9/16 River otter, sewage settlement, flood survivors, Lululemon gift, Aleutian Isle recovery, BC floods and fires, fisher, female hummers, salmon poaching

River otter [American Rivers]

River otter Lutra canadensis
River otters have long, streamlined bodies, short legs, webbed toes, and long, tapered tails—all adaptations for their mostly aquatic lives. Although seldom seen, river otters are relatively common throughout Washington in ponds, lakes, rivers, sloughs, estuaries, bays, and in open waters along the coast. River otters are sometimes mistaken for their much larger seagoing cousin, the sea otter (Enhydra lutris). However, male sea otters measure 6 feet in length and weigh 80 pounds. Sea otters are acclimated to salt water, and come to shore only for occasional rest periods and to give birth. In comparison, river otters can be found in fresh, brackish, or salt water, and can travel overland for considerable distances. (WDFW)

Tribe, county, reach $5M settlement deal over sewage spills
Washington state’s most populous county is set to pay more than $5 million to settle a threatened lawsuit from the Suquamish Tribe over sewage spills that have overflowed from King County treatment plants into Puget Sound. The facility is the largest sewage treatment plant in Washington and the third largest on the West Coast. The discharges added up to more than 6 million gallons. (Associated Press)

Flood survivors face next flood season while awaiting long-term fixes
Flood season is coming faster than housing solutions, as recovery from November 2021 flooding continues in Whatcom County. Kai Uyehara reports. (Salish Current)

Lululemon founder Chip Wilson gifts $100M to help protect nature in B.C.
Lululemon Athletica Inc. founder and billionaire Chip Wilson is donating $100 million to the B.C. Parks Foundation to help protect and enhance the province's nature. Adena Ali reports. (Canadian Press)

What’s known, not known about Aleutian Isle recovery
An update on the sunken vessel Aleutian Isle off the west coast of San Juan Island details the extreme hazards involved in recovering the boat. (San Juan County Emergency Management)

New coalition calls for targets to reduce risk of floods, wildfires
Climate Proof Canada, makes the recommendations just as the federal Liberal government is expected to release a climate adaptation strategy before the next international climate conference in Egypt in November. Gordon Hoekstra reports. (Vancouver Sun)

Lawsuit aims to protect a rare West Coast carnivore, the fisher
The Center for Biological Diversity petitioned the federal government to protect the fisher under the Endangered Species Act more than 20 years ago. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service agreed the fisher deserved endangered-species protection but said other species’ recovery efforts – many of them court-ordered – were higher priorities for the agency’s limited funding. Eventually, the Fish and Wildlife Service agreed to protect fishers, but only in Southern California. Now the activist group is suing to give the fisher endangered-species protections up and down the West Coast. John Ryan reports. (KUOW)

Female hummingbirds are disguising as males to avoid aggression
When you think of a hummingbird you probably think of a small sweet bird. But, hummingbirds are also very aggressive, especially males. According to a new study, some female hummingbirds are evolving to look like males to avoid aggression. Natalie Akane Newcomb reports. (KUOW)

DFO has 'investigations ongoing' into Fraser River salmon poaching
The Department of Fisheries and Oceans says it’s following-up on reports of large containers of illegally caught sockeye salmon being left to waste around Steveston Harbour. Poaching salmon is an endemic concern on the Fraser River fishing but is heightened this year because commercial fisheries have remained closed due to disappointingly low returns of sockeye salmon runs that are in the peak year of their four-year reproductive cycle. Derrick Penner reports. (Vancouver Sun)

Salish Sea News Week in Review 9/16/22: Guacamole Friday, racist names, BC forestry, restoring the Fraser, BC greenhouse goals, Colstrip buyout, end of OR coal, Chouinard's gift, WA toxins, Lululemon gift

Now, your weekend tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  245 AM PDT Fri Sep 16 2022   
TODAY  W wind to 10 kt rising to 10 to 20 kt in the afternoon.  Wind waves 1 ft or less building to 1 to 3 ft in the afternoon. W  swell 3 ft at 8 seconds. A chance of showers in the morning. 
TONIGHT  W wind 5 to 15 kt becoming to 10 kt after midnight.  Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell 3 ft at 9 seconds. 
SAT  Light wind becoming NW to 10 kt in the afternoon. Wind  waves 1 ft or less. W swell 3 ft at 9 seconds. 
SAT NIGHT  W wind 10 to 20 kt becoming SE to 10 kt after  midnight. Wind waves 1 to 3 ft subsiding to 1 ft or less after  midnight. W swell 4 ft at 9 seconds. 
SUN  Light wind. Wind waves less than 1 ft. W swell 5 ft at  9 seconds.

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