Salish Sea Communications: April 2022

Friday, April 29, 2022

Salish Sea News Week in Review April 29 2022

Aloha Arbor Friday!
Many holidays commemorate some event from the past, but National Arbor Day is about investing in the future. It focuses on the care and preservation of existing trees, as well as on the planting of new ones. Appropriately, it takes place during a time of the year when it is favorable to plant trees in most parts of the United States. The holiday's name comes from the Latin word arbor, which means tree. In 1594, the mayor of the Spanish village of Mondoñedo organized a tree-planting festival—the first festival of its kind. Another Spanish village, Villanueva de la Sierra, held the first Arbor Day in 1805.

How to Decolonize Conservation
Drawing on examples from existing conservation projects and their own experiences, Indigenous researchers are unpacking what a decolonized approach to environmental protection should look like.

Unicorns and explosives: a burning ship off Victoria’s coast hints at the dangerous secrets of cargo carriers
More than 100 sea cans were lost in B.C. waters after a storm wracked the Zim Kingston last fall. Bigger vessels, weighed down with more goods, are making shipping riskier.

Biden unveils protection plan for old-growth forest during Seattle visit
On Friday, President Joe Biden marked Earth Day at Seattle’s Seward Park — home to some of the oldest stands of trees left in the city — where he announced and signed an executive order meant to protect old-growth forests on federal lands.

A half-million tires in Puget Sound are leeching harmful substances. Here’s how to help
Tires with toxic substances lurk in Washington waters, harming the wildlife and creating a problem that needs to be cleaned up.

Olympic Peninsula glaciers expected to disappear in 50 years
The Olympic Peninsula has lost 45% of its glacier coverage since 1980, according to a new study by Fountain and coauthors from Washington state and British Columbia.

Rare cold-water coral garden in peril on B.C. coast
A remarkable coral garden tucked away in a remote inlet on B.C.’s wild central coast is in danger unless the federal government takes immediate steps to save it from destruction before the prawn fishing season gets underway, conservationists say.

Totem Pole Journey will make a stop on the UO campus
Led by members of the Lummi Nation and the House of Tears Carvers, the Totem Pole Journey is a Pacific Northwest community experience that engages participants through ceremony, art, science, ancestral knowledge and cross-cultural collaboration.

Federal court overturns order to shut down salmon farms
Former federal Fisheries and Oceans Minister Bernadette Jordan breached the rights of B.C. salmon farmers to procedural fairness when she ordered all salmon farms out of the Discovery Islands, a Federal Court judge has ruled

'Let's bring her home'; Hopes renewed to bring Tokitae the orca back to Puget Sound
A team of independent veterinarians has been invited to the Miami Seaquarium to examine Tokitae the orca, and many are hoping she is in good health to one day return to Puget Sound.

King County tore out a levee near Auburn. Now the salmon are returning
The removal of the levee opened three channels previously blocked from the river and a flood plain spanning nearly 30 acres.

B.C. First Nations receive $63M boost in forestry revenue sharing
B.C. First Nations are getting a bigger cut of forestry profits after the province announced an increase to existing revenue sharing agreements.

Months after mass die-off of sea creatures in B.C. heat dome, researchers return in search of signs of life
Ten months after the catastrophe on B.C.'s shores, the researchers have returned to comb B.C.'s beaches, checking for signs that the vital populations of seaweed, crustaceans and shellfish native to the coast are seeing a resurgence.

Research highlights a choice about the fate of ocean life
“Avoiding Ocean Mass Extinction From Climate Warming” published in Science... is the latest research that crystallizes the powerful yet paralyzed moment in which humanity finds itself.

Scientists race to rescue world’s fastest sea star from oblivion
Scientists are racing to revive a critically endangered species that has succumbed to a mysterious underwater pandemic up and down the West Coast.

Environmental groups sue Canadian government over B.C. bird
As few as 263,000 marbled murrelets are left, including at least 50,000 in British Columbia.

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 mikesato772 at gmail.com. Your email information is never shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.

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Friday, April 22, 2022

Salish Sea News Week in Review April 22 2022

Aloha Earth Day Friday!
The first Earth Day was held on April 22, 1970. Democratic Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin was deeply concerned about environmental issues. After witnessing the Santa Barbara oil spill in 1969, he began planning for the first Earth Day. Twenty million people participated during the first year. Nelson's goal of a shift in national priorities soon came to fruition. The Environmental Protection Agency was created by the end of the year. Earth Day also helped bring about the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act and the Endangered Species Act. All of these pieces of legislation were passed within three years of the first Earth Day.

The retreating glaciers of Puget Sound
Puget Sound's glaciers are melting rapidly due to climate change. The North Cascades mountains have lost about 56% of their glacial ice while estimates show that glaciers in the Olympics could be gone within the next 50 years.

Oregon’s Intertidal Ecosystem Is Approaching a Tipping Point
Oregon’s intertidal ecosystems are recovering from disturbance more slowly than they were even a few years ago.

