3/23 Horsetail, dead herring, sunflower sea stars, sea lice pesticide, enviro racism, Oso slide, songbirds

Horsetail [Dreamstime.com/Seattle Times]

 
Horsetail Equisetum arvense
Horsetail is an ancient native plant that thrives in wet growing conditions and is nearly impossible to eradicate. What if you didn’t even try? The good plantspeople on the Sky Nursery blog write, “The fern-like foliage is actually quite beautiful combined with other wetland plants, like spirea, willow, red-twig dogwood and iris.” (Lorene Edwards Forkner, Seattle Times)

Thousands of dead herring dumped off coast of Vancouver Island, conservationists say
A conservation group that's long opposed the B.C. herring fishery says it suspects a fishing vessel has dumped a load of the small fish in Deep Bay, near Bowser on Vancouver Island. Members of the Hornby Island Conservancy say they got an anonymous tip on Friday that a commercial fishing vessel had dumped its load of netted herring after a packing vessel had refused its catch. The conservationists say they sent a diver down to gather video footage and they are now sharing images of dead fish, which appear to be herring, littering the sea floor. (CBC)

NW scientist taps into personalities, diets to help sunflower sea stars shine again
In December, sunflower sea stars were declared critically endangered by an international union of scientists...But there is hope. Pockets of healthy populations of sunflower sea stars still exist in parts of the Salish Sea. And a scientist working at the University of Washington’s Friday Harbor Labs on San Juan Island is pioneering new techniques to breed them in captivity. Bellamy Pailthorp reports. (KNKX)

Salmon farm reapplies for three-year permit to dump sea lice pesticide in B.C. coastal waters
Cermaq has applied for a new permit to dump almost 3,000 bathtubs of a sea lice pesticide in Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Reserve waters, as companies head to court to challenge a federal decision to terminate salmon farming in the Discovery Islands. Sarah Cox reports. (The Narwhal)

The movement to address environmental racism is growing. This bill could provide the data it needs
Bill before Parliament would require Ottawa to collect data on links between race, environmental hazards. Tashauna Reid and Alice Hopton report. (CBC)

7 years ago: ‘We waved hello, not realizing it was a goodbye’
March 22 is a day of mourning and remembrance for many in north Snohomish County. Forty-three people perished in the 2014 Oso mudslide. On Monday, the community gathered again. Ian Davis-Leonard reports. (Everett Herald)

Here Come Our Songbirds. But Why Do Some Leave So Early?
One oriole’s feather-fixing layover in wet Mexico. And more data from geolocators strapped on BC’s avian visitors. Matthew Reudink explains. (The Tyee)

Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  212 AM PDT Tue Mar 23 2021   
TODAY  S wind to 10 kt becoming W in the afternoon. Wind waves  1 ft or less. W swell 7 ft at 11 seconds. 
TONIGHT  W wind 5 to 15 kt becoming SW 15 to 25 kt after  midnight. Wind waves 2 ft or less building to 2 to 4 ft after  midnight. W swell 6 ft at 10 seconds. Rain after midnight.

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