10/17 Pickleweed, BC election, heat, smoke, rain, BC pipe, CWA 50, fire retardant, butterflies, sea rise, Joe Martin

Pickleweed [Sound Water Stewards]

Pickleweed Salicornia virginica
This species can be found in salt marshes and beaches with low wave energy along the Pacific Coast of the United States and British Columbia, on the American East Coast, and also in Western Europe. It is a common and easily recognized perennial with fleshy stems, leaves reduced to scales, and tiny yellow flowers that bloom in July and August. This plant belongs to the goosefoot family. Other common names for it include saltwort, sea asparagus, and American glasswort. A similar but less common species, Salicornia maritima tends to take on a bright red hue in the fall. (Sound Water Stewards)

In cities big and small, winds of change sweep across British Columbia
A municipal election differs from a provincial or federal election in that there isn't one party forming government but dozens of individual results and stories — in the case of B.C., 160 separate municipalities — happening everywhere all at once. That being said, there is one major storyline: people wanting change. Justin McElroy reports. (CBC)

At 88 degrees, Seattle breaks heat record as wildfires and smoke spread  Mike Reicher and Taylor Blatchford report. (Seattle Times)  Air quality advisory for Metro Vancouver, Fraser Valley continues due to wildfire smoke (CBC)

Rains to come to Metro Vancouver at last, with snow in high places
Hazy skies to remain for next few days, but 10 mm of rain forecast for the weekend. David Carrigg reports. (Vancouver Sun)

The Trans Mountain Boondoggle: Taxpayers Lose Billions, Oil Companies Win
A new analysis confirms the pipeline expansion makes no economic sense and taxpayers will subsidize Big Oil. Andrew Nikiforuk reports. (The Tyee)  First Nations Partnerships Say Pipeline Companies Owe Them Millions Four lawsuits allege a former major contractor for Coastal GasLink hasn’t paid for some work on the pipeline. Amanda Follett Hosgood reports. (The Tyee)

The Clean Water Act at 50: Big Successes, More to Be Done
Sparked by the 1970s environmental movement, the Clean Water Act — which marks its 50th anniversary this month — transformed America’s polluted rivers. The Delaware, once an industrial cesspool, is one of the success stories, but its urban stretches remain a work in progress. Andrew S. Lewis writes. (Yale Environment 360)

US sued by Oregon group for pollution from retardant drops on wildfires
An environmental group filed a lawsuit Tuesday against U.S. Forest Service officials that alleges they polluted waterways during their campaigns against wildfires by inadvertently dropping large volumes of chemical flame retardant into streams. Government data released earlier this year found aircraft operated or contracted by the Forest Service dropped more than 760,000 gallons of fire retardant directly onto streams and other waterways between 2012 and 2019. The main ingredients in fire retardant are inorganic fertilizers and salts that can be harmful to some fish, frogs, crustaceans and other aquatic species. (Associated Press)

Climate change threatening butterflies’ pollen-collecting powers, find B.C. researchers
An integral part of a vast array of insect pollinators, the shrinking of butterflies due to rising temperatures could have drastic consequences for agriculture. Stefan Labbé reports. (Times Colonist)

Rising seas, surging storms put many low-lying areas at risk
Sea levels are expected to rise by 1.5 to nearly 2 feet by 2100 along low-lying shorelines around the Salish Sea—including many areas where people live and recreate.  Kai Uyehara reports. (Salish Current)

Meet Elder Joe Martin, a logger turned renowned canoe carver fighting for old-growth forests
Tla-o-qui-aht Elder Joe Martin has been an advocate for old-growth since the 1980s, when he left the forestry industry and joined the first logging blockade in Canadian history. He reflects on the cultural importance of old-growth, its place in a complex ecosystem and carving out lessons for future generations. Stephanie Wood writes. (The Narwhal)

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Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  311 AM PDT Mon Oct 17 2022   
TODAY  NE wind to 10 kt. Wind waves 1 ft or less. W swell 3 ft  at 10 seconds. 
TONIGHT  NW wind to 10 kt becoming SE after midnight. Wind  waves 1 ft or less. W swell 3 ft at 12 seconds.

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