B.C. Hydro failing to live up to environmental obligations, say conservationists
B.C. Wildlife Federation is calling for an audit claiming money for habitat restoration is going elsewhere.

Climate change is killing Northwest salmon, scientists warn
With summer fast approaching, local environmentalists are sending a warning about the impact severe heat has on salmon in the Northwest.

Wave of pollution from cruise ships expected regardless of new federal wastewater rules
Environmental groups are hoisting red flags as the cruise ship season relaunches after the easing of COVID restrictions on the West Coast despite Ottawa’s recent announcement it will roll out stricter wastewater dumping rules.

Biden restores climate safeguards in key environmental law, reversing Trump
A rule finalized Tuesday by the White House will require agencies to assess climate impact of roads, pipelines and other infrastructure. Dino Grandoni and Anna Phillips report.

B.C. conservation group moves thousands of salmon that will produce millions of eggs
Members of the Mill Bay Conservation Society, a group of volunteers near Kulchyski’s home, 50 kilometres north of Victoria, have taken the fish into their own hands — literally.

Biden to issue Earth Day order to safeguard old-growth forests
President Biden will sign an Earth Day executive order on Friday in Seattle laying the groundwork for protecting for some of the biggest and oldest trees in America’s forests, according to several individuals briefed on the decision.

No timeline for removal of 5,000-tonne barge washed up for months on Vancouver beach
Permits are not in place to allow company to cut up barge and take it away for recycling.

Friday, April 15, 2022

Salish Sea News Week in Review April 15 2022

Aloha Jackie Robinson Day!
Jackie Robinson Day is a traditional event which occurs annually on April 15 in Major League Baseball, commemorating and honoring the day Jackie Robinson made his major league debut. Jackie Robinson broke the baseball color barrier on April 15, 1947.

State says Washington’s wolf population grew 16% last year
Washington’s wolf population grew in 2021 for the 13th consecutive year, showing a 16% increase from the previous year, the state Department of Fish and Wildlife said.

WA State Parks funds $700K for floating restroom, pump-out projects
Washington State Parks is funding $700,000 in new floating restroom and pump-out projects statewide to make disposing of sewage easier for recreational boaters.

Seattle developer pushes for WA’s first floating offshore wind farm off Olympic Peninsula
Trident Winds, a wind energy developer based in Seattle, submitted an unsolicited lease request Monday to the Bureau of Ocean and Energy Management to build a floating offshore wind farm — the state’s first — about 43 miles off the coast of the Olympic Peninsula, near Grays Harbor.

April storm improves 2022 PNW water outlook, drought remains
Climatologists say rare April snow along with rain sweeping across the Pacific Northwest this week could increase water supplies, slow snow melt and lengthen the irrigation season.

What our poop tells us: Wastewater surveillance examines what most of us would prefer to flush and forget
You've probably taken part in one of the new frontiers of public health research: wastewater surveillance. All that's needed is a sample from down the drain: pee or poop.

Log supply in B.C. forests slowly dwindling, warns think tank
The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives says in a new report that logging companies in B.C. are quickly cutting down available trees in the province, and that supply is dwindling.

Black Washingtonians face many barriers to experiencing the outdoors, state report says
A recent survey by the Black Washingtonians Workgroup on Outdoor Recreation found fewer than 1.5% of State Parks visitors are Black. Some barriers included safety concerns, a lack of access to transportation, and access to outdoor equipment, which can be expensive.

$5M dream plan to create French Creek eagle sanctuary becomes a reality
The combined efforts of environmental groups, individuals and local governments have successfully raised the funds needed to purchase the French Creek Estuary, to be preserved as an eagle sanctuary.

Why a federal salmon study that found viruses at B.C. fish farms took 10 years to be released
For ten years, Kristi Miller-Saunders could not fully disclose the results of her study that showed a virus spreading among fish-farmed salmon in British Columbia.

Friday, April 8, 2022

Salish Sea News Week in Review April 8, 2022

Aloha Feng Shui Friday
Feng shui, also known as Chinese geomancy, is an ancient Chinese traditional practice which claims to use energy forces to harmonize individuals with their surrounding environment. The term feng shui means, literally, "wind-water". (Wikipedia)

The battle for your toilet paper is on
Early in the pandemic, toilet paper shortages pushed weary Americans to the fringes. Out of necessity, millions tried rolls made from recycled paper or bamboo. And what they found surprised them.

Dismal B.C. herring season sparks renewed calls for moratorium
Three days after setting his nets out in the Strait of Georgia between B.C.'s mainland and Vancouver Island, Josh Young headed back home to Pender Harbour. The herring he was expecting to catch were nowhere to be found.

B.C. government announces additional logging deferrals for at-risk old-growth trees
Approximately 1.05 million hectares of forests that are most at risk of irreversible loss will now be off limits to logging for at least two years, nearly half of what was determined to be at high risk by a scientific panel in November of 2021.

