurgent sea otter populations.  Brad Badelt reports. (Hakai Magazine)

Less traffic means 40% cleaner skies in W. Wash. - but will it last?
From late March through the end of April, car pollution in Seattle dropped by roughly 40 percent compared to the same time in previous years. Very few people were driving. That’s according to Phil Swartzendruber, a scientist with the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency. Abby Acone reports. (KOMO)

Cedar LNG in Kitimat: 9 things to know about the Haisla’s proposed floating gas export terminal
Kitimat is no stranger to large-scale industry, but this resource town is now considering a project with a twist: a liquified natural gas (LNG) terminal on its own fabricated island. Originally built as an industry town to service the Alcan (now Rio Tinto) aluminum smelter, Kitimat has become a central location for some of the biggest industrial projects in B.C., including the LNG Canada export terminal, which will be fed by the Coastal GasLink pipeline. The Haisla Nation, a staunch supporter of the LNG Canada project, is proposing to build and operate its own facility and one of North America’s first-ever floating LNG terminals: Cedar LNG. Natalia Balcerzak reports. (The Narwhal)


Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  248 AM PDT Thu May 21 2020   
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT THROUGH FRIDAY AFTERNOON   
TODAY  W wind 15 to 25 kt. Wind waves 2 to 4 ft. W swell 6 ft  at 7 seconds. A chance of rain in the morning then rain likely in  the afternoon. 
TONIGHT  W wind 15 to 25 kt. Wind waves 2 to 4 ft. W swell 7 ft  at 7 seconds. A chance of rain.




--
"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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5/20 Caddis fly, border closure, Cherry Pt fuel, gray whale death, world carbon pollution, Pt Townsend aquarium

Caddis fly nymph

Caddis wet fly
In fly fishing, wet fly is a general term used to describe a type of artificial fly, like a nymph, representative of sub-aquatic trout food. Nymphs are most commonly designed, tied, and fished to closely and realistically imitate insects in their pre-adult or larval stage. Wet flies are most commonly designed to be more impressionistic than precise imitations of specific types of food.


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



Canada, US extend border closure to non-essential travel
Canada and the U.S. have agreed to extend their agreement to keep their border closed to non-essential travel to June 21 during the coronavirus pandemic. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday the border is a source of vulnerability, so the agreement will be extended by another 30 days. The restrictions were announced on March 18 and were extended in April. Rob Gillies reports. (AP) See also: Cross-border couple faces indefinite separation as travel restrictions extended Tanya Fletcher reports. (CBC)

Whatcom will consider another temporary limit on fuel shipments from Cherry Point
Whatcom County Council members will consider another temporary ban on shipment of unrefined fossil fuels from the oil refineries at the Cherry Point industrial area west of Ferndale. Council members Tyler Byrd, Ben Elenbaas and Kathy Kershner voted against a measure to consider the extension, which passed 4-3 on Tuesday, May 19, 2020. Consideration of another temporary ban will be at the council’s next meeting on June 2, 2020. Robert Mittendorf reports. (Bellingham Herald)

Gray whale washes ashore on Bainbridge Island, fifth on West Coast this year
Continuing an unusual die-off of gray whales, a carcass washed ashore on Bainbridge Island’s Manitou Beach on Tuesday. The whale appeared to be an adult and had been dead for a while, said Michael Milstein, spokesman for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries West Coast region. It was not immediately clear how this whale died, he said. Mike Reicher reports. (Seattle Times)

Study: World carbon pollution falls 17% during pandemic peak 
The world cut its daily carbon dioxide emissions by 17% at the peak of the pandemic shutdown last month, a new study found. But with life and heat-trapping gas levels inching back toward normal, the brief pollution break will likely be “a drop in the ocean” when it comes to climate change, scientists said. Seth Bornstein reports. (AP)

A peek inside Port Townsend’s aquarium
This time of year, the Port Townsend Marine Science Center’s aquarium on the Fort Worden dock is typically crawling with visitors each weekend who peer through the glass at fish swimming in their marine habitats or reach  into the touch tanks to feel the textured skin of a sea star. But because of the governor’s “Stay Home, Stay Healthy” order, the many creatures that live in the aquarium have had the place to themselves. Lily Haight reports. (Port Townsend Leader)


Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  238 AM PDT Wed May 20 2020   
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM NOON PDT TODAY THROUGH  LATE TONIGHT   
TODAY  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. SW swell 3 ft at 12 seconds. A chance of rain in the  afternoon. 
TONIGHT  W wind 15 to 25 kt. Wind waves 2 to 4 ft. W swell 5 ft  at 6 seconds. A chance of rain.




