3/25 Star magnolia, Trust2022, Russian research ship, fin whale, tribe reveg, ship container spill, Port of Vancouver, REEF, Ballard sewage, week in review

Star magnolia [The Spruce/Evgeniya Vlasova]

 
Star magnolia Magnolia stellata
The star magnolia is a deciduous flowering tree that normally reaches a height of 15 to 20 feet at maturity, with a slightly smaller spread. The star shape of its white flowers gives it both its common name and scientific name. It blooms in March or April, making it one of the true harbingers of spring. Fuzzy, pussy-willow-like buds precede the spring display of mildly fragrant flowers. (The Spruce)

Trust2022
Attorney General Bob Ferguson and journalists Margaret Sullivan and Hedrick Smith brought a powerful and empowering message to our community, via the March 17 online forum "Trust 2022: Why Independent Local News is Important to a Strong Democracy." Salish Current has posted a video recording  of the event here; we encourage you to view and share it as you see fit.

Russian vessel leaves salmon-study expedition
An international expedition to study salmon in the Gulf of Alaska lost its Russian vessel part-way through the venture as a result of sanctions in the wake of the invasion of Ukraine. The chartered Russian vessel R/V Tinro had to turn back after it was not allowed to fuel up in Dutch Harbour in the Aleutian Islands in Alaska. The ship was among four vessels carrying about 60 scientists that headed out in February for a month to the North Pacific Ocean on the largest-ever pan-Pacific research expedition to study salmon. Carla Wilson reports. (Times Colonist)

Rare fin whale found dead on remote beach in Pender Harbour
The body of a rare, young fin whale has been found on a remote beach on British Columbia’s south coast, says an official with the Fisheries Department. Paul Cottrell, the department’s Pacific marine mammal co-ordinator, said initial examinations suggest the two-year-old whale was killed by blunt force trauma from a possible vessel strike on its right side. (Canadian Press)

Jamestown S'Klallam Tribe starts 'River's Edge Reveg' on new floodplain
In 2021, the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe constructed a new setback levee to replace the harmful 1964 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers dike that butted against the river, restricting river flow and damaging salmon habitat. The old levee is expected to be removed this summer. The tribe will spend the next two years planting 35,000 native plants throughout the 56-acre floodplain in a project dubbed “River’s Edge Reveg.” This reconnected area will evolve into healthy salmon habitat while protecting nearby properties and the Dungeness community from flooding, said Hilton Turnbull, the tribe’s habitat biologist. (NW Treaty Tribes)

Seattle-bound cargo ship spills 90 shipping containers
A Seattle-bound cargo ship has spilled an estimated 90 shipping containers into the North Pacific between Russia and the United States. Nine of the spilled containers are carrying flammable lithium-ion batteries and are considered dangerous cargo. The Liberian-flagged Dyros was sailing to Seattle from Yantian in southern China when it encountered heavy seas Sunday night off Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula. John Ryan reports. (KUOW)

Port of Vancouver volume up last year despite pandemic, supply chain disruptions and flooding
The Vancouver Fraser Port Authority says cargo volumes increased one per cent to 146 million tonnes last year despite the pandemic, global supply chain challenges and extreme weather in B.C. at the end of the year. The country's largest port says record container and foreign bulk volumes helped maintain cargo volumes despite trade challenges in a year in which the cruise season was cancelled due to COVID-19. (Canadian Press)

Citizen divers aid understanding of fish in the Salish Sea
Hundreds of fish species live in the Salish Sea, and many face a number of threats. Monitoring the health of these fish populations is crucial. But with nearly 5,000 miles of coastline and more than 400 islands, it's no small task...But citizen scientists are increasingly playing crucial roles, according to a study from the University of California, Davis. The study, published in the journal Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, revealed that in just over two decades, volunteers with Reef Environmental Education Foundation (REEF)'s Volunteer Fish Survey Project helped monitor more than half of the total fish species known to occur in the Salish Sea. Justin Cox reports. (Phys.org)

New sewage pump station in Ballard will feature 80-foot-tall steel lattice with shimmering lights
When built, Seattle’s newest piece of public infrastructure will look like a tower of lights, according to its designers. The 65-foot-tall cylindrical pump station, scheduled for construction next year on the Ballard waterfront, will be wrapped in an 80-foot-tall stainless steel lattice with gleaming LED effects. Part of a $570 million megaproject that also includes a 2.7-mile-long storage tunnel stretching between Ballard and Wallingford, the $100 million station will pump sewage and polluted storm water out of that tunnel, then send the messy mixture on its way the West Point Treatment Plant. Daniel Beekman reports. (Seattle Times)

Salish Sea News Week in Review 3/25/22: Pecans, Squaxin Park, Nooksack logging, Trans Mountain costs, return Tokitae, BC oil gas, WA sea grass protection, BC ecosystem grant, BC forest protection, Snake R dams, Nooksack flood control, Russian research ship

Now, your weekend tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  241 AM PDT Fri Mar 25 2022   
TODAY  S wind to 10 kt becoming NW in the afternoon. Wind waves  1 ft or less. W swell 5 ft at 10 seconds. A chance of drizzle in  the afternoon. 
TONIGHT  N wind to 10 kt becoming E 5 to 15 kt after midnight.  Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell 6 ft at 12 seconds. A chance of  drizzle in the evening then drizzle after midnight. Rain after  midnight. 
SAT  SE wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell 6 ft  at 11 seconds. Rain. 
SAT NIGHT  SE wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell  4 ft at 11 seconds. 
SUN  SE wind 5 to 15 kt in the morning becoming light. Wind  waves 2 ft or less. W swell 3 ft at 11 seconds. 

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"Salish Sea News & Weather" is compiled as a community service by Mike Sato. To subscribe, send your name and email to mikesato772 (@) gmail.com. Your email information is never shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.

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