Salish Sea Communications

Friday, April 4, 2025

Salish Sea News Week in Review April 4 2025

Aloha MLK, Jr. Memorial Day
On this day in 1968, Martin Luther King, Jr., a leader of the American civil rights movement who was in Memphis, Tennessee, to support a strike by the city's sanitation workers, was assassinated by James Earl Ray.

Budget woes, federal cuts puts WA plans at risk as wildfire season nears
In Washington, a $12 billion budget shortfall prompted majority Democrats in the Legislature last week to propose slicing spending on wildfire prevention and fighting by one-third to two-thirds.

New $5B plan to fund culvert removals unveiled by WA senators
Washington state senators revealed a proposal Monday to raise billions of dollars to pay for the court-ordered removal of culverts blocking the migration of salmon and other fish. The plan included in the Senate’s capital budget would bond up to $5 billion over the next 15 years and repay the debt with revenue from an existing tax on electrical utilities. housing-school-environment-0

Lower Mainland flood prevention work must wait, province admits
Three years after one of the costliest disasters in Canadian history, the provincial government now says it doesn’t have the money to fully fund critical flood-prevention work in the Lower Mainland.

Lee Zeldin, E.P.A. Head, Shuts National Environmental Museum
The exhibits were dedicated to the agency’s history. Mr. Zeldin said closing the collection would save $600,000 annually.

What cutting the consumer carbon tax means for Canada's emissions
The federal government has ended its carbon pricing for consumers, and that's expected to lead to savings at the gas pump. But what did the carbon tax and rebate actually do for the climate? And now that it's gone, what impact will that have on emissions?

B.C. quietly allowed an oil and gas giant to sidestep rules for more than 4,300 pipelines
B.C.’s energy regulator has the power to grant exemptions — without notifying the public. Experts are raising the alarm about the process, saying the regulator is playing soft with fossil fuel companies that break rules.

Canada and B.C. finalize agreement to fund Metro Vancouver Iona Island Wastewater Treatment Plant
The governments of Canada and British Columbia have finalized an agreement for the Canada Housing Infrastructure Fund, providing CAD 250 million (about USD 173 million) in federal funding over five years for the first phase of the Iona Island Wastewater Treatment Plant upgrade.

These sea stars were nearly wiped out — but B.C. researchers say fiords provided refuge
Researchers say sea star wasting disease, whose exact cause is unknown, may be affected by water temperatures.

These news clips are a selection of weekday clips collected in Salish Sea News and Weather which is compiled as a community service by Mike Sato. To subscribe at no cost to the weekday news clips, send your name and email to msato(at)salishseacom.com .Your email information is never shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.

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Friday, March 28, 2025

Salish Sea News Week in Review March 28 2025

Aloha Piano Day!
There are 88 keys on a piano, hence Piano Day takes place on the 88th day of the year. Created by Nils Frahm, a German pianist and composer, and celebrated by piano lovers of all ages and abilities, Piano Day celebrates pianos and everything in their orbit: composers, performers, listeners, builders, tuners, and movers.

Judge overturns Washington natural gas measure approved by voters
Opponents argued Initiative 2066 was unconstitutional because it dealt with multiple unrelated subjects. Supporters say they’ll appeal the ruling to the state Supreme Court.

Can the rush for clean energy overcome a legacy of pollution?
The technologies needed to usher the world into a new energy paradigm require minerals: Copper. Lithium. Cobalt. Nickel. Manganese. Graphite. Mining these materials is an inherently dirty and extractive process. It comes at a steep cost, disproportionately paid by communities that have dealt with legacies of contamination.

‘Absolute self-destruction’: David Suzuki has bad news about the environment
In 1962, a young Canadian geneticist started reading “Silent Spring,” Rachel Carson’s damning treatise about the dangers of using pesticides to control insects...Six decades later, Suzuki stands at the precipice of an ecological catastrophe clanging alarm bells as Carson once did.

US Supreme Court declines to revive landmark climate suit brought by young Oregonians
The decision ends a decade-long fight led by 11 young Oregonians and 10 of their peers across the nation against the U.S. government over climate inaction.