--
"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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5/19 Wooly bugger, Canada plastics, American climate, 'mother trees,' tuna boat, cargo shipping

Wooly bugger

Wooly bugger
Although best known as a streamer fly for trout, Buggers work well for bass and myriad other species in fresh- and saltwater.  Historians see this pattern as nothing more than an ancient Woolly Worm wet fly with a wiggly marabou tail. Often it is tied with strands of flashy tinsel or with a heavy metal cone head for a jiglike action, but the original unweighted version is the most versatile. (Field and Stream)


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



Canada's new climate targets, plastics ban likely to be delayed due to pandemic
Canada's national environment agenda is the latest thing to be upended by the COVID-19 pandemic, as plans for both beefing up national climate targets and banning some plastics are likely to be delayed. Environment Minister Jonathan Wilkinson told The Canadian Press late last week that the government remains firmly committed to its environmental promises, which were a key part of the Liberal 2019 re-election campaign. However, he acknowledged that the efforts to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus in Canada will also slow the government's ability to move on some of its environment goals. Mia Rabson reports. (Canadian Press)

Americans See Climate as a Concern, Even Amid Coronavirus Crisis 
Americans’ positions on climate change have remained largely unshaken by the coronavirus pandemic and economic crisis, according to a new national survey that showed acceptance of the reality of global warming at record highs in some categories. In the report, Climate Change in the American Mind, written by researchers at Yale University and George Mason University and scheduled to be made public on Tuesday, 73 percent of those polled said that climate change was happening, which matches the highest level of acceptance previously measured by the survey, from 2019. John Schwartz reports. (NY Times)

If you like to watch: Why 'mother trees' are crucial in fighting climate change
UBC scientist Suzanne Simard researches how the oldest trees in forests nurture, communicate and protect younger seedlings. (CBC)

Fishing boat returns with tons of tuna, but there's no restaurant market —  so they're selling to the public
When the tuna boat St. Jude motored out of Anacortes in November for fishing grounds 5,000 miles away in the South Pacific, few people outside of microbiology labs had ever heard the word “coronavirus.” By the time the 95-foot vessel docked in Seattle this month, the microbe had shaken the entire world and turned the seafood business upside down. Sandi Doughton reports. (Seattle Times)

Puget Sound cargo shipping drops sharply as coronavirus pandemic stalls trade
As cargo volumes to major Washington ports fall amid the coronavirus pandemic, shippers are canceling sailings and ports are shutting their gates to trucking operations some days of the week, causing backups, delays and container shortages. Total containerized shipping volume fell by 23.5% last month compared with April 2019 — the steepest slide since the start of the pandemic, confounding port officials’ initial expectations trade could begin to normalize in the second quarter after March’s nosedive. For the year so far, container trade is down 17.5%. Katherine Khashimova Long reports. (Seattle Times)



Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  248 AM PDT Tue May 19 2020    TODAY  W wind to 10 kt becoming 5 to 15 kt in the afternoon.  Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell 5 ft at 10 seconds.  TONIGHT  W wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 2 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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5/18 Coon shrimp, enviro justice, whale watching, border town blues, steelhead strategy, trawl fishing, BC tribe treaty, Dee Molenaar, citizen science, Mount St. Helens' 40th

Coon shrimp

Coon shrimp
Coon shrimp are cured and dyed shrimp that are a very popular and effective bait used to catch winter and summer steelhead, and spring Chinook. (The Columbian)


