11/2 Garry oak, beluga DNA, Lk WA kokanee, Blueberry ruling, Growlers, container cleanup, forever chemicals, kelp carbon sink, red-spotted newt

Garry Oak [Native Plants PNW]

Garry (Oregon White) Oak Quercus garryana
Garry Oak was named after Nicholas Garry, a deputy governor for the Hudson’s Bay Company, and is found from southern British Columbia to northern California, mostly on the west side of the Cascade Mountains. White oak leaves have rounded lobes, their nuts are not as bitter. Squirrels may eat these nuts as soon as they are ripe. This species grows slowly to 80-100 feet (25-30m). It may live 250-500 years. (Native Plants of the Pacific NorthWest)

DNA left behind by solo beluga whale helps unravel mystery of its origins, but questions remain
Federal scientists have a few more clues about the lone beluga whale that was seen at various points around Puget Sound and the Salish Sea last month. For starters, they think the bright white whale is probably not part of an endangered population. Bellamy Pailthorp reports. (KNKX) See also: Record numbers of Bigg's killer whale sightings and humpback calves in Salish Sea  Tom Banse reports. (NW News Network)

Lost freshwater salmon population may still inhabit Lake Washington
Scientists think they may have discovered a lost population of native kokanee salmon in Lake Washington. Salmon watchers are monitoring local creeks this fall to confirm the finding. David Williams reports. (Salish Sea Currents)

How the Blueberry ruling in B.C. is a gamechanger for the Site C dam, extractive industries and Indigenous Rights
In a precedent-setting ruling, B.C.’s Supreme Court found the province guilty of breaching its obligations to Treaty Rights through decades of cumulative impacts. Now, the impact of that ruling is reverberating across the country. Matt Simmons writes. (The Narwhal)

The Loudest Jets in the Quietest Park
In the summer of 2014, the U.S. Navy established an Electronic Warfare Range on large swathes of Washington’s Olympic National Forest and in airspace over it, plus airspace over Olympic National Park and surrounding communities. Its purpose was to conduct permanent, continuous electronic warfare attack and detection testing and training for an expanding fleet of supersonic EA-18G “Growler” jets housed on Whidbey Island. Karen Sullivan writes. (Rainshadow Journal)

Dozens of refrigerators among items removed from B.C. beach after containers fell off ship
Dozens of refrigerators, along with bags of Styrofoam and garbage, have been picked up from a remote Vancouver Island beach as the cleanup has started from 109 shipping containers that fell off a ship near Victoria. The Canadian Coast Guard said in a statement that 71 refrigerators, 81 bags of Styrofoam and 19 bags of garbage are among the items that have been flown by helicopter off Cape Palmerston beach on the northwest side of Vancouver Island. (Canadian Press)

New federal data shows where dangerous ‘forever chemicals’ may be handled in Whatcom
There are 54 industrial facilities in Whatcom County potentially handling toxic “forever chemicals” that can be harmful to humans and the environment, according to data from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. About half of those facilities are described as “active,” and many have a history of federal environmental violations. Ysabelle Kempe reports. (Bellingham Herald)

Kelp’s Carbon Sink Potential Could Be Blocked by Coastal Darkening
Coastal darkening, an environmental threat researchers are only beginning to study, is found to dramatically reduce the productivity of kelp. Doug Johnson reports. (Hakai Magazine)

Whatcom amphibian experts untangling mystery of the red-spotted newt. They need your help 
There’s a new newt in town, and local amphibian experts are worried about what its presence could mean for Whatcom’s ecosystems. The red-spotted newt was first recorded in 2016  in an area south of Iverson in Whatcom County for the first time outside its native habitat in eastern North America. Ysabelle Kempe reports. (Bellingham Herald)

Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  244 AM PDT Tue Nov 2 2021   
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM NOON PDT TODAY THROUGH  LATE TONIGHT   
TODAY  SE wind 10 to 20 kt rising to 15 to 25 kt in the  afternoon. Wind waves 2 to 4 ft. W swell 4 ft at 12 seconds. Rain  in the afternoon. 
TONIGHT  SE wind 15 to 25 kt. Wind waves 2 to 4 ft. W swell  5 ft at 12 seconds. Rain.

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