Salish Sea News Week in Review March 26 2021

Aloha Spinach Friday!
Spinach is a leafy green flowering plant native to central and western Asia. Its leaves are a common edible vegetable consumed either fresh, or after storage using preservation techniques by canning, freezing, or dehydration...The comics and cartoon character Popeye the Sailor Man has been portrayed since 1931 as having a strong affinity for spinach, particularly the canned variety. He becomes physically stronger after consuming it. This is usually attributed to the iron content of spinach, but in a 1932 strip, Popeye says "spinach is full of vitamin A an' tha's what makes hoomans strong and helty." Wikipedia

Samish Island, Stillaguamish delta salt marsh projects get federal funding
From the shores of Samish Island in northwest Skagit County to the Stillaguamish River delta to the south, coastal wetland projects recently secured grant funding.

For BC’s Two Pipeline Fights, It’s Spring Forward
TMX and Coastal GasLink face resurging opposition across the province as Trudeau invites Biden to talk climate change.

Washington ‘HEAL’ Act would steer key state agencies toward environmental justice
The Washington Healthy Environment for All Act, or "HEAL Act," has passed the state Senate and is working its way through the House. Its aim is to implement the recommendations from an environmental justice task force that wrapped up its work last summer..

Amid climate crisis, a proposal to save Washington state forests for carbon storage, not logging
Hilary Franz, state commissioner of public lands, is kicking off an examination over the next three to four months of all older forests on DNR lands west of the Cascades not already in conservation status — about 10,000 acres --to evaluate alternative uses to logging, including biodiversity, carbon storage, water quality and recreation.

7 years ago: ‘We waved hello, not realizing it was a goodbye’
March 22 is a day of mourning and remembrance for many in north Snohomish County. Forty-three people perished in the 2014 Oso mudslide.

Thousands of dead herring dumped off coast of Vancouver Island, conservationists say
A conservation group that's long opposed the B.C. herring fishery says it suspects a fishing vessel has dumped a load of the small fish in Deep Bay, near Bowser on Vancouver Island.

17 is too many hours to wait during a disaster. Thanks to coastal First Nations, that’s changing
Four years after a diesel spill in Heiltsuk territory, the nation, the Canadian Coast Guard and Transport Canada have reached an agreement to form an Indigenous marine response team.

Prominent Oregon scientist returns to White House duty with new climate role
Jane Lubchenco, a well-known Oregon State University distinguished professor and a former Obama administration official, has been appointed a top climate change science role under President Joe Biden.

Environmental justice moves to mainstream as governments embrace cause
Washington state’s five oil refineries all sit near, or on, Indian reservations. Environmental justice advocates say that fact reflects a national pattern of air pollution disproportionately hitting people of color.

Conservationists sue to save spotted owl logging protections
Environmental groups have filed a lawsuit seeking to preserve protections for 3.4 million acres (1.4 million hectares) of northern spotted owl habitat from the US-Canada border to northern California,

Canada’s Supreme Court rules carbon price constitutional. Here’s what you need to know
In a 6-3 decision, the country’s highest court has ruled the federal price on carbon, which affects both consumers and large industrial emitters, does not violate the rights of individual provinces and is a critical response to the existential threat of climate change.

Northwest tribes call for removal of Lower Snake River dams
Tribal leaders from Washington and Oregon are calling on Congress and the Biden administration to remove the four dams on the Lower Snake River.

British Columbians in for a big adjustment with Aboriginal title settlement, lawyer says
British Columbians are in for a big shock when ownership of large parts of the province switches from the Crown to First Nations, says Aboriginal rights and title lawyer Jack Woodward.

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, send your name and email to msato (@) salishseacom.com. Your email information is never shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.

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