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



Tackling the pandemic in Seattle’s polluted valley 
From a boat on the Duwamish River, it’s easy to see giant yellow excavators plucking crushed cars off the ground and swinging them toward an open-air shredder...“It looks like something out of Mad Max," James Rasmussen told a group of visiting scientists on board the Admiral Pete in November. The Duwamish River Cleanup Coalition activist and former Duwamish Tribal council member was serving as a tour guide for Superfund researchers learning about the polluted waterway and the businesses lining its banks. John Ryan reports. (KUOW) See also: In the Shadows of America’s Smokestacks, Virus Is One More Deadly Risk Poor communities near industrial areas face heavy pollution, stirring fears that dirty air worsens Covid-19. Scientists are racing to understand the risks. Hiroko Tabuchi reports. (NY Times)

Whale watch industry sits dockside during COVID-19 pandemic
With the turn of the season, as the sun more often lights up area waters with a sparkle, locals and visitors alike are usually drawn to the docks to pursue a glimpse of the region’s whales. Not this year. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Salish Current)

Washington state's once-bustling border towns and islands fall silent, due to coronavirus pandemic
...Shutting the border to all but commercial vehicles and “essential” travelers in a region that once saw 14 million annual crossings has reduced auto traffic at Blaine’s Peace Arch border crossing by 98% — down to barely a couple hundred cars per day. Ron Judd reports. (Seattle Times)

New steelhead strategy would include increased fishing and more hatcheries
Strategies to keep steelhead fishing alive while restoring steelhead populations to rivers in Puget Sound are spelled out in the “Quicksilver Portfolio," a document unveiled Friday before the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission. After three years of study, the Puget Sound Steelhead Advisory Group announced that it was ready to solicit public and political support for an experimental approach that includes monitoring the effects of fishing and increased hatchery production as part of a steelhead-recovery effort. Chris Dunagan reports. (Puget Sound Institute)

Trawl fishing in the age of the coronavirus: First, you make it through quarantine
The spring trawl harvest for whiting is underway off the Northwest coast in an unusual year when a crucial marker of success won’t just be nets stuffed with fish but crews that stay healthy and free from the COVID-19 disease. To try to assure that outcome, hundreds of crew members went through two weeks of shore-side quarantine coupled with testing for the novel coronavirus that did identify a few who, if they had gone out to sea, risked sickness and spreading the virus. Hal Bernton reports. (Seattle Times)

Wet'suwet'en agreement could see pipeline disagreements down the road
Premier John Horgan brushed off the suggestion this week that his government was picking sides by signing an agreement with the Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs over the objections from elected ones...He was referring to the showdown earlier this year with hereditary Wet’suwet’en leaders opposed to the construction of the Coastal GasLink pipeline through their traditional territory. In an effort to defuse the conflict, the federal and provincial governments entered into talks with the hereditary leadership, resulting in a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on Wet’suwet’en rights and title. But on the eve of this week’s signing ceremony, four elected Wet’suwet’en chiefs denounced the MOU as invalid because they were cut out of the negotiating process and kept in the dark about the contents until the last minute. Vaughn Palmer writes. (Vancouver Sun)

Gotta watch: My Friends Were Mountaineers: A film about Dee Molenaar
Dee Molenaar, photographer, artist and icon in the Pacific Northwest mountaineering community passed away recently at the age of 101. Filmmaker Eric Becker spent some time with Dee and his children before he died, and has made a short film about Molenaar's inspirational life.

You could be the citizen scientist the world needs right now
From bird counts to COVID-19 testing, you can help researchers collect critical data from home. Hannah Weinberger reports. (Crosscut)

If you like to watch: 'Oregon Field Guide' Opens Its Archives On 40 Years Of Science And Adventure On Mount St. Helens
In honor of the 40th anniversary of the eruption, Oregon Field Guide is releasing its complete archive of St. Helens stories to the public. Ed Jahn reports. (OPB)


Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  241 AM PDT Mon May 18 2020   
TODAY  W wind to 10 kt rising to 10 to 20 kt in the afternoon.  Wind waves 1 ft or less building to 1 to 3 ft in the afternoon. W  swell 5 ft at 12 seconds. 
TONIGHT  W wind 10 to 20 kt becoming 5 to 15 kt after midnight.  Wind waves 1 to 3 ft. 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.

