Salish Sea Communications: February 2023

Friday, February 24, 2023

Salish Sea News Week in Review February 24 2023

Aloha Twin Peaks Friday!
"Diane, it's 11:30 a.m., February 24th. Entering the town of Twin Peaks," FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper, played by Kyle MacLachlan, dictates into his tape recorder, as he makes his entrance into the town of Twin Peaks and into the television series of the same name. He's going to the town to investigate the murder of Laura Palmer, the homecoming queen, who mysteriously died earlier the same day. The year is 1989 and the date is February 24—a date that will later become known as Twin Peaks Day.

Washington state starts capping climate pollution from its biggest sources
A new cap on industrial emissions took effect on Jan. 1, and the state is now gearing up for its first auction of pollution allowances, which will force some major polluters to pay for every ton of carbon dioxide they emit, on Feb. 28.

Denman Island ferry-terminal expansion on hold
Protesters had been blocking the project at Gravelly Bay, which involved cutting down more than 100 trees.

PSE pushes to control new renewable energy projects in WA
Puget Sound Energy is pushing for legislation that would help it secure a large ownership stake in new renewable projects in the state.

Puget Sound Orcas are Starving. Is the Solution Shutting Down Alaskan Chinook Fisheries?
An estimated 97 percent of the Chinook caught by that Alaskan fishery spawn outside Alaska. Many of those fish might normally nourish the Southern Resident Killer Whales (SRKWs) – our Puget Sound orcas.

Fisheries Department says it will shut 15 salmon farms off B.C.'s coast to protect wild fish
Fisheries Minister Joyce Murray has announced the federal government will not renew licences for 15 open-net Atlantic salmon farms around British Columbia's Discovery Islands.

Lipid Content of Fraser River Chinook Salmon Is Lipid-rich and Energy Dense, Which Is Important for Killer Whales’ Diet
Not all Chinook salmon are created equal, which has a significant impact on the energy levels of southern resident killer whales.

How widespread are these toxic chemicals? They’re everywhere.
While concern about PFAS compounds, also known as “forever chemicals” because they break down very slowly, has largely focused on people, the pollutants have also been detected in wildlife.

Biosolids to be shipped to Nanaimo as tree fertilizer
Land application of the biosolids is something the Capital Regional District vowed it would never do since the early stages of the $775-million wastewater treatment plant.

Melanie Mark, 1st First Nations woman to serve in B.C. Legislature, delivers tearful resignation
Mark, MLA for Vancouver–Mount Pleasant, broke into tears and pulled no punches about her experiences in provincial politics, saying that "institutions fundamentally resist change ... particularly colonial institutions like this Legislative Assembly and government at large."

Hydropower in western U.S. resurges after hitting 20-year low
More snow and rain in 2022 fueled a 17% surge in power production in Washington, including a 19% increase at Grand Coulee Dam, the nation’s largest producer of hydropower.

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.

Salish Sea News: Communicate, Educate, Advocate

Salish Sea Communications: Truth Well Told

Thursday, February 16, 2023

Salish Sea News Week in Review February 17 2023

Aloha Cabbage Friday!
Cabbage is a hardy vegetable that grows especially well in fertile soils. There are various shades of green available, as well as red or purple types. Head shape varies from the standard round to flattened or pointed. Most varieties have smooth leaves, but the Savoy types have crinkly textured leaves. Cabbage is easy to grow if you select suitable varieties and practice proper culture and insect management. Always rega

The worst house guests: European green crabs are invading B.C. waters
A monumental effort is underway to contain the spiny creatures, the bodies of which are flash frozen and dumped at landfills or churned into compost. But one First Nation is arguing that, given the price of groceries, we should rethink the way we eradicate invasive, but edible, species.

‘Rights of nature’ movement gains steam in Pacific Northwest. Can it help species on the brink?
Seattle City Light wants to extend its license for three dams on the Skagit River for another three to five decades, and tribes and other environmental groups have been pushing the utility to do more for salmon.

Nuxalk Nation celebrates return of totem pole from museum
Just over three years have passed since hereditary chiefs travelled to the RBCM to seek the return of the pole, a second one and other artifacts.

News outlet, journalist suing RCMP after 2021 arrest at B.C. pipeline protest camp
A freelance photojournalist who was arrested in November 2021 at a resistance camp established by opponents of the Coastal GasLink pipeline west of Prince George, B.C., announced Monday that she, along with the news outlet The Narwhal, have filed a lawsuit against the RCMP in the wake of the incident.

TC Energy looking to complete Coastal GasLink pipeline by year end
Costs have more than doubled on the 670-kilometre natural gas pipeline and could increase up to a further $1.2 billion if construction is not completed this year.

B.C. expands old-growth logging deferral to 2.1 million hectares, promises greater First Nations collaboration
The British Columbia government announced new measures Wednesday it says will better protect old growth by working with First Nations while it ramps up investments to encourage innovation in an industry that has been plagued by job losses.

Denman Island protesters block ferry terminal expansion
On Monday, B.C. Ferries’ contractor from Campbell River was prevented from cutting down trees to make way for the expanded Gravelly Bay B.C. Ferries terminal.

Friday, February 10, 2023

Salish Sea News Week in Review February 10 2023

Aloha Umbrella Friday!
Umbrellas were used in ancient Greece, Rome, Egypt, India, and the Middle East, as early as the fourth century BCE. The first recorded collapsible umbrella dates to 21 CE in China. The canopies of ancient umbrellas were built with different materials than those that are used today, being made of feathers, leaves, and leather; however, their shape was reminiscent of today's umbrellas. The term more associated with the sunshade umbrella is the parasol.

