5/4 Seashore lupine, coho indicators, BC old growth logging, warmer climate 'normals,' Extinction Rebellion, ship LNG fuel

Seashore lupine [Mary Jo Adams]

 
Seashore lupine Lupinus littoralis
The common name of this plant delineates its habitat, the seashore.  This species is generally sprawling in form and has pale blue to lilac flowers that bloom from May until August.  The leaves are palmately compound.  Translated, this means that its 5-9 leaflets radiate from a common point like the thumb and fingers of a hand.  Seed pods grow on upright spikes and the pods reach a length of 1-1/4 inch.  Seashore lupine belongs to the pea or legume family and its range extends from northern California to British Columbia.  It is native in the Pacific Northwest. (Mary Jo Adams/Sound Water Stewards)

Coho indicators sought with Suquamish Tribe's survey at Keta Legacy Foundation's Rhododendron Preserve
The Suquamish Tribe is currently conducting its yearly survey to gather information on coho salmon traveling to Chico Creek, using a partnership with a private and virtually untouched forest preserve to help determine any issues that might be threatening population numbers... The Keta Legacy Foundation is working with the Suquamish tribe to gather data on coho salmon smolt coming from Wildcat Creek and Lost Creek, which form in a tributary that creates Chico Creek. This tributary is located on the Rhododendron Preserve, owned by the Keta Legacy Foundation. The area of the preserve, known as Hidden Valley, is where Oleyar is gathering data. It’s home to an old homestead that sits on the valley near the creek, surrounded by rhododendrons. Jessie Darland reports. (Kitsap Sun)

Old-growth logging approvals nearly doubled over the past year, report suggests
 Old-growth logging approvals have gone up over the past year despite the B.C. government promising to protect old-growth forests, according to new research from an environmental group.  Mapping done by the Wilderness Committee, a group dedicated to preserving forests and the ecosystems within them, shows that cutblock approvals in B.C. have nearly doubled this year over last.  In the year to April 30, logging was approved for 84,669 hectares — almost 850 square kilometres — of old-growth forest, equivalent to almost one-third of the Metro Vancouver area. During the previous 12-month period logging was approved for 59,228 hectares, making for a year-over-year increase of 43 per cent. (CBC)

NOAA unveils new U.S. climate ‘normals’ that are warmer than ever
Drawing from the latest decade of weather data, the new normals are a reflection of climate change. Bob Henson and Jason Samenow report. (Washington Post)

Why Extinction Rebellion protesters have been blocking major thoroughfares in B.C.
As the rain trickled down on Monday afternoon, dozens of protesters stood face to face with Vancouver Police Department officers on the northbound sidewalk leading to the Lions Gate Bridge. The Extinction Rebellion protesters planned to shut down traffic, much like they had done just one day earlier on the Granville Street bridge. But this time, they wouldn't make it onto the road. Police didn't let them disrupt what the VPD called 'a critical piece of infrastructure'. Seven people were arrested, five of them taken to jail. Jon Hernandez reports. (CBC)

Puget LNG and GAC Bunker Fuels join forces to supply LNG marine fuel by barge from the Port of Tacoma
When the Tacoma LNG Terminal becomes operational in the second quarter of 2021, it will be the first such terminal on North America’s west coast providing direct shoreside loading access for a bunker barge. A DNV GL study commissioned by Puget LNG on the feasibility of a bunker barge to supply LNG as fuel to ships in the Puget Sound area concluded that the availability and cost of natural gas, especially in North America, has made the use of LNG an attractive solution for ship operators to comply with air emissions regulations. A growing order book for LNG-fueled vessels has underlined the need to develop LNG supply infrastructure in all major shipping ports and regions, including the Pacific Northwest. (Centerpoint/Amderican Journal of Transportation)

Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  157 AM PDT Tue May 4 2021   
TODAY  NW wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell  5 ft at 12 seconds. 
TONIGHT  W wind 10 to 20 kt easing to 10 kt after midnight.  Wind waves 1 to 3 ft subsiding to 1 ft or less after midnight. W  swell 5 ft at 12 seconds.

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