‘Metals are the new oil’: B.C. fast-tracks critical minerals projects to counter tariffs
Premier David Eby says the province has ‘unlimited’ potential when it comes to critical minerals. Used to make everything from weapons to renewables, critics question whether B.C.'s rush to mine copper, lithium and more could impact the environment and Indigenous Rights.

Comment period open on Growler operations
The U.S. Navy is accepting public comments regarding a draft of its amended analysis to the final environmental impact statement for EA-18G Growler aircraft operations at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island through April 28. The amended analysis was mandated by the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington.

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, and a new study shows that the ecological toll may extend all the way to endangered southern resident killer whales.

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.

Documents suggest B.C.'s hydrogen plans under threat as uncertainty halts 'large-scale' projects
Documents released through a freedom of information request reveal that B.C.'s former energy minister was told last September that at least seven "large-scale hydrogen projects" were being cancelled or paused because of issues including electricity supply, high cost and transportation.

Trump tariffs, ‘attacks’ over water complicate Columbia River Treaty negotiations
Attacks by President Donald Trump on Canada’s water and sovereignty, and a full-on trade war, have not only upended relations between the countries but have also threatened negotiations over a crucial treaty that governs use of the Columbia River.

The Fraser Valley's supersized goose problem
As communities spend money to addle goose eggs, they're paying the price for a previous breeding experiment gone wrong.

Friday, March 21, 2025

Salish Sea News Week in Review March 21 2025

Aloha World Poetry Day
World Poetry Day is celebrated on 21 March, and was declared by UNESCO in 1999, "with the aim of supporting linguistic diversity through poetic expression and increasing the opportunity for endangered languages to be heard."

After Cuts, Former NOAA Chief Scientist Says U.S. Science Risks Becoming a “Backwater Enterprise”
With its first wave of firings, the new Trump administration has decimated NOAA.

Here’s where Canada’s new prime minister stands on the future of oil and gas
Prime Minister Mark Carney has been a key international deal maker on climate action.

U.S. pauses Columbia River water-sharing negotiations with Canada amid Trump threats
The nations were trying to finalize updates to the 61-year-old Columbia River Treaty governing shared, cross-border water and hydropower management.

Half of 2021 landslides in B.C. linked logging, wildfires: study
Study finds nearly half of 1,300 landslides that occurred during B.C.'s November 2021 atmospheric river event started in areas burned by wildfire or disturbed by logging.

B.C. spent $3.5B to reduce carbon emissions over 7 years. That plan has failed
CleanBC sought to cut greenhouse gases, but emissions are the same as they were in 2007. The province says emissions targets are no longer ‘workable’ — advocates say B.C.’s push for LNG projects is part of the problem.

Makah Tribe applies for permit to resume its traditional whale hunt
The Makah Tribe has applied for a permit to resume its traditional whale hunt this July.

Plastic Meals Leave Seabirds with Brain Damage
Sable shearwater chicks are developing Alzheimer’s-like symptoms and other hidden health impacts.

Northwest research reveals some whales avoid detection from predators by keeping their songs reeaaal low
New research from University of Washington marine scientist Trevor Branch has revealed a defense mechanism some baleen whales appear to use to protect themselves against attack. They’ve evolved to become baritones — essentially the Paul Robesons of the whale world — they sing really, really low.

Friday, March 14, 2025

Salish Sea News Week in Review March 14 2025

Aloha Pi Day

Pi Day celebrates the pi symbol (π) and its importance to mathematics. The symbol is a Greek letter, and it is used in mathematics to represent the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter. The first digits of this ratio are 3.14159, and the number continues infinitely without pattern. It has been calculated to over one trillion digits after the decimal point. Most calculations only need the first few digits. Even the spherical volume of the whole universe can be calculated by using just 39 digits after the decimal point. The symbol "π" was first used in 1706 by William Jones. It gained in popularity after being used by Swiss mathematician Leonhard Euler in 1737. The first large and official celebration of the day took place at the San Francisco Exploratorium in 1988.

Is this fish really disappearing from the Georgia Strait?
First Nations say herring are disappearing. Fisheries and Oceans Canada says they’re stable. So what’s really going on?

