3/26 Eelgrass, pink salmon, BC carbon tax, PRGT pipe, orca calf, OR urban trees, BC shellfish fines, first 100 days

Common eelgrass [Sound Water Stewards]

 

Common eelgrass Zostera marina
Native in the state of Washington, Zostera marina’s range spans the area from Alaska to California on the West Coast and is also found on the North American East Coast, in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. It is common in low intertidal and subtidal zones to a depth of 20-30 feet along sheltered areas with sandy or muddy beaches. (Sound Water Stewards)

Today's top story in Salish Current: Frustrations and flux in Sedro-Woolley schools leadership / Down-ballot elections can changes lives in seismic ways

Abundance of pink salmon may be harming orcas
Pink salmon now comprise nearly 80% of all adult salmon in the North Pacific. This record abundance is coming at a cost to other salmon species such as threatened Chinook, which compete with pinks for spawning territory. A new study shows that the ecological toll may extend all the way to endangered southern resident killer whales. Eric Wagner reports. (Salish Sea Currents Magazine)

B.C. scrapping consumer carbon tax altogether on April 1, government says
The B.C. government has announced it will completely scrap the provincial consumer-facing carbon tax on April 1 and is urging gas companies to remove tax from pricing. Andrew Kurjata and Akshay Kulkarni report. (CBC)

Indigenous, community groups take BC Energy Regulator to court over PRGT pipeline approval
Indigenous and non-Indigenous groups are in court this week, arguing the BC Energy Regulator bent its own rules when it green-lighted construction of a new 800-kilometre gas pipeline for the LNG industry. Matt Simmons reports. (The Narwhal)

Orca calf a descendent of one of last killer whales captured
The orca calf’s great-grandmother was one of six whales captured and temporarily held by SeaWorld in Washington’s Puget Sound in March 1976. Darron Kloster reports. (Times Colonist)

Trump administration funding freeze creates uncertainty for Oregon urban tree canopy programs
The Trump administration appears to have frozen at least $40 million in federal payments for Oregon-based urban tree canopy programs, as part of a broader push by the president to cut support for programs related to climate change. Courtney Sherwood reports. (OPB)

B.C. shellfish harvesters fined for illegal fishing
A woman from Nanaimo and another from Richmond were found to have retained more than the daily quota for clams and oysters, with some of their catch under the legal minimum size. Darron Kloster reports.(Times Colonist)

The First 100 Days

• Trump signs order seeking to overhaul US elections, including requiring proof of citizenship (Associated Press)
  
• Long waits, waves of calls, website crashes: Social Security is breaking down (Washington Post)
  
• Trump administration says it will pull back billions in COVID funding from local health departments (Associated Press)
  
• Vaccine skeptic hired to head federal study of immunizations and autism (Washington Post)
  
• The Atlantic posts Signal chat with attack plans from Hegseth (Associated Press)
  
• Federal cuts squeeze already-struggling food banks, school lunch programs (Statelines)
  

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Here's your tug weather—
West Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-  304 AM PDT Wed Mar 26 2025    
TODAY  SE wind 10 to 15 kt. Seas 4 to 6 ft. Wave Detail: E 3 ft  at 4 seconds and W 5 ft at 14 seconds. A chance of rain this  morning, then showers likely with a slight chance of tstms this  afternoon.  
TONIGHT  SE wind 10 to 15 kt. Seas 3 to 5 ft. Wave Detail: SE  2 ft at 5 seconds and W 4 ft at 13 seconds. Rain.

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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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