Salish Sea News: Communicate, Educate, Advocate

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5/15 Beach knotweed, herring spawn, park openings, invasive mussels, cruise ship layoffs, Trump's relaxed rules, oil field cleanup, rockfish, Trump's fisher, Trump's fish farms, sightings

Beach knotweed [Mary Jo Adams]

Beach knotweed Polygonum paronychia
Beach knotweed belongs to the knotweed or buckwheat family (Polygonaceae).  It has a low lying form with woody stems, tiny white or pale pink flowers that bloom from April to September, and 1–inch-long leaves with margins that roll under.  Beach knotweed is found on coastal dunes and sandy beaches from northern California to southern Vancouver Island.  It is native in the Pacific Northwest.  Other common names for it are black knotweed and smartweed. (Mary Jo Adams/Sound Water Stewards)


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



This year’s herring spawn events in Puget Sound were the largest in decades
Throughout the Sound in March and April, Pacific herring were spawning in large numbers. In Quilcene Bay and Dabob Bay, in Port Orchard and Port Madison, in Henderson Bay, and near West Seattle, and possibly in Discovery Bay, Holmes Harbor, and elsewhere. There’s uncertainty about the precise extent and the size of the spawning due to stay-at-home restrictions limiting observation and measurement, but it’s clear that this has been a big year for herring. Kevin Hyde writes. (Puget Sound Partnership)

Like A Scene Out of 'Mad Max': Washington And Oregon State Parks Struggle To Address Crowds 
Mother’s Day at Palouse Falls State Park in southeastern Washington looked like a scene out of the movie Mad Max...Similarly, Cannon Beach on Oregon’s north coast saw so many out of town visitors last weekend they had to be told to go home. Hundreds were enjoying the sun before officials swept through. Northwest state officials are struggling to contain crowds in parks in the time of coronavirus. Anna King reports. (NW News Network)

COVID-19 restrictions may aid B.C.'s ongoing battle against invasive mussels
Travel restrictions linked to the COVID-19 pandemic might help British Columbia defend against invasive mussels, but the province is taking no chances as it works to keep the creatures out of B.C. waterways. A statement from the Environment Ministry says boat inspection stations are opening across B.C. to check for zebra and quagga mussels. The invaders or their larvae can be carried on improperly cleaned, drained and dried watercraft coming from waters outside the province. (Canadian Press)

Seattle-based Holland America Line announces 2,000 layoffs, other measures as coronavirus halts cruise sailings worldwide
Cruise line Holland America, headquartered in Seattle, will lay off close to 2,000 employees and will furlough or reduce the hours or pay of its remaining shoreside employees, the company announced today...The company did not respond immediately to questions about how many employees will be furloughed. Most of Holland America’s landbound staff work in Seattle and Santa Clarita, California.  Katherine Khashimova Long reports. (Seattle Times)

Nine U.S. states sue EPA for easing environmental enforcement amid pandemic
Nine states on Wednesday filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for relaxing a range of companies’ compliance and monitoring requirements with federal clean air and water laws in response to the coronavirus pandemic, arguing the policy is too broad and not transparent. Under the temporary policy announced on March 26, the EPA said it would not seek penalties for violations of routine compliance monitoring, integrity testing, sampling, laboratory analysis, training, and reporting or certification obligations in situations where the EPA agrees that COVID-19 was the cause...The coalition of the nine states - New York, California, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Oregon, Vermont and Virginia - argue that the EPA lacks legal authority to waive “critical monitoring and reporting obligations that inform regulators and the general public of pollution hazards” and failed to weigh the impacts the relaxation policy will have on public health amid the coronavirus pandemic. Their lawsuit comes a month after more than a dozen environmental groups led by the Natural Resources Defense Council, whose president is former Obama EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy filed their own challenge in the same New York federal court. (Reuters)