B.C. researcher mapping Vancouver Island spawning grounds from space
Swaths of Salish Sea turned teal by herring milt informs federal fisheries, First Nations.

Sixty years later: More than 100,000 tires from failed reef plan are coming out of Puget Sound
A plan to create artificial reefs in Puget Sound using automotive tires was created by Washington's Department of Natural Resources with the intention of attracting native reef fish in order to bolster recreational fishing opportunities across the state. However, the tire reef plan fell flat.

E.P.A. Plans to Close All Environmental Justice Offices
An internal memo directs the closure of offices designed to ease the heavy pollution faced by poor and minority communities. Lisa Friedman reports. (NY Times)

Trump administration to roll back many EPA regulations
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will seek to undo more than 30 regulations, including some aimed at lowering carbon emissions and curbing pollution, as well as redefining what waters and wetlands the federal government can regulate.

U.S. pauses Columbia River Treaty talks as trade tensions grow, B.C. minister says
B.C.'s Energy Ministry says the United States has paused negotiations with Canada on the wide-reaching Columbia River Treaty that regulates everything from flood control and power generation to water supply and salmon restoration in the region.

China tariffs hit B.C. seafood sector struggling with U.S. tariffs
B.C. Seafood exporters had been bracing for China's retaliatory tariffs in Canada's trade dispute over Chinese electric vehicles, steel and aluminum but the decision lands as another major hit.

Friday, March 7, 2025

Salish Sea News Week in Review March 7 2025

Aloha flapjack Friday
A flapjack (also known as a cereal bar, oat bar or oat slice) is a baked bar, cooked in a flat oven tin and cut into squares or rectangles, made from rolled oats, fat (typically butter), brown sugar and usually golden syrup. The North American granola bar is similar to a flapjack. The Oxford English Dictionary records the word "flapjack" being used as early as the beginning of the 16th century, although at this time it seems to have been a flat tart.

4.5 magnitude earthquake wakes up residents around western Washington
An earthquake struck in the waters surrounding the San Juan Islands early Monday morning. The 4.5 magnitude earthquake hit at 5:02 a.m. just off Deer Beach on Orcas Island, according to the United States Geologic Survey.

Trump Moves to Increase Logging in National Forests
The president wants to circumvent environmental regulations to expand timber production, something sought by homebuilders and the construction industry.

How Trump’s firing of Forest Service staff affects recreation in WA
The Trump administration’s February dismissal of 125 U.S. Forest Service personnel in Washington, coupled with a Biden administration decision not to hire seasonal employees, amounts to a double whammy for the Evergreen State’s trails.

U.S. tariffs on Canada set to take effect today. How will they affect B.C.?
The B.C. government has estimated that tariffs could lead to a cumulative loss of $69 billion in economic activity in the province between 2025 and 2028. It has also estimated that tariffs would result in 124,000 job losses by 2028, an annual decline in corporate profits of between $3.6 billion and $6.1 billion and a reduction in annual government revenue between $1.6 billion and $2.5 billion.

Documents reveal over 1,000 potential infractions left unchecked by B.C.’s energy regulator
Hidden records reveal a widespread pattern of lax enforcement of laws and regulations intended to protect the environment and communities.

Supreme Court strikes down EPA rules on discharge of water pollution
The justices ruled that the agency cannot impose generic prohibitions against violating water quality standards.

Climate, energy upheavals roil Northwest power market
Heat domes. Cold snaps. Winter storms — even as far away as Texas. Extreme weather events are roiling power markets and spiking power prices for energy providers and their customers.

Tariffs latest blow to newspaper industry; AI fears confirmed
Canada supplies most of the newsprint used in America and there’s no easy way for the U.S. to quickly replace its production. Hundreds of newspapers could close if the newsprint tariff continues for long.

Friday, February 28, 2025

Salish Sea News Week in Review February 28 2025

Aloha Skip the Straw Day
The Coral Keepers, a group of nine eighth grade students at Whitehall Middle School in Whitehall, Michigan, founded National Skip the Straw Day with their advisor, Susan Tate, in 2017, "to encourage Americans to give up the straw habit and help spread awareness about the damage caused by disposable plastics." National Skip the Straw Day encourages people to switch to renewable straws or to forgo straws altogether when drinking on the day—or on any day.

