11/11 Sunset, super pod, superport, grizzlies, salmon farms, Coquitlam hatchery, BC extinction, Jude Rubin, Native hotline, oil spill barges, birds, intertidal architects

Sunset at Wiley Slough [Thomas William Jones]

Sunset at Wiley Slough
“Be patient, the environment will speak to you!” As a watercolor artist painting in the Northwest for over 55 years, I can always find inspiration in the Skagit Valley region. If given the time and patience, our protected estuary areas will speak to you. Such was the case when visiting the Wiley Slough Wildlife Area during a late winter afternoon last year. Thomas William Jones writes. (Salish Current)

'Super pod' of orcas spotted four days in a row in western Washington
The orca pods are showing off in western Washington this week. Thursday marked four days in a row that a “super pod” of orcas was spotted. It even delayed a couple of ferries between Seattle and Vashon Island. Tess Wagner reports. (KING)

The Intensifying Push to Build a Fraser Delta Superport
As Canada prepares to host a global summit on biodiversity, a proposed $3.5 billion superport just south of Vancouver is testing the Trudeau government’s bold environmental commitments. Critics say approving the superport, which would be built in the Fraser estuary, one of Canada’s most endangered biodiversity hotspots, would run counter to several of the Liberal’s pronouncements about the need to better protect nature. Margaret Munro reports. (The Tyee)

Feds resume study of restoring grizzlies to North Cascades
The National Park Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said they would jointly prepare an environmental impact statement on restoring the endangered bears to the North Cascades ecosystem. Nicholas K. Geranios reports. (Associated Press)

Future of B.C. salmon farms up in the air, as deadline to phase out open-net pen farms looms
After years of uncertainty, the future of salmon farming on B.C.'s coast remains up in the air. Fish farms are a key part of the salmon industry on Vancouver Island and coastal B.C., employing up to 4,700 people, according to the B.C. Salmon Farmers Association. But open-net pen farms have also drawn criticism for the risks they pose to wild salmon stocks. Emily Vance reports. (CBC)

Work begins on building new Coquitlam salmon hatchery
A ground-breaking ceremony was held Thursday for a new sockeye hatchery being built near the Coquitlam Lake Dam in the hopes of reviving the native salmon population. The project is being led by the Kwikwetlem First Nation which has struggled to restore the native sockeye population since the hydro electric dam was first built across the Coquitlam river in 1913.  (CBC)

‘Huge legal gaps’ are driving B.C. species to extinction, conservation groups say
The B.C. NDP campaigned on protecting species at risk. Years later, the province still doesn’t have stand-alone species at risk legislation. Ainslie Cruickshank reports. (The Narwhal)

Northwest Watershed Institute announces changes
The Northwest Watershed Institute is making staff changes in light of the resignation of Jude Rubin, the institute’s co-founder and longtime director of stewardship and public engagement. Both incoming Director of Stewardship Wesley Meyers and incoming Education Coordinator Megan Brookens are moving into management positions. (Peninsula Daily News)

Washington launches first of its kind Native American crisis hotline
The "Native and Strong Crisis Lifeline" is not only the first in the nation tailored for Native American people, it's also run by all Native American team. The hotline is staffed by 13 counselors from Washington and other states. PJ Randhawa reports. (KING)

Canada's New Oil Spill Response Barges Launched
Two new oil spill response barges to Western Canada Marine Response Corporation (WCMRC) by the end of 2022 and join WCMRC’s fleet of pollution response vessels stationed along the south coast of British Columbia. (MarineLink)

A Celebration of Birds
David B. Williams in Street Smart Naturalist writes: "I am not a very good birder. I have no ear for bird songs and can only ID a handful of birds by their voice... But, dear reader, I am not here to crow about my incompetence. I write today to celebrate my past week of birding, when I was able to identify three birds, in a very sort of Paul Reveresque manner: One by ear, two by sight." (Street Smart Naturalist)

Ancient Architects of the Intertidal Landscape of Xwe’etay (Lasqueti Island)
One of the goals of the Xwe’etay/Lasqueti Archaeology Project (XLAP) is to map the temporal and spatial extent of all the ancient Indigenous settlements on Xwe’etay in relation to their surrounding land and seascape. Over the summer this involved timing our shoreline surveys for the lowest low tides in May – August so that we could record the fish traps, clam gardens, and other intertidal features associated with the many Indigenous settlements around the island. Dana Lepofsky writes. (Lasqueti Island Nature Conservancy Newsletter)

Salish Sea News Week in Review 11/11/22: Origami Friday, Fraser R, acid ocean, heat pumps, dying crabs, herring homecoming, BC old growth, climate killers, grizzlies, superport

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Now, your weekend tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  214 AM PST Fri Nov 11 2022   SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT THROUGH THIS AFTERNOON   
TODAY  E wind 15 to 25 kt. Wind waves 2 to 4 ft. W swell 2 ft  at 10 seconds building to 4 ft at 10 seconds in the afternoon. A  chance of rain. 
TONIGHT  E wind 5 to 15 kt becoming SE to 10 kt after midnight.  Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell 3 ft at 9 seconds. A slight  chance of rain in the evening. 
SAT  E wind to 10 kt becoming SE in the afternoon. Wind waves  1 ft or less. W swell 4 ft at 10 seconds. 
SAT NIGHT  NW wind to 10 kt becoming W after midnight. Wind  waves 1 ft or less. W swell 4 ft at 10 seconds. 
SUN  Light wind becoming E to 10 kt in the afternoon. Wind  waves 1 ft or less. W swell 4 ft at 14 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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