7/28 Snowy owl, Big Bar, Skagit dams, OR clean energy, kelp forests, heat produce, invasive species, border guard strike

 
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Snowy Owl [Joseph V. Higbee/BirdWeb]

Snowy Owl  Bubo scandiacus
Snowy Owls are large owls with yellow eyes and no ear-tufts. Adult males can be nearly pure white, but most have some brown mottling in their feathers. Adult females are generally larger and darker than males; immatures have considerably more brown mottling. In all plumages, Snowy Owls have solid white faces. Like most owls, Snowy Owls have feathered legs and feet, but the feathers on the Snowy Owl's legs and feet are especially dense. Snowy Owls are well camouflaged for their Arctic breeding grounds, but in winter, when they are seen in Washington, their mostly white bodies show up well against most backgrounds. (BirdWeb) Tony Angell adds that "the Snowy Owl is heavily feathered to the tips of its talons, like the great grey owl, [which provides] important insulation against the cold of its Arctic winter habitat."

Wildfires, floods and rock slides force pause on permanent fishway project at Big Bar landslide site
Efforts to create a permanent safe passage for fish at the Big Bar landslide site are being delayed as a number of incidents have made work challenging and in some cases, dangerous for crews. Originally, the federal government estimated a $176 million permanent fishway would be completed by May 2022, but now, officials say that timeline is "no longer possible" and further costs are unknown. Courtney Dickson reports. (CBC)

Seattle’s River of the Damned
How dams on the Skagit River impact the survival of salmon and the whales that eat them. Lester Black writes. (High Country News/Hakai Magazine)

Oregon governor signs ambitious clean energy bill
Oregon’s clean energy bill, which sets one of the most ambitious timelines in the country for moving to 100% clean electricity sources, was signed by Gov. Kate Brown on Tuesday. The legislation lays out a timetable for the state’s two major power companies — Portland General Electric and Pacific Power — to reduce greenhouse gas emissions associated with electricity sold to Oregon consumers. Additionally, it bans the expansion or new construction of power plants that burn fossil fuels and allocates $50 million in grants for community-based energy projects, among other measures. Sara Kline report. (Associated Press)

Exploring Puget Sound's Kelp Forests
Take a trip to explore the forests down below the Salish Sea. (Puget Sound Restoration Fund)

Fresh produce, shellfish prices will rise as NW farmers hope for drought, heat wave help
The Pacific Northwest’s farmers have been hit with a brutal one-two punch this summer — in late June, a record-breaking heat wave torched the region, followed by a statewide drought emergency. Berry farmers were particularly devastated by the heat wave, but the event left its fingerprints on the dairy, hops, shellfish, tree fruits, grain, wine grapes, poultry, beef and potato industries as well. Ysabelle Kempe reports. (Bellingham Herald) No crabs, no scallops: Seafood is vanishing from menus in U.S. For restaurants across the U.S., the reopening from COVID lockdown has been anything but easy. Kate Krader and Adam Jackson report. (Bloomberg)

Most Invasive Marine Species Swim Under the Radar
Half of all invasive species in the ocean have only been studied once, and we only know about the potential impacts of one out of every 10. María Paula Rubiano A. reports. (Hakai Magazine)

Canadian border guards vote to strike days ahead of reopening to U.S. tourists
Canadian border guards and customs officials voted on Tuesday to go on strike just days before fully vaccinated U.S. citizens and permanent residents will be allowed into Canada, unions representing the workers said, a move that could potentially cause disruptions and hurt businesses emerging out of the pandemic-driven economic downturn. A strike would slow down commercial traffic at the land border, the unions said, as well as impact international mail and collection of duties and taxes. But a spokesperson for the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) said 90% of the front-line border services officers have been identified as “essential” so will continue to work in the event of a strike. Moira Warburton reports. (Reuters)

Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  259 AM PDT Wed Jul 28 2021   
TODAY  W wind to 10 kt becoming NW in the afternoon. Wind waves  2 ft or less. SW swell 2 ft at 9 seconds. Patchy fog in the  morning. 
TONIGHT  W wind 10 to 20 kt becoming 5 to 15 kt after midnight.  Wind waves 1 to 3 ft. SW swell 2 ft at 10 seconds.

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