12/18 'Christmas' tree, PS nearshore projects, BC salmon farms, upper Columbia salmon, Deb Haaland, Michael Regan, Brenda Mallory

'Christmas' trees [Inverse]

 
"Christmas" Tree
The evergreen fir tree has traditionally been used to celebrate winter festivals (pagan and Christian) for thousands of years. Pagans used branches of it to decorate their homes during the winter solstice, as it made them think of the spring to come. The Romans used Fir Trees to decorate their temples at the festival of Saturnalia. Christians use it as a sign of everlasting life with God. Nobody is really sure when Fir trees were first used as Christmas trees. It probably began about 1000 years ago in Northern Europe. Many early Christmas Trees seem to have been hung upside down from the ceiling using chains (hung from chandeliers/lighting hooks). The first documented use of a tree at Christmas and New Year celebrations is argued between the cities of Tallinn in Estonia and Riga in Latvia! Both claim that they had the first trees; Tallinn in 1441 and Riga in 1510. Both trees were put up by the 'Brotherhood of Blackheads' which was an association of local unmarried merchants, ship owners, and foreigners in Livonia (what is now Estonia and Latvia). (Why Christmas)

NMFS Demands More Mitigation for Nearshore Projects in The Puget Sound Region
In November, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS or the Service) issued a final jeopardy opinion for 39 nearshore development projects in the Puget Sound region that had been under consultation with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps). While the projects included marinas, residential developments, docks, and bulkheads, the majority of the projects were repair and replacement work for existing structures. In its consultation, NMFS determined that the projects did not include adequate mitigation to protect juvenile Puget Sound Chinook Salmon and the Southern Resident Killer Whale (SRKW) and requested significant increases in required mitigation to protect those species against extinction. (National Law Review)

Discovery Islands salmon farms to be phased out of existence over next 18 months
he controversial open-net salmon farms in the Discovery Islands near Campbell River, B.C., will be phased out over the next 18 months. In making the announcement, Fisheries Minister Bernadette Jordan said all 19 farms have to be free of fish by June 30, 2022, when their renewed 18-month licences expire, and that no new fish can be brought in. Jordan said the decision was difficult but reflects the consultations she had with seven First Nations: the Homalco, Klahoose, K'ómoks, Kwaikah, Tla'amin, We Wai Kai and Wei Wai Kum. Karin Larsen reports. (CBC)

First time in more than a generation, Chinook salmon spawn in upper Columbia River
For the first time in more than a generation, Chinook salmon have spawned in the upper Columbia River system. Colville Tribal biologists counted 36 redds, a gravely nest where female salmon lay eggs, along an 8-mile (12-kilometer) stretch of the Sanpoil River, a tributary of the Columbia, in September, the Spokesman Review-Journal reported. The news is a step toward full reintroduction of the migratory fish and another watershed cultural moment for the region’s tribes. Since the Chief Joseph and Grand Coulee dams were built in the 1950s and 1930s, respectively, salmon have been blocked from returning to spawning beds in the upper Columbia River. (Associated Press)

With historic picks, Biden puts environmental justice front and center
President-elect Joe Biden chose Rep. Deb Haaland (D-N.M.) Thursday to serve as the first Native American Cabinet secretary and head the Interior Department, a historic pick that marks a turning point for the U.S. government’s relationship with the nation’s Indigenous peoples. In addition to Haaland, Biden has turned to North Carolina environmental regulator Michael S. Regan to become the first Black man to head the Environmental Protection Agency, as well as Obama administration veteran Brenda Mallory to serve as the first Black chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality. Juliet Eilperin, Dino Grandoni and Brady Dennis report. (Washington Post)

Trans Mountain project goes into voluntary shutdown after workplace safety 'incidents'
Work on the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project is shutting down temporarily for the next two weeks as the project assesses recent safety lapses. In a news release issued Thursday night, Trans Mountain said it is enacting "a voluntary project-wide safety stand down" effective Friday until Jan. 4, 2021. The statement didn't specify what those safety incidents were, but the Canada Energy Regulator says a contractor was seriously injured Tuesday at a Trans Mountain construction site in British Columbia. An investigation is underway that will conduct an assessment of the risk and the potential non-compliance. David Thurton reports. (CBC)

Now, your weekend tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  213 AM PST Fri Dec 18 2020   
GALE WARNING IN EFFECT THROUGH THIS AFTERNOON   
TODAY  SE wind 20 to 30 kt becoming S 30 to 40 kt in the  afternoon. Combined seas 9 to 10 ft with a dominant period of  15 seconds building to 11 to 13 ft with a dominant period of  10 seconds in the afternoon. Rain. 
TONIGHT  W wind 15 to 25 kt. Wind waves 2 to 4 ft. W swell  14 ft at 12 seconds. A chance of rain in the evening. 
SAT  S wind 5 to 15 kt becoming SE 10 to 20 kt in the  afternoon. Wind waves 1 to 3 ft. W swell 12 ft at 13 seconds. A  chance of rain in the morning then rain in the afternoon. 
SAT NIGHT  SE wind 20 to 30 kt becoming W after midnight. Wind  waves 3 to 5 ft. W swell 10 ft at 12 seconds. 
SUN  W wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 1 to 2 ft. W swell 15 ft at  12 seconds.

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