B.C. premier and energy minister announce $120M plan to clean up orphan and dormant oil and gas wells
B.C. Premier John Horgan and provincial Energy Minister Bruce Ralston announced plans Wednesday to use $120 million in federal funds to clean up thousands of so-called orphan oil and gas wells. Ralston said the plan is aimed at cleaning up damage from dormant and abandoned wells, as well as the "legacy" problems caused by historical oil and gas exploration...Ralston said the plan will use $120 million in federal funds directed to the province for the specific purpose of cleaning up orphan wells. Horgan said the government wants to use the money to both clean up the environment and to inject money into the economy as part of provincial plans to restart the economy in the face of COVID-19. (CBC)

Teachable Moments on the Dock
A British Columbia project that includes education with regulations is a winning formula for rockfish conservation. Larry Pynn reports. (Hakai Magazine)

Trump Administration Rejects Endangered Species Bid For Rare Mammal In Oregon
Endangered species protections in Oregon and Northern California for a rarely seen, forest-dwelling mammal were turned down Thursday by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The federal agency did approve Endangered Species Act protections for the Pacific fisher in parts of the Sierra Nevada, where it was listed as “endangered” with extinction. But it said such protections were not justified for the Pacific fisher in the forests of Northern California and Southern Oregon. The decision rejected a 2019 proposal to list fishers as “threatened” throughout the West Coast range. Monica Samayoa reports. (OPB)

Trump Executive Order Opens the Door for Massive Industrial Fish Farms in Oceans
Last week, the Trump administration announced an executive order opening the door for large-scale fish farming. That order, as reported by the Food and Environment Reporting Network (FERN), is designed at its core to expand the scope and facilities for aquaculture. What that likely means is a reduction in regulations, and the creation of large offshore fish farms. Dan Nosowitz reports. (Modern Farmer)

Sightings: In rare sighting for Island, at least 7 grizzlies spotted near Sayward   (Vancouver Sun) Humpback whale breaching in Vancouver harbour spotted by Burnaby seniors  (CBC) Paddleboarder surrounded by orcas, reacts accordingly  (USA Today)



Now, your weekend tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  301 AM PDT Fri May 15 2020   
TODAY  W wind to 10 kt becoming NW in the afternoon. Wind waves  2 ft or less. W swell 4 ft at 10 seconds. 
TONIGHT  NW wind 5 to 15 kt becoming SE to 10 kt after  midnight. Wind waves 1 ft or less. SW swell 3 ft at 13 seconds. A  chance of rain after midnight. 
SAT  SE wind 5 to 15 kt becoming 10 to 20 kt in the afternoon.  Wind waves 1 to 3 ft. SW swell 4 ft at 20 seconds building to  6 ft at 9 seconds in the afternoon. Rain likely in the morning  then rain in the afternoon. 
SAT NIGHT  SE wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 1 to 3 ft. SW swell  7 ft at 10 seconds. 
SUN  Light wind becoming W to 10 kt in the afternoon. Wind  waves 1 ft or less. SW swell 7 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.

Salish Sea News: Communicate, Educate, Advocate

Follow on Twitter. 

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5/14 Dipper, cold dam water, Mount St. Helens, WSF aid, ocean plastic, lion's mane jelly, coral bleaching

American dipper [Tony Mitra/BirdNote]

Dippers on the Elwha
In 2014, the dams on the Elwha River in Washington State were removed. As the river ran free again, salmon from the Pacific were able to spawn upstream for the first time in 100 years, dramatically improving conditions for American Dippers. Recent research has demonstrated that birds with access to salmon have higher survival rates. And they are 20 times more likely to attempt to raise two broods in a season, the most important contributor to population growth. (BirdNote)


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



Columbia, Snake river dam operators must make plan to keep waters cold enough for salmon survival
The Washington state Department of Ecology, in a historic move, has required federal operators of eight dams on the Columbia and Snake rivers to create a plan to keep the waters cold enough for adult salmon survival. Conservation groups said the “game-changing decision” is needed to protect endangered salmon species, which struggle when river temperatures exceed 68 degrees. Hydropower proponents said they are concerned that meeting the temperature standards could be unattainable without costly rate hikes for utility customers in hydropower-reliant areas, The Daily News reported. (AP)

