9/15 Big brown bat, WA key toxic pollutants, Hood Canal Bridge steelhead, Chouinard's gift, Boardman stack, eyes of specialists, Caroline Gibson Scholars

Big brown bat [Ty Smedes]

 
Big brown bat Eptesicus fuscus
The Big brown bat is found in virtually every American habitat ranging from timberline meadows to lowland deserts, though this species is most abundant in deciduous forest areas. It also is often abundant in suburban areas of mixed agricultural use. This species ranges from extreme northern Canada, throughout the United States and south to the extreme southern tip of Mexico. Traditionally, these bats form maternity colonies beneath loose bark and in small cavities of pine, oak, beech, bald cypress, and other trees. Common maternity roosts can also be found in buildings, barns, bridges, and bat houses. (BatCon)

EPA Must Act on Toxics, Court Orders
A federal court ordered the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Aug. 30 to take the first step towards updating Washington’s water quality standards for 17 key toxic pollutants known to harm endangered salmon, steelhead, and the Southern Resident killer whales that depend upon them. The order is the result of federal district court Judge Marcia J. Pechman’s earlier finding that EPA is compelled to address the Washington Department of Ecology’s long-standing failure to protect aquatic species from toxic pollution after having “unreasonably abandoned its role for years.”  ...In the revised court order signed Aug. 30, EPA will move quickly to grant NWEA’s petition and take federal actions on Washington’s water quality standards for nine toxic pollutants: arsenic, cadmium, copper, cyanide, mercury, selenium, nickel, acrolein, and aluminum.  Within three years, the federal agency will take action on eight additional pollutants: chromium III, DDT and its metabolites, endosulfan, endrin, tributyltin, zinc, lead, and nonylphenol. (Northwest Environmental Advocates)

Add-on structure will begin to address steelhead crisis at the Hood Canal Bridge
The Hood Canal Bridge, which connects the Kitsap and Olympic peninsulas, has proven to be a dangerous impediment to juvenile steelhead trout. As many as half of the young migratory steelhead in Hood Canal may get picked off by seals, birds and other predators as the fish try to pass under the floating highway, according to studies. While a permanent solution may be years away, the first step at reducing predation at the bridge may be just around the corner, as construction crews prepare to fabricate a floating structure that could help the fish swim past the bridge with fewer delays.Christopher Dunagan reports. (Puget Sound Institute)

Billionaire No More: Patagonia Founder Gives Away the Company
A half century after founding the outdoor apparel maker Patagonia, Yvon Chouinard, the eccentric rock climber who became a reluctant billionaire with his unconventional spin on capitalism, has given the company away. Rather than selling the company or taking it public, Mr. Chouinard, his wife and two adult children have transferred their ownership of Patagonia, valued at about $3 billion, to a specially designed trust and a nonprofit organization. They were created to preserve the company’s independence and ensure that all of its profits — some $100 million a year — are used to combat climate change and protect undeveloped land around the globe. David Gelles reports. (New York Times)

Boardman smokestack demolition will mark the end of a coal-fired era in Oregon
A contractor is set to demolish the towering smokestack at Portland General Electric’s shuttered coal-fired power plant near Boardman at 10 a.m. Thursday, heralding the end of the era of coal-fired power generation in Oregon. Imported electricity generated from coal still flows through transmission wires across the Pacific Northwest, but that looks to be winding down soon, too. Tom Banse reports. (OPB)

Through the Eyes of Specialists
David B. Williams in Street Smart Naturalist writes: "One of the highlights of writing is the opportunity to be out in the field doing research. I get so much more information from experiencing the landscape, flora, and fauna outside than through a phone call or meeting in town. Plus, I always enjoy seeing a landscape through a specialist’s eyes." (Street Smart Naturalist)

Caroline Gibson Scholars
Congratulations to the Northwest Straits Foundation's 2022 Carolne Gibson Scholarships in Marine Science scholars Mary Margaret Stoll, UW School of Oceanography third-year graduate student; Michael Sadler, UW School of Oceanography doctoral student; and Sarah Gutzmann, Simon Frasier marine science graduate student. They will be recognized and honored at a Sept. 24 reception in Port Townsend.

Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  240 AM PDT Thu Sep 15 2022   
TODAY  NW wind to 10 kt rising to 5 to 15 kt in the afternoon.  Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell 3 ft at 11 seconds. 
TONIGHT  W wind 5 to 15 kt becoming to 10 kt after midnight.  Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell 3 ft at 10 seconds.

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