Judge rules against Navy SEAL training at Washington State Parks
The Navy SEALs won’t be able to use Washington State Parks as training grounds. A judge on Friday ruled against an earlier decision to allow the training at up to 28 parks.

Washington wants drivers to plug into clean cars by 2030 before other West Coast states
The Washington Legislature just approved a goal that all new cars sold in the state beginning with model year 2030 be electric. Oregon and California have 2035 as their target.

First-of-its-kind stormwater ‘heat map’ lights up pollutants fouling waters in Washington state
...[A] first-of-its-kind interactive Stormwater Heatmap is making stormwater pollution visible across the 16,700-square-mile watershed that drains into Seattle’s Puget Sound.

Supreme Court reinstates Trump-era water rule, for now
The Supreme Court has reinstated for now a Trump-era rule that curtails the power of states and Native American tribes to block pipelines and other energy projects that can pollute rivers, streams and other waterways.

For the first time, researchers find microplastics deep in the lungs of living people
Researchers say they have found microplastics — tiny pieces of plastic debris that come as a result of the disposal of industrial waste — deep in the lungs of living humans for the first time.

WA to preserve 10,000 acres of trees to sell as carbon credits to polluters
Under a new policy announced by the Washington Dept. of Natural Resources, trees in portions of state forests will be preserved as part of the state’s new, 10,000-acre “carbon reserve.” The state intends to lease the trees as carbon credits to emitters of greenhouse gases that cause global warming.

Royal Bank defends funding B.C.'s Coastal GasLink pipeline despite environmental concerns
Royal Bank of Canada's chief executive defended the bank's funding of the Coastal GasLink pipeline Thursday and called for incentives to help the shift to a net-zero economy, as investors and Indigenous groups denounced its support of fossil fuels.

Friday, April 1, 2022

Salish Sea News Week in Review April 1 2022

Aloha Spaghetti Tree Friday!
Robert Couse-Baker writes: "With the unusually mild winter, we were able to have our first harvest of spaghetti this morning. Seriously, there’s nothing like spaghetti fresh off the tree! Northern California’s spaghetti is a legacy of the Swiss-Italians who settled the San Francisco Bay Area in the late 19th century, operating dairy ranches and vineyards. Naturally, when they came to California, these pioneers brought their beloved spaghetti. The most common vinestock of Spaghetti trees in Northern California, (Iocari stultus var. flicrus ), traces its lineage to the shores of Lake Lugano in the southern Swiss canton of Ticino. This bountiful tree was first planted here in the early 1890s during the founding of the Italian Swiss Colony in Sonoma County. Last year’s cold, frosty winter mostly left us with capellini and spaghettini, if spring continues like this, we might even see Vermicelli before summer! We’re quite happy for the joy our little tree provides every year at this time. (Wikipedia)

Electron Dam owners settle with conservation groups, Puyallup Tribe case pending
The operators of the Electron Dam on the Puyallup River are under court order to stop killing endangered fish. A settlement reached on Friday with a coalition of conservation groups prevents the project from re-starting unless or until they have addressed illegal impacts to federally-protected native species.

Woodfibre LNG announces $625 million budget for this year, possibility of final investment decision soon
Woodfibre LNG, a Vancouver-based private subsidiary of Singapore’s Pacific Energy Corp., appears to be gearing up for another construction start, announcing that it has an approved budget this year of $625 million.

New orca listening post installed in deep water of Puget Sound
Over the side it goes with a splash: three ears pricked for the sounds of orcas, and the noise that threatens their survival. In the deep, this trio of hydrophones rests on the sea bottom, recording the sounds of the Sound, including endangered southern resident orcas.

Sea lice are becoming more resistant to pesticides — that’s a problem for B.C.’s beleaguered salmon farms
Open-net fish pens are the perfect breeding grounds for the parasites, which feast on the mucus, skin and flesh of wild salmon, causing infection and even death.

Taylor's checkspot butterfly, once rare, making a comeback
A rare butterfly thought to be extinct in Canada for more than three decades is making a comeback on Vancouver Island, and getting some human help on Hornby Island.

Canada releases plan for a 40 per cent cut in carbon emissions by 2030
Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault today released the government's plan to dramatically curb greenhouse gas emissions over the next eight years to meet ambitious 2030 reduction targets.

Canadian Banks Keep Financing Fossil Fuels
‘Gut wrenching’ report shows we’re going in the wrong direction to tackle climate emergency, despite Paris Agreement promises, say activists.

Northwest's freshwater mussels now 'screaming' for help
Almost every population of Northwest freshwater mussels is declining. Researchers hope to figure out what’s going on so they can save these keystone species.

‘Big victory’ for salmon habitat: Fish passage at dam on Green River gets $220M boost
Fish passage at the Howard Hanson Dam east of Auburn has received a $220 million federal funding boost that will help unlock more than 100 miles of salmon habitat on the Upper Green River.

EPA Proposes to Restore Protective Pollution Standards for Washington Waters
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on 3/29 announced a proposed rule to restore protective federal water quality standards for the state of Washington.