Eruption anniversary plans blown up and reborn, kinda like subject Mount St. Helens 
There were once big plans for many public events to mark the 40th anniversary of the catastrophic 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens. The coronavirus pandemic blew up those plans, but many are resurfacing online this week and next. There will be no public observances at the volcano on Monday, the exact anniversary day. The main highway into the national volcanic monument is closed. The state, federal and Weyerhaeuser visitor centers are closed. Museums that organized special exhibits for the milestone anniversary are, you guessed it, closed because of the coronavirus pandemic. Tom Banse reports. (NW News Network)

A big chunk of federal coronavirus help for Washington State Ferries
A $39.2 million federal grant, part of Congress' big COVID-19 relief package, will go to the Washington Department of Transportation to maintain commuter ferry service across Puget Sound. Crossing waters is vital to commuting and recreating in Washington state. Washington State Ferries served 23.9 million passengers in 2019, but has been hit with a ridership decline of as much as 75% during stay-at-home orders enacted to curb spread of the novel coronavirus. Joel Connelly reports. (SeattlePI)

Hoovering the ocean
Plastic pollution threatens marine life, humans and ecosystems. Enter FRED, a future vacuum of the seas. Hugo Kuglya reports. (Washington Post)

Giant jellyfish in Boundary Bay gives dog more than it bargained for
A Boundary Bay resident is warning others after her dog fell ill following an interaction with a giant jellyfish earlier this week. The woman was on a sandbar north of the boat ramp during the outgoing tide Monday morning when her dog stuck its nose into a lion’s mane jellyfish and immediately started vomiting. She took the dog to the vet as a precaution... The lion’s mane jellyfish is the largest known species of jellyfish with a typical size of 50 cm or so for its bell diameter. The species is common in the Strait of Georgia and offshore of Vancouver Island. They live for about one year, and usually are found along beaches of the Salish Sea in late summer. Ted Murphy reports. (Delta Optimist)

Coral bleaching: Scientists 'find way to make coral more heat-resistant'
Scientists in Australia say they have found a way to help coral reefs fight the devastating effects of bleaching by making them more heat-resistant. Rising sea temperatures make corals expel tiny algae which live inside them. This turns the corals white and effectively starves them. In response, researchers have developed a lab-grown strain of microalgae which is more tolerant to heat. When injected back into the coral, the algae can handle warmer water better. (BBC)


Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  257 AM PDT Thu May 14 2020   
TODAY  Light wind becoming NW 5 to 15 kt in the afternoon. Wind  waves 2 ft or less. W swell 5 ft at 13 seconds. A chance of rain.   
TONIGHT  W wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell  4 ft at 12 seconds. A chance of rain in the evening.




--
"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

5/13 Fern, harbor porpoise prey, Wet'suwet'en MOU, Trump's oil train, no BC cruise ships, BC border, WA wolf kills, Chehalis floods, Amanda Vincent

Western maidenhair fern [Dana Kelley Bressette]

Western Maidenhair Fern Adiantum aleuticum
Western Maidenhair can be found from the Aleutian Islands and southeast Alaska to Chihuahua in Mexico.  It is more common along the Pacific Coast, but can be found in some areas of the inland Rocky Mountain Region, and in some northeastern states, Quebec and Newfoundland (listed as endangered in Maine). (Dana Kelley Bressette/Native Plants PNW)


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



Local researchers discover harbor porpoises may eat salmon
The ongoing study of harbor porpoises from bluffs overlooking Burrows Bay in Anacortes contributed recently to new findings regarding the species along the West Coast...Observations and photos from the Anacortes researchers were combined with observations and photos from San Francisco Bay researchers and the analysis of stomach contents of dead porpoises from Cook Inlet in Alaska. For the first time, the researchers collectively documented harbor porpoises interacting with and likely eating salmon and a fish called American shad — both much larger species than the porpoises have been documented eating in the past. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Wet'suwet'en hereditary chiefs moving ahead with rights and title MOU with B.C. and Canada
The Wet'suwet'en hereditary chiefs say they're moving forward with signing a memorandum of understanding with B.C. and Canada on Thursday despite calls from elected band leadership to hit reset on the process. The purpose of the MOU is to provide guidance to the Wet'suwet'en Nation, B.C. and Canada on how to recognize and implement Wet'suwet'en rights and title. But in recent weeks, as news that the MOU would be signed started circulating, elected leadership of the bands within the Wet'suwe'ten Nation started calling for that plan to be halted.  Chantelle Bellrichard reports. (CBC)

