8/4 Catsear, Mt Polley mine, Trump's habitat, Snake R dams, safe hiking, salmon habitat, ocean fish farms, bird study, the blob, OR timber

AUG 4- WASHINGTON VOTES. I VOTED. YOU, TOO.

Common Catsear Hypochaeris radicata
Common Catsear is a serious weed in lawns, pastures and waste areas. It is extremely aggressive in lowland pastures and lawns. It is also thought to be poisonous and is believed to be the cause of Australian Stringhalt in horses. May be confused with common dandelion, Taraxacum officinale.  (WA State Noxious Weed Board)

No environmental charges as 6th anniversary of Mt. Polley mine dam collapse looms
Nearly six years after the collapse of the tailings dam at Imperial Metal’s Mount Polley mine, no charges for environmental damage have been laid and there is no word on timing of a decision. Environmental law experts won’t say there is zero chance of charges being issued in one of Canada’s worst mine spills in the past 50 years, but they say as time passes the likelihood drops... A three-year deadline to lay environmental chargers under B.C. laws passed in 2017, and a five-year deadline to lay summary charges under federal law passed last year. There still remains the possibility of more serious indictable charges under the federal Fisheries Act, for which there is no deadline. It allows fines up to $6 million for a first offence and up to $12 million for subsequent offences. Gordon Hoekstra reports. (Vancouver Sun) See also: Research into Mt. Polley mine dam spill indicates environmental effects on Quesnel Lake  Gordon Hoekstra reports. (Vancouver Sun)

Trump administration seeks limits on what can be ‘habitat’ for imperiled species
The Trump administration is proposing to define what land and water can be declared as “habitat” for imperiled plants and animals — potentially excluding areas that species could use in the future. The proposal to be announced Friday and obtained in advance by The Associated Press would for the first time define “habitat” for purposes of enforcing the Endangered Species Act, the landmark law that has undergirded species protection efforts in the U.S. since 1973. It has broad implications for how lands are managed and how far the government has to go to protect plants and animals that could be sliding toward extinction. Matthew Brown reports. (Associated Press)

Federal Study Recommends Keeping Snake River Dams In Place, With Congress Having Final Say
The Snake River dams in Washington would remain in place under a final study released Friday, July 31, by federal agencies.  The plan guides dam management on the Columbia River System, which includes the four controversial Lower Snake River dams — Ice Harbor, Lower Monumental, Little Goose and Lower Granite. These recommendations make a few changes from public comments this spring, but the federal agencies’ preferred alternative remains relatively unchanged. The final environmental impact statement (EIS) came out at the same time as the federal recovery plan for endangered salmon, known as the biological opinion, or BiOp, which supported the EIS preferred alternative. Courtney Flatt reports. (NW News Network/KNKX)

Safe hiking and other outdoors activities could improve mental health in pandemic
Outside seems to be the answer, in more ways than one. Virologists tell us that, aside from isolation, we are less likely to be infected with COVID-19 if we go outdoors and stay away from crowds. Psychologists have known for decades that getting out in nature can improve our mental health, something that many of us need at this time. Chris Dunagan reports. )Puget Sound Institute)

Salmon foundation provides funding for habitat rehab
The Pacific Salmon Foundation is supporting 16 projects focused on habitat rehabilitation, education and improving stock numbers on southern Vancouver Island. Grant money from the non-profit foundation totals $238,056 through its community salmon program. The total value of the projects, which includes community fundraising, contributions and volunteer time, is $1.48 million. Carla Wilson reports. (Times Colonist)

Appeals court: NOAA can't make rules for offshore fish farms
A federal appeals court in New Orleans has upheld a decision that throws out rules regulating fish farms in the Gulf of Mexico. The law granting authority over fisheries to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration does not also let the agency set rules for offshore fish farms, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said in its on Monday. The farms use enormous open-topped nets or to raise huge numbers of fish, including tuna, salmon, seabass and cobia, out in open water. “I think this is the final nail in the coffin for industrial aquaculture in federal waters unless Congress gives authority,” said George Kimbrell, who represented opponents of the plan as legal director for the Center For Food Safety. Janet McConnaughey reports. (Daily Independent)

Bird study helps indicate health of Puget Sound
Scientists don’t often look for citizen help collecting data for research. That is one of the reasons why Cyndy Holtz and other locals have volunteered for the Pigeon Guillemots seabird project for the University of Washington and the state Department of Fish and Wildlife. She said volunteers are able to collect a high standard of data with the provided forms. “Scientists can rely on it,” she said. Another reason was she wanted to learn more about birds. “It’s one of my things on the bucket list,” she said. Another reason volunteers believe the work is important is the guillemots are a “good indicator species of the health of Puget Sound,” she added. (Bainbridge Review)

'The blob' revisited: Marine heat waves and the Salish Sea
Years after the appearance of the devastating marine heat wave known as "the blob," scientists are still working to understand how it has affected the Salish Sea. In some ways, they say, it is like the blob never left. Eric Wagner reports. (Salish Sea Currents)

How a public institute in Oregon became a de facto lobbying arm of the timber industry
Internal emails show a tax-funded agency created to educate people about forestry has acted as a public-relations agency and lobbying arm for Oregon's timber industry, in some cases skirting legal constraints that forbid it from doing so. Rob Davis and Tony Schick report. (Oregonian/OPB)

Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  226 AM PDT Tue Aug 4 2020   
TODAY  W wind to 10 kt becoming NW 10 to 20 kt in the  afternoon. Wind waves 1 ft or less building to 1 to 3 ft in the  afternoon. W swell 3 ft at 9 seconds. 
TONIGHT  W wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell  3 ft at 9 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. 

Salish Sea Communications: Truth Well Told