Trump wants B.C.’s water: Plausible or one big pipe dream?
The U.S. president has made inaccurate comments in the past that California’s drought could be solved by turning on a Canadian “faucet.”

Which US companies are pulling back on diversity initiatives?
Pepsi, Goldman Sachs, Google, Target, Meta Platforms, Amazon, McDonald's, Walmart, Ford, Lowe's, Harley-Davidson, Brown Foreman (Jack Daniels), John Deere, Tractor Supply.

Can this 'burnt toast'-like substance be a key tool in the fight against climate change?
Companies and countries are turning to biochar, and some people are making it in their own backyard.

Where the Savior Fish Still Swims
In an era of collapse, a fabled fish keeps coming back to Nisg̱a’a nation.

What climate change means for bird flu — and the soaring price of eggs
Extreme weather is shifting the migratory patterns of birds, increasing the chances of deadly avian flu outbreaks on farms.

Coastal Peregrine Falcons’ Mysterious Decline
In North America, coastal populations of the once-embattled bird are missing, and no one is quite sure why.

Oil major BP to slash renewable spending and double down on fossil fuels in strategy reset
British oil major BP on Wednesday announced plans to increase annual oil and gas investment to $10 billion through 2027 as part of a fundamental strategic reset.

EPA urges White House to strike down landmark climate finding
Trump officials are weighing whether to repeal the “endangerment finding,” which says that greenhouse gases pose a threat to public health and welfare.

USDA rolls out $1B plan to fight bird flu after egg prices rise
The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced Wednesday it plans to spend up to $1 billion in Commodity Credit Corporation funds to try to reduce the spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza in poultry.

Friday, February 21, 2025

Salish Sea News Week in Review February 21 2025

Aloha Peace Symbol Friday!

The peace symbol was designed on Feb. 21, 1958 by Gerald Holtom, a professional designer and artist and a graduate of the Royal College of Arts for the British . He was a conscientious objector who had worked on a farm in Norfolk during the Second World War, and explained that the symbol incorporated the semaphore letters N(uclear) and D(isarmament).

Bonneville Power staff departures under President Trump raise concerns about Northwest electrical grid
Linemen, engineers among hundreds of staff to leave Bonneville Power Administration as Trump trims workforce.

Canada recognizes Aboriginal title over Haida Gwaii off B.C. in historic agreement
The federal government will recognize Aboriginal title over the archipelago of Haida Gwaii off British Columbia's northern coast in a historic agreement with the Haida First Nation.

The feds tried to hold the line in an invasive species battle — and lost. What’s next?
Riding Mountain National Park was the frontline of the westward invasion, but Parks Canada now says stopping zebra mussels at the park is ‘no longer an achievable option.’

A beloved forest reserve in King County is expanded
As one of his first official acts as commissioner of public lands, Dave Upthegrove on Feb. 4 led the state Board of Natural Resources in unanimous approval of the expansion of DNR’s West Tiger Mountain Natural Resources Conservation Area.

Trump’s job cuts lead to closed trails, staff shortages in WA
Federal workers in the Pacific Northwest who protect water and air quality and keep public lands open and clean are among the thousands fired without cause as President Donald Trump slashes jobs across the country.

Eby vows to cut ‘red tape’ for B.C. resource and energy projects — citing tariff threats
B.C. MLAs returned to the legislature today for a throne speech that centred the NDP’s push to speed up permits for LNG and other projects.

Scientists at U.S. weather forecasting agency ordered to get clearance before talking to Canadian counterparts
Former official says NOAA workforce could be halved, sending ripple effects around the world.

For 60 years, this Canada-U.S. treaty governed money, power and a river. With Trump's threats, what now?
Columbia River Treaty compensates Canada to manage waterway for U.S. hydropower, flood control.

Microsoft Says It Has Created a New State of Matter to Power Quantum Computers
Microsoft’s new “topological qubit” is not based on a solid, liquid or gas. It is another phase of matter that many experts did not think was possible.