8/30 Ratfish, Blue Heron Slough, Chinook film, sewage pause, more trees, Chinook Nation, weather costs, shipbreaking, oyster shells

Spotted ratfish {Seattle Aquarium)

Spotted ratfish Hydrolagus colliei
These fish have smooth skin, large green eyes, a rabbitlike face and a mouth with platelike, grinding teeth. The tail is tiny, so for propulsion they flap their large, winglike pectoral fins. Ratfish cruise just above the seafloor searching for crunchy food like crabs and clams. They live from surface to 3,300 feet. (Monterey Bay Aquarium)

Port of Everett’s Blue Heron Slough Wetland Restoration Project Reaches Final Phase
The Port of Everett and its project partner, Wildlands, have reached the final phase of Blue Heron Slough – a project restoring 353 acres of Snohomish River estuary habitat between the cities of Everett and Marysville. (My Everett News)

New film about spring Chinook delves into history, culture and science in unique habitats
A new film, titled “The Lost Salmon,” opens with a video montage that takes us through some wondrous scenes: A wide aerial shot of California’s majestic Salmon River, moving to an underwater view of salmon swimming through the clear water and then to an action spectacle of wild salmon practically flying through the air to surmount a rushing cascades. Christopher Dunagan reports. (Puget Sound Institute)

Mayor proposes pause to Post Point anaerobic digester project
Bellingham Mayor Seth Fleetwood has proposed a pause to the upcoming Post Point Wastewater Treatment Plant construction project following a sharp rise in expected project costs to as much as $1 billion. City staff and council members initially reported anticipated costs to be around $220 million for anaerobic digestion, though those costs represented only a portion of projects necessary for the final sewage management system. Julia Lerner reports. (CDN)

Towns May Grow Millions More Trees with $1.5B for Urban Forestry
States and cities across the country are beginning to embrace trees as critical infrastructure in urban areas. Neighborhoods with tree cover are significantly cooler than exposed areas known as “heat islands,” which can affect human health and utility bills. Urban forests absorb stormwater runoff, filter pollution from the air and sequester carbon. Alex Brown reports (Stateline)  Listen: "Can planting a trillion new trees save the world?" Zach St. George reports. (NY Times)

Chinook Indian Nation members rally for federal recognition
Members of the Chinook Indian Nation rallied Monday on the steps of a federal building in Seattle to raise awareness for their long fight to get federal recognition. Federal recognition would mean access to federal dollars for healthcare and housing for this group of tribes, which are based in Southwestern Washington, particularly Pacific County. Scott Greenstone reports (KNKX)

Dispute in B.C. reveals cracks in Canada's shipbreaking regulations
Activists say federal law needed to curb the environmental risks of dismantling seacraft. Yvette Brend reports. (CBC)

Floods, droughts, storms will cost Canadian economy $139B in next 30 years, report says
Floods, droughts and major storms that wash out highways, damage buildings and affect power grids could cost Canada's economy $139 billion over the next 30 years, a new climate-based analysis predicts. The report, titled Aquanomics, was published Monday by GHD, a global engineering and architecture services firm. (Canadian Press)

Oyster shells sell for top dollar as biologists scramble to protect shellfish beds
North Carolina sponsors work to protect imperiled oyster populations by returning shells from restaurants, backyard oyster roasts and other sources to tidelands. Putting shells back in the mud rebuilds reefs, the refuges baby oysters need to grow and multiply. But efforts to restore oyster reefs in places like Beaufort County face a threat that could affect virtually anyone who depends on the harvest of wild oysters. South Carolina and nearby states are having trouble finding the shells they need to put back in tidal areas to restore oyster populations. Sammy Fretwell and Sarah Haselhorst report. (The State)

Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  234 AM PDT Tue Aug 30 2022   
TODAY  E wind to 10 kt becoming N in the afternoon. Wind waves  1 ft or less. W swell 3 ft at 8 seconds. 
TONIGHT  W wind to 10 kt in the evening becoming light. Wind  waves 1 ft or less. W swell 5 ft at 9 seconds.

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