11/22 Foxglove, fed hydrogen rule, BP green hydrogen, chum salmon, glass recycling, Site C dam naming, logging, bluebottles, week in review

 

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Foxglove

Foxglove
Digitalis purpurea, the foxglove or common foxglove, is a toxic species of flowering plant in the plantain family Plantaginaceae, native to and widespread throughout most of temperate Europe. It has also naturalized in parts of North America, as well as some other temperate regions.

Today's top story in Salish Current: Early look at Skagit County 2025 budget includes property tax increase

Local lawmakers urge changes to proposed federal hydrogen energy rules
Three local lawmakers are urging the Biden administration to edit the Clean Hydrogen Production Tax Credit to create flexibility for regional energy economies. U.S. Reps. Suzan DelBene, D-Medina, Kim Schrier, D-Sammamish, and Rick Larsen, D-Everett, argue a strict section of the proposed rule undermines the intention of supporting the country’s growth of a hydrogen energy market. They say tight federal guidelines may be counterproductive in states that already have clean energy policies, like Washington. Eliza Aronson reports. (Everett Herald)

BP halts green hydrogen plant project at Cherry Point
The Whatcom County refinery was one of five worldwide BP had shortlisted to create sustainable aviation fuel. The energy giant was previously working toward establishing a large, standalone sustainable aviation fuels facility to be fed by a green hydrogen plant at Cherry Point. BP now looks to pivot toward creating sustainable fuel with mostly existing capabilities in the county. Isaac Stone Simonelli reports. (CDN)

Seattle park's record chum salmon run points to good conditions for sea life
Chum salmon appear to be having a boom year in the northwest. Numerous runs from Puget Sound to the Columbia River have seen near-record returns already, more than a week before the season usually peaks. Bellamy Pailthorp reports. (KNKX)

Seattle recycling faces 'unprecedented challenges' as bottle maker closes
Utility officials say glass recycling in the Seattle area faces “unprecedented challenges” as the region’s main manufacturer of glass bottles shuts its doors. The Ardagh Glass Packaging plant in Seattle’s Duwamish Valley shut down temporarily in July and permanently in November. The plant, a property of Luxembourg-based Ardagh Group, laid off 245 workers. The multinational company blamed competition from subsidized bottle makers in China and those in Chile and Mexico. John Ryan reports. (KUOW)

Site C dam to be given Indigenous name after flooding Treaty 8 territory
BC Hydro’s plans to give the controversial dam and reservoir Indigenous language names are being called inappropriate by a First Nations chief whose traditional territory was flooded by the megaproject. Sarah Cox reports. (The Narwhal)

Logging Is the Deadliest Job, but Still an Oregon Way of Life
Mostly employed in densely forested pockets of the Pacific Northwest and the South, loggers have the highest rate of fatal on-the-job injuries of any civilian occupation in the nation, outpacing roofers, hunters and underground mining machine operators. Kurtis Lee reports. Photographs and Video by Kristina Barker. (NY Times)

One Great Shot: Bluebottle Beauty
Each summer, thousands of bluebottles (also known as Portuguese man-of-wars) wash up along the shores of Sydney, Australia. These remarkable relatives of jellyfish are actually colonial organisms: each is made up of four kinds of specialized, interdependent bodies called zooids. One zooid provides the gas-filled sail; when the wind catches, it whisks the bluebottle across the ocean’s surface. The other zooids take care of hunting, digestion, and reproduction. Grant Thomas writes. (Hakai Magazine)  Note: The Hakai Magazine team is joining bioGraphic to deepen its coverage of ocean and coastal stories. (bioGraphic)

Salish Sea News Week in Review 11/22/24: Humane Society Friday, logjam, Dept. of Energy pick, bird flu, forage fish, wildfire logging, urban salmon, Great Bear Sea initiative, Pitt River Red Slough.

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Here's your weekend tug weather—
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  203 AM PST Fri Nov 22 2024    
GALE WARNING IN EFFECT THROUGH LATE TONIGHT    
TODAY  E wind 25 to 30 kt, veering to SE 30 to 35 kt this  afternoon. Seas 7 to 8 ft, building to 9 to 12 ft this afternoon.  Wave Detail: SE 9 ft at 7 seconds, SW 2 ft at 12 seconds and W  5 ft at 13 seconds. Showers.  
TONIGHT  S wind 25 to 35 kt. Seas 8 to 11 ft, subsiding to 6 to  9 ft after midnight. Wave Detail: SE 8 ft at 7 seconds and SW  6 ft at 14 seconds. Showers.  
SAT  SE wind 15 to 20 kt. Seas 4 to 6 ft. Wave Detail: SE 3 ft  at 6 seconds and SW 5 ft at 11 seconds. Showers.  
SAT NIGHT  SE wind 10 to 15 kt. Seas 3 to 5 ft. Wave Detail: SE  2 ft at 4 seconds and W 4 ft at 10 seconds. Showers.  
SUN  E wind 10 to 15 kt. Seas 3 to 4 ft. Wave Detail: E 3 ft at  4 seconds and W 3 ft at 9 seconds. Showers.

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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 msato(at)salishseacom.com. Your email information is never shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.



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