6/5 Maidenhair fern, Sumas Valley flood, WSF new design, electricity for ferries, sea floor expedition

Western Maidenhair Fern [Native Plants PNW]

Western Maidenhair Fern Adiantum aleuticum
Common names include: Five-finger Fern and Northern or Aleutian Maidenhair. The term Maidenhair may have been derived from the species A. capillus-veneris, (literally Venus’s hair), perhaps due to the dark, glossy hair-like leaf stalks.  Western Maidenhair can be found from the Aleutian Islands and southeast Alaska to Chihuahua in Mexico. Natives used the stems of Maidenhair Fern in basketry designs.  They also used a tea made from the leaves as a hair wash.  The Quinault burnt the leaves and rubbed ashes in their hair to make it long, shiny and black.  (Native Plants PNW)

Today's top story in Salish Current: WSF service, bad as it’s ever been, only going to get worse

After disaster strikes, how much is it worth to rebuild?
In 2021, flooding in the Sumas Valley caused millions in damages. Rebuilding could cost more than twice as much as restoring the region to its natural state. Steph Kwetásel’wet Wood (The Narwhal)

WA shows off new design for its ferries — now it needs a shipbuilder
Ferry officials and state lawmakers shared plans Monday for a new generation of hybrid-electric ferries to ply Puget Sound waters, with promises to bring reliability and an emission-free fleet to a diesel-hungry system that has been plagued by reduced services and cancellations for years. Nicholas Deshais reports. (Seattle Times)

The tricky business of charging Washington's coming hybrid electric ferries
Every ferry terminal presents a different sort of puzzle when it comes to installing charging equipment. there are many different power utilities to work with. And there are unrelated construction sites nearby, over which the ferry system has no control. One reason it's so complicated is that the ferries use so much power. The Bremerton boat, for example, will have the same battery capacity as 230 electric cars. Plus, it will have to charge fully within 18 minutes, so there's no delay in the ferry's departure schedule. Joshua McNichols reports. (KUOW)

Scientists eager to view sea floor after earthquake swarm
Scientists will use remotely operated vehicles equipped with cameras to descend up to two kilometres to see the effects of hundreds of earthquakes that rumbled over the Pacific Ocean seafloor off Vancouver Island in March. And the public is invited to come along via a live internet stream. Darron Kloster reports. (Times Colonist)

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Here's your tug weather—
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  234 AM PDT Wed Jun 5 2024    
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT THROUGH THIS EVENING    
TODAY  S wind around 5 kt, backing to SE late this morning,  veering to W this afternoon. Seas 6 to 9 ft. Wave Detail: W 9 ft  at 14 seconds.  
TONIGHT  W wind 5 to 10 kt. Seas 5 to 7 ft. Wave Detail: W 7 ft  at 13 seconds.

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"Salish Sea News & Weather" is compiled as a community service by Mike Sato. It is included as a daily feature in the Salish Current newsletter. Click here to subscribe. Questions? Email mikesato772 (@) gmail.com. Your email information is never shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.



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