4/24 Red-legged frog, Roberts Bank, BC pollution, WA lege, US enviro justice, UN salmon, urban trees, BC emissions, truckers, Reginald Hill, GasLink fines, undersea spring, cat collars

Red-legged frog [Julia Kirby]

Northern red-legged frog Rana aurora
The Northern red-legged frog is active for most of the year from late February through October, with breeding occurring in late winter through early spring. These frogs are most commonly found in and around fish-free bodies of fresh, still water, especially those in more open areas exposed to sunlight. (Save The Frogs)

Port of Vancouver's Roberts Bank Terminal 2: 6 things to know about the contentious $3.5B proposal
Federal approval of Roberts Bank Terminal 2 grants environmental green light for $3.5 billion project heralded as critical step in expanding container trade, but is decried by conservationists. Derrick Penner reports. (Vancouver Sun)

Are B.C.’s pollution laws making a difference?
In 2013, there was a total of $241,000 in pollution penalties in B.C. By 2022, it was $3.86 million. But penalties have not replaced court convictions and still pale in comparison to billions in company profits. Gordon Hoekstra reports, (Vancouver Sun)

The bills that survived Washington's 2023 legislative session
From gun regulations to affordable housing and a new state dinosaur, these are the initiatives that passed — and some that were not so lucky. Joseph O'Sullivan reports. (Crosscut)

Washington Legislature unveils $69.2B two-year state budget
Completed with less than 36 hours left in the 2023 session, the budget boosts funding for state worker wages, special education and climate issues. Joseph O'Sullivan reports. (Crosscut)  WA Legislature sends $13.4 billion transportation budget to governor for signature Washington state lawmakers on Saturday passed a $13.4 billion transportation budget for the 2023-25 biennium, with major investments in the ferry system, transportation workforce, traffic safety and keeping projects on track that are already in the works. Shauna Sowersby reports. (McClatchy)

Biden to Create White House Office of Environmental Justice
A new executive order requires every federal agency to address the disproportionate impact of pollution and climate change on minority communities. Lisa Friedman reports. (NY Times)

Can the United Nations help save Pacific salmon?
The U.N. High Seas Treaty is a historic agreement for marine conservation, but its impact on the plummeting fish population is still uncertain. Sarah Trent reports. (High Country News/Crosscut)

Historic investment in urban trees underway across the U.S.
Like many cities in the U.S., parts of Detroit are packed with large amounts of impervious surfaces and heat-absorbing infrastructure like roads and bridges. Coupled with low levels of cooling tree cover, or canopy, it can make them dangerously hotter than the suburbs. Such an inequity of tree cover is behind the historic $1.5 billion in President Joe Biden's Inflation Reduction Act that's set aside for the federal Forest Service Urban and Community Forestry Program to fund tree-planting projects over the next decade. (Associated Press)

BC Lags Most Provinces in Cutting Emissions
Successive British Columbia governments have portrayed the province as a climate change leader, but since 2005 six other provinces have been more successful than B.C. at reducing greenhouse gas emissions. While experts and the minister responsible say there are good explanations for B.C.’s middling performance, others are less sympathetic. Andrew MacLeod reports. (The Tyee)

Short-haul truckers call for equitable distribution of Washington’s climate dollars
...Short-haul truck drivers are one group asking for help with the transition to cleaner options. They move containers full of retail goods and other freight after they arrive in local ports. Also known as drayage truckers, they provide a key connection between ships to warehouses and other modes of transit like rail or long-haul trucks. Bellamy Pailthorp reports. (KNKX)

161-acre Salt Spring property sold to nature conservancy
Purchased for $9 million, the property on Reginald Hill at the south end of Salt Spring Island features a maturing coastal Douglas-fir forest, Garry oaks, rocky bluffs and multiple wetlands. Darron Kloster reports.(Times Colonist)

Coastal GasLink faces new fines for filing ‘false and misleading’ information
When B.C.’s Environmental Assessment Office reviewed reports filed by the pipeline it found discrepancies; now it says the company should pay up for misleading the government. Matt Simmons reports. (The Narwhal)

Undersea ‘oasis’ sheds new light on plate tectonics
An underwater spring is gushing water into the ocean at unprecedented levels giving researchers additional insights into plate tectonics but not — despite some news reports — any indications of an impending earthquake. A seep of warm water about 50 miles off the coast of Newport, Ore., is spouting chemically distinct water into the ocean at rates not seen anywhere else in the world, but that doesn’t mean an earthquake is imminent, according to Evan Solomon, University of Washington oceanography professor. Peter Segall reports. (Peninsula Daily News)

Bright cat collars help protect birds, study finds
Colourful collar covers can provide an early warning system for birds against stealthy free-roaming house cats, which are being blamed for killing millions of birds each year in Canada. Experts say the bright fabric tubes that slip over cat collars — sold under various brands and looking a lot like a hair scrunchie — give birds a chance to escape a cat’s lethal pounce and work better than bells. (Times Colonist)

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Now, your tug weather--
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  210 AM PDT Mon Apr 24 2023   
TODAY  W wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell 7 ft  at 12 seconds. A slight chance of showers. 
TONIGHT  W wind 5 to 15 kt. Wind waves 2 ft or less. W swell  6 ft at 10 seconds.

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