4/23 Grunt sculpin, NOAA orcas, styrofoam, Earth Day2021, Megan Duffy, Kurt Grinnell, Rick Spinrad, BC climate, Dumbo Octo

Grunt Sculpin [Aquarium of the Pacific]

 
Grunt Sculpin Rhamphocottus richardsonii
Grunt sculpins, the only species in the family Rhamphocottidae, are unique looking marine fish. Distinctive characteristics include a large head that is about 60 percent of the body length, a long snout, and two bony ridges on top of the head. Instead of scales, they have small plates with many minute spines. (Aquarium of the Pacific)

NOAA unveils ambitious five-year plan to save Puget Sound’s struggling orcas
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) unveiled  new “action plans” on Thursday, to ensure the recovery of five endangered species, for a list that includes Southern Resident orcas...In its action plan, NOAA detailed a five-year timeline to focus on four main factors: Protection from “harmful vessel impacts,” conserving the orcas’ critical food sources, gaining a better understanding of the species’ health needs, and raising awareness about “the recovery needs” of orcas through sustained outreach and education efforts. Nick Bowman reports. (My Northwest)

Bye-bye Styrofoam coolers: New Washington state law to ban sales of some plastic, require more recycled content in others
Reusing plastic to make new containers has long been much tougher. A bill to make it easier, introduced by [Sen. Mona] Das this session, has been passed by the Legislature and Gov. Jay Inslee is expected to sign it into law. State Senate Bill 5022 would require plastic containers for beverages, household cleaning products and personal care products sold in Washington state to contain up to 50% post-consumer-use recycled content by 2031, and also up the content of recycled material in plastic garbage bags. Hal Bernton reports. (Seattle eTimes)

Earth Day celebration calls on Port of Seattle for a pollution-free Salish Sea 
A celebration of Earth Day in honor of the Salish Sea took aim at the Port of Seattle Thursday. Representatives of several groups, including 350.org and the Center for Biological Diversity, called attention to the port’s impact on marine life. Bellamy Pailthorp reports. (KNKX) Plastic to plywood: Earth Day event cleans Anacortes beaches of litter  Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit valley Herald)

For WA wildlife and spaces in danger, one woman paddles to the rescue
In May, Megan Duffy will lead the state’s Recreation and Conservation Office, a small-but-mighty division that funds everything from land acquisition to salmon recovery. Hannah Weinberger reports. (Crosscut)

Jamestown S’Klallam tribal councilmember dies
Kurt Grinnell, a Jamestown S’Klallam tribal council member and tribal aquaculture manager, has died. The Clallam County Sheriff’s Office said he died in a single-vehicle wreck on Mount Pleasant Road at about 4:12 p.m. Tuesday...Grinnell was elected to the council in October 2004, according to his biography on the tribe’s website at jamestowntribe.org/tribal-council... A longtime fisherman, he and his wife, Terri, owned Jamestown Seafood. He had served on the Hunting and Fishing Committee for 33 years. He was the policy liaison for the tribe’s Natural Resource Department and chaired the Natural Resource Committee. (Peninsula Daily News) Grinnell was a ‘tower of strength’  (Peninsula Daily News)

Biden taps ocean scientist Rick Spinrad to run NOAA
President Biden has picked Rick Spinrad, an oceanographer with decades of science and policy experience, to run National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the government’s leading agency for weather, climate and ocean science. The White House announced Spinrad’s selection along with several additional climate and environmental nominees, including Tracy Stone-Manning, a senior adviser for the National Wildlife Federation tapped to lead the Interior Department’s Bureau for Land Management. Jason Samenow and Juliet Eilperin report. (Washington Post)

With ‘Piecemeal’ Budget, BC Is Headed Towards Climate Failure, Critics Say
Province’s investments are ‘very, very small compared to the challenges.’ Michelle Gamage reports. (The Tyee) Federal budget gives farmers leg up in reducing carbon pollution  Ottawa pegs $270 million for ‘agricultural climate solutions’ to help farmers protect wetlands and adopt practices like cover cropping and rotational grazing. Sharon J. Riley reports. (The Narwhal)

Seeing Inside the Newly Discovered Emperor Dumbo Octopus
The discovery of the emperor Dumbo octopus stemmed from the use of nondestructive MRI and CT scans—techniques that could revolutionize taxonomy. Sarah DeWeerdt reports. (Hakai Magazine)

Now, your weekend tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  225 AM PDT Fri Apr 23 2021   
TODAY  W wind to 10 kt becoming NW in the afternoon. Wind waves  2 ft or less. W swell 4 ft at 8 seconds. A slight chance of rain  in the afternoon. 
TONIGHT  SW wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell  3 ft at 10 seconds. A chance of rain in the evening then rain  after midnight. 
SAT  S wind to 10 kt. Wind waves 1 ft or less. W swell 3 ft at  10 seconds. Rain. 
SAT NIGHT  NW wind to 10 kt in the evening becoming light. Wind  waves 1 ft or less. W swell 3 ft at 9 seconds. 
SUN  SW wind to 10 kt becoming NW 5 to 15 kt in the afternoon.  Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell 3 ft at 9 seconds.

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