Trump administration says Washington state overstepped with oil train law
The Trump administration on Monday moved to block a Washington state law that imposed safety restrictions on oil shipments by rail following a string of explosive accidents. The Department of Transportation determined federal law pre-empts the Washington law adopted last year, which mandated crude from the oil fields of the Northern Plains have more of its volatile gases removed prior to being loaded onto rail cars...With backing by the rail and oil industries, the attorneys general for Montana and North Dakota had argued the law effectively banned crude from their states. In July, they petitioned the Trump administration to overrule the law. Federal officials said Monday that the removal of volatile gases was not a “statistically significant factor” in the severity of oil train crashes. Matthew Brown reports. (AP)

B.C. health officials say cruise ships not welcome this summer
B.C. health officials say passengers will not be permitted to disembark if cruise ships arrive at the province's ports later this summer although it's still unclear if the federal government will decide whether to resume the cruise ship season on July 1. On March 13, Transport Canada and the Public Health Agency of Canada announced as a safety measure to stop the spread of the COVID-19 virus, that the cruise ship season which normally starts at the beginning of April would be delayed until the beginning of July. There have been questions over whether coastal cities including Vancouver, Victoria and Prince Rupert could see the arrival of international cruise ship lines this summer but Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry said that will not be the case. (CBC)

Trudeau says government will be 'very, very careful' about any easing of border restrictions
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau hinted today that Canada is in no rush to ease travel restrictions at the U.S. border to allow for non-essential travel as the clock ticks down on the current agreement. Both countries reached an agreement in March to temporarily close the border to non-essential travel — meaning no recreational visits — while keeping it open to commercial traffic and essential workers who cross for work. It was extended in April by 30 days and is set to expire on May 21. Trudeau was asked repeatedly during his daily news briefing today whether the deal will be extended once again. "We're going to be very, very careful about reopening any international travel, including in the United States, before we feel that it is time," he said. Catharine Tunney reports. (CBC)

Conservation Groups Propose Rule Changes To Limit Wolf Kills In Washington
Conservation groups on Monday asked the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission to sharply limit the number of endangered wolves that are killed over conflicts with livestock. The state has killed 31 wolves since 2012, under a system that environmental groups contend favors ranchers over the animals.  Nicholas K. Geranios reports/ (AP)

When the Chehalis floods again, who pays the price?
With 100-year floods occurring twice a decade, a dam could offer relief — or endanger salmon and ecosystems. Mandy Godwin reports. (Crosscut)

B.C. marine biologist wins $250K award for work protecting seahorses around the world
Marine biologist Amanda Vincent started studying seahorses because she was fascinated by the fact that the males of the species give birth. What she couldn't have known when she began was protecting the tiny marine animal would become a labour of love for much of her career. Vincent's decades of research and activism were recognized Tuesday when she won the prestigious Indianapolis Prize, which includes a $250,000 US cash award, from the Indianapolis Zoological Society...Vincent, a professor at the Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries at the University of B.C., where she directs Project Seahorse, is a leading expert on seahorse biology. She's studied them in 38 countries and co-authored a definitive taxonomy that helps distinguish between the 44 species. (CBC)


Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  247 AM PDT Wed May 13 2020   
TODAY  SE wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell  6 ft at 15 seconds. Showers likely in the morning then a chance  of showers and a slight chance of tstms in the afternoon. 
TONIGHT  SE wind to 10 kt. Wind waves 1 ft or less. W swell  6 ft at 13 seconds. A slight chance of tstms in the evening. A  chance of showers.




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