Woodfibre LNG project near Squamish, B.C., seeks amendments to environmental assessment
A liquefied natural gas project that would produce around two million tonnes of the fossil fuel a year near Squamish, B.C. — about 64 kilometres north of Vancouver — for export is seeking changes from Environment and Climate Change Canada over how it is required to monitor for marine mammals affected by underwater noise, such as pile driving, during construction.

By 2050, Washington might need to buy energy from other states
If Washington reaches its goal of weaning itself from fossil fuels and continues its drive to replace gas-powered cars with electric vehicles, we will need to start importing electricity by 2050, according to calculations by the Washington Department of Commerce.

‘A century in the making’: Canada adds federal protection to Indigenous-declared marine refuge
When the Mamalilikulla First Nation unilaterally declared an Indigenous Protected and Conserved Area in their traditional territory in late 2021, it was as much to protect rare corals and sponges as reestablish connection to lands and waters from which the community had been forcefully removed. Now Canada is backing the nation, adding marine protections under federal law.

'A scientific sin': 16 Canadian salmon scientists claim DFO sea lice report was manipulated
16 scientists slam a recent DFO report that found salmon farms had an "insignificant" impact on wild salmon infestations — claiming the report's authors cherry-picked data, ignored scientific consensus and failed to consult with experts outside the department.

Pink sea urchins on the move, a sign of climate change
The pretty pink urchins that live in deep water off the coast of Vancouver Island are slowly but surely moving into shallower places as food sources and oxygen levels decline due to a warming ocean.

Big Oil walks back climate pledges as earnings show 2022 was their most profitable year ever
Financial results from the biggest energy companies in the world this week show that last year was their most profitable year ever, prompting many of them to scale back previous commitments to pivot more toward renewable energy.

Alberta is on a blitz to promote B.C.’s LNG industry. Critics say it’s time to ‘keep out’
Alberta’s energy war room campaign to promote the carbon-intensive LNG industry comes as B.C. admits it will miss emissions targets, even without accounting for new LNG.

‘We should avoid monitoring’: feds quietly backed off while Coastal GasLink pipeline work killed fish
For months, Fisheries and Oceans Canada wouldn’t say anything about its role in monitoring the Coastal GasLink pipeline and protecting fish habitat. Internal documents show the agency was keeping an eye on construction — until it wasn’t.

Corps’ BP Cherry Point limit no limit at all, environmental groups say
Environmental groups are unhappy with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ January 23 modification to its 1996 permit that limits the volume of crude oil BP can handle at its Cherry Point facility. They say the ceiling would allow the oil company to double its shipping capacity.

First Nations, B.C. groups launch coalition to save Pacific salmon from extinction
First Nations Fisheries Council of B.C. is joining with the Lower Fraser Fisheries Alliance, the Pacific Salmon Foundation, the First Nations Summit and the Upper Fraser Fisheries Conservation Alliance to find solutions to collapsing salmon runs.

Thursday, February 2, 2023

Salish Sea News Week in Review February 3 2023

Happy Birthday, Elmo!
Elmo is a red Muppet monster character on the long-running PBS/HBO children's television show Sesame Street. A furry red monster who has a falsetto voice and illeism, he hosts the last full five-minute segment on Sesame Street, "Elmo's World", which is aimed at toddlers.

Pacific salmon seem to be getting smaller. Here’s what that might mean for the future.
The number of salmon returning to Bristol Bay Alaska from the Pacific Ocean last year was higher than it’s been in at least 20 years. But the fish themselves are smaller. And that seems to be true for other salmon across the region.

Port acquisition marks next step in toxic cleanup on Everett waterfront
The Port of Everett voted earlier this month to accept a donation of private land adjacent to the contaminated former Jeld-Wen site — a donation port managers say will ensure environmental fallout from the site is properly managed when cleanup efforts begin, possibly by the end of 2023.

EPA blocks Alaska Pebble Mine in salmon-rich Bristol Bay region
The Environmental Protection Agency has blocked development of the Pebble Mine project in a corner of the Bristol Bay watershed, a vast and pristine swath of southwest Alaska that sustains the greatest sockeye salmon runs on the planet.

The U.S. reinstates road and logging restrictions on the largest national forest
A federal agency said Wednesday it is reinstating restrictions on road-building and logging on the country's largest national forest in southeast Alaska, the latest move in a long-running fight over the Tongass National Forest.

San Juan Islands National Monument
The Bureau of Land Management's San Juan Islands National Monument Resource Management Plan (RMP) and Record of Decision (ROD) is available to review on their ePlanning site at https://go.usa.gov/xucJE, establishing their long-term management goals for the area.

2 provincial parks in B.C. being considered as part of treaty settlement with First Nations
Two provincial parks in the southern Vancouver Island region may be returned to local First Nations as part of the modern treaty process. The Songhees and T'Sou-ke Nations are in the final negotiation stage of the B.C. Treaty Process.

Forestry industry sustainable management claim questioned
The Competition Bureau has opened an inquiry to see if forestry industry claims of sustainable management on vast stretches of Canadian woodlands are false advertising.

The cost of a controversial B.C. pipeline keeps rising, leading to plunging share prices
North American pipeline operator TC Energy Corp on Wednesday raised its cost estimate more than expected for completing its troubled Coastal GasLink project, sending share prices sharply lower.