12/3 Tufted puffin, green crab, whale deaths, sewage spill, Prince Rupert fuel, Pebble Mine

Tufted puffin [Stephani Gordon/OPB]

 
Tufted puffins denied Endangered Species Act protections
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Wednesday denied Endangered Species Act protections for the tufted puffin, a whimsical, wobbly seabird found up and down the northern Pacific Coast of North America and Asia...The population of tufted puffins has declined over the years primarily in the southern reaches of the birds’ range — from British Columbia down to Northern California. The Fish and Wildlife Service did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Bradley Parks reports. (OPB)

Nearly 3,000 European invaders found on Puget Sound shores. They’re crabs
Since April, Lummi natural resources staff have headed into the mud, week after week, to capture the crabs in small metal traps. It’s part of an intensive effort to eradicate the invasive crabs before they take a toll on native Dungeness crabs and other shellfish that the Lummi people rely on. By November, Lummi crews had trapped more than 2,600 of the unwelcome invertebrates, up from just 64 the year before, and more than anywhere in Washington state. John Ryan reports. (KUOW)

Ship strikes 'significant' cause of death for southern resident killer whales, UBC study finds
Necropsies of over 50 killer whales over the last decade show more of the mammals are dying as a direct result of human behaviours in the Pacific Ocean than previously thought.  Researchers who studied the whales say identifying the causes of death is critical for the conservation of orca populations. The results of the necropsies on 52 killer whales stranded on beaches in the northeast Pacific and Hawaii were published in a study in the journal PLOS ONE. Eva Uguen-Csenge reports. (CBC)

Killer whale populations are dying. New study helps researchers understand why
Humans could be a major cause of death for killer whales, new research says. Historically, experts have known killer whales have been threatened by hunting and culling, food limitations, chemical contamination and vessel traffic, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The new research, however, shows that the harm humans cause may not be limited to those indirect issues — we are also directly killing them. Maggie Capron reports. (McClatchy)

Operating error causes sewage spill near Discovery Park in Seattle
An operating error caused less than 15,000 gallons of wastewater to spill into Puget Sound early Wednesday morning. The error happened shortly after 1 a.m. during routine testing at the West Point Treatment Plant in Seattle, according to King County’s Wastewater Treatment Division. An emergency bypass gate opened for three minutes, allowing the overflow to spill. (Associated Press)

Critics flag concerns as Prince Rupert, B.C., fuel export terminal enters final comment period
Proposed Vopak Pacific Canada facility would bring up to 87,600 rail cars and 171 tankers carrying combustibles to the region every year. Matt Simmons reports. (The Narwhal)

Examining Why the Pebble Mine Died
In a final decision that surprised many, the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) has denied a key federal permit to the Pebble Limited Partnership (PLP), bringing to an end the company’s 13-year-long bid to build the controversial Pebble Mine in southwest Alaska. The Corps deemed PLP’s final proposal “noncompliant” with the requirements of the Clean Water Act—one of the few times the agency has rejected a major resource extraction project in Alaska. Ashley Braun reports. (Hakai Magazine)

Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  240 AM PST Thu Dec 3 2020   
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT THROUGH FRIDAY NIGHT   
TODAY  SE wind to 10 kt becoming E in the afternoon. Wind waves  1 ft or less. W swell 11 ft at 17 seconds. A slight chance of  rain in the afternoon. 
TONIGHT  E wind to 10 kt. Wind waves 1 ft or less. W swell  10 ft at 15 seconds.

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