5/24 Scotch broom, Inslee 'a snake,' Fairy Cr protest, WA wolves, Seed the North, beach monitoring, Reef-net fishery, quarry permit, Skagit mining, old turtle

Scotch Broom [WA NWCB]

Scotch Broom Cytisus scoparius
Scotch broom is a Class B noxious weed listed by the Washington State Noxious Weed Control Board. It is a perennial, many-branched, shrub ranging in height from 3 to 10 feet tall. Scotch broom can be found on roadsides, pastures, grasslands, open areas and areas of recent soil disturbance. Scotch broom reproduces by seed. Each seed can remain viable for over 30 years (some estimates are as long as 80 years). (WA Noxious Weed Control Board)

Tribal leaders call Inslee 'a snake' after he vetoes climate law's tribal consent measure
Tribal leaders are saying Washington Gov. Jay Inslee used and betrayed them after he vetoed a provision requiring tribal consent for some environmental projects. “The only thing I will ever agree with Donald Trump about is that Jay Inslee is a snake,” said Fawn Sharp, president of the National Congress of American Indians and vice president of the Quinault Indian Nation, in a statement issued Friday. John Ryan reports. (KUOW)

Arrests on Vancouver Island over old-growth logging blockades tally 33 on Saturday
More than 20 activists were arrested on southern Vancouver Island on Saturday, including a prominent environmentalist [Tzeporah Berman], as RCMP continue to enforce a court order to allow logging in the area. B.C. RCMP began enforcing a court injunction this week that orders the removal of blockades set up to protest the logging of certain parts of a 595-square-kilometre area near Port Renfrew. (CBC)

After being driven to near extinction, wolves are back in Washington. Can we coexist with them?
...Today, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife kills wolves only when they have repeatedly killed cattle, a relatively rare event, with about 80% of Washington wolf packs typically staying out of trouble with people. Lynda Mapes reports. (Seattle Times) See also: All about wolves: Where they come from, how long they live and more  (Seattle Times) And:  Putting the wolf at the center of its own life story and powerful return to the state  (Seattle Times)

Ambitious B.C. project aims to fight climate change one seed at a time
Seed the North will collect seeds and use drone technology to drop them over areas disturbed by both natural disaster and industry. Amanda Follett Hosgood reports. (Crosscut)

American Constellation at Port Angeles pier for cruise season start
The cruise ship American Constellation sits at Port Angeles City Pier on Friday, marking the beginning of cruise season on the Salish Sea and Puget Sound. The ship, and its sister vessel American Spirit, both part of American Cruise Lines, are scheduled for weekly visits to Port Angeles, Port Townsend and other regional destinations out of Seattle from now through October. Keith Thorpe reports. (Peninsula Daily News) See also: After one-year pandemic hiatus, cruise ships return to Anacortes  Jaqueline Allison reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

EPA Grants to Allow Monitoring of Beach Water Quality in Alaska, Oregon and Washington
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will grant $723,000 to carry out beach water quality monitoring and public notification programs in Alaska, Oregon and Washington as well as by the Makah and Swinomish Tribes. The funding will assist EPA’s partners with local monitoring of bacteria levels which can become too high for safe swimming and efforts to notify the public about potential health risks. Shereen Hashem reports. (EPA Online)

Coast Salish Reef-net Fishery, Part 1
Reef-net fishing technology is unique to the Salish Sea, where it was devised at least 1,800 years ago as a way to intercept vast midsummer runs of sockeye salmon as they passed through the San Juans and southern Gulf Islands on their way to the Fraser River. Russell Barsh writes. (History Link) Coast Salish Reef-net Fishery, Part 2  Coast Salish peoples of the San Juan Islands and southern Gulf Islands used their unique reef-net fishing technology to harvest large quantities of sockeye salmon as the fish passed through the islands each summer, providing dependable winter food supplies and significant surplus for trade. Russell Barsh writes. (History Link)

Work curtailed at Abbotsford quarry after province suspends wildlife permit
A permit issued by the province allowing a company in Abbotsford to work in and around vulnerable birds at an active quarry has been suspended. When a pair of falcons returned to the site this spring to nest, advocates for the birds complained to the company and province that mitigation efforts to help the birds, including a 50-metre non-disturbance buffer, were not enough to keep the birds from abandoning the site where drilling and blasting is ongoing. Chad Pawson reports. (CBC)

From La Conner to Hamilton, local governments oppose mining in Skagit River headwaters
Government leaders tasked with protecting the health, safety and quality of life of residents living along and relying upon the Skagit River are joining the groundswell of opposition to potential mining in the river's headwaters in British Columbia. Kimberly Cauvel reports. (Skagit Valley Herald)

Fossil hunter finds 84-million-year-old fossilized turtle in B.C.
Experts believe the prehistoric specimen is either one of two known species of ancient sea turtle previously found in the area — or a new species altogether. Amy Smart reports. (Canadian Press)

Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  226 AM PDT Mon May 24 2021   
TODAY  NE wind to 10 kt becoming SE in the afternoon. Wind  waves 1 ft or less. W swell 4 ft at 10 seconds. Rain. 
TONIGHT  Light wind becoming NW to 10 kt after midnight. Wind  waves less than 1 ft becoming 1 ft or less after midnight. W  swell 3 ft at 10 seconds. Showers likely in the evening then a  chance of showers after midnight.

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