Salish Sea Communications: December 2023

Friday, December 29, 2023

Salish Sea News Week in Review December 29 2023

A newborn orca surfaces next to orca J40 in central Puget Sound
on Dec. 26, 2023 [Maya Sears, under NMFS Permit 27052]

For the New Year! Newborn orca spotted near Seattle off Bainbridge Island
Beachgoers and whale researchers were excited to spot a newborn calf swimming with the Northwest’s endangered orcas on Tuesday near Seattle. On Wednesday, the Center for Whale Research confirmed that the baby orca is the newest member of J pod, one of the Northwest’s three family groups of the endangered killer whales known as the southern residents.

Endangered Species Act’s 50th anniversary: What 6 NW animals can tell us
The ESA turns 50 this month, and if beating extinction is the measure, the law has been a success. Of the more than 1,600 U.S. species listed for protection since the act’s inception, 99% have been rescued from the oblivion of extinction.

Two accidents in one year show risks of oil industry to tribal nations, environment
All of Washington state’s oil refineries are near or on tribal reservations.

Baby boom of 59 pups helps endangered B.C. marmot toward recovery
Thanks to the new pups, there's been a 50 per cent increase in the total population since the end of last year, when there were 204 marmots.

Lummi Nation opposes BP's oil plans for Cherry Point
The Lummi Nation is voicing its opposition to British Petroleum's goal of expanding oil operations at Cherry Point, near Ferndale, Washington, north of Bellingham. The Lummi call this area "Xwe’chi’eXen," consider it a cultural and archaeological site where many of its ancestors lay, and also argues that BP's industrial operations would interfere with its fishing rights.

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, December 22, 2023

Salish Sea News Week in Review December 22 2023

Aloha Winter Solstice Friday!
The winter solstice, also called the hibernal solstice, occurs when either of Earth's poles reaches its maximum tilt away from the Sun. This happens twice yearly, once in each hemisphere. In reality, the Oak King has defeated the Holly King, bringing light, renewal and growth.

Washington lags behind in water-pollution oversight
The GAO report found that the Washington State Department of Ecology, the agency responsible for submitting the lists, has been missing deadlines for a decade.

Trans Mountain warns regulator of potential ‘catastrophic’ two-year pipeline delay
The company building the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion is warning the project’s completion could be delayed by two years if the Canada Energy Regulator does not allow a previously rejected request for a pipeline variance. Regulator denied Trans Mountain variance request due to pipeline safety concerns
The Canada Energy Regulator is citing safety concerns with the quality of materials Trans Mountain has procured to construct the variance, adding it doesn't believe the company has demonstrated it can guarantee an appropriate level of safety and pipeline integrity if it goes ahead with the change.

WA’s new wildfire smoke exposure rules for workers start Jan. 15
The Washington Department of Labor & Industries announced it will enforce new permanent wildfire smoke protections for outdoor workers starting Jan. 15, after two years of operating under emergency measures.

Debate intensifies over conservation of PNW’s old-growth forests
The fight over the future of the last old and mature forests in America intensified Tuesday when the Biden administration called for preservation of old-growth trees. The administration, after creating an inventory of the nation’s old growth, wants to amend 128 forest land-management plans to conserve and steward 25 million acres of old-growth forests and 68 million acres of mature forest across the national forest system.

Canada lays out plan to phase out sales of gas-powered cars, trucks by 2035
New regulations being published this week by Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault will effectively end sales of new passenger vehicles powered only by gasoline or diesel in 2035.

Analysis of Northwest, other salmon hatcheries finds nearly all hurt wild salmon populations
More than 200 studies across 40 years revealed large-scale salmon hatchery programs weaken wild salmon diversity and lead to wild population declines.

State finalizes new protections for Cascade River
The state Department of Ecology announced Monday that it will officially add protections to three rivers and one lake, classifying them as Outstanding Resource Waters. The four bodies of water include the upper watershed of the Cascade River in Skagit County, as well as the upper watershed of the Green River in Skamania County, the Napeequa River in Chelan County and Soap Lake in Grant County.

Toxic chemicals found in oil spills and wildfire smoke detected in killer whales
Toxic chemicals produced from oil emissions and wildfire smoke have been found in muscle and liver samples from Southern Resident killer whales and Bigg's killer whales. A study https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-023-45306-w published today in Scientific Reports is the first to find polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in orcas off the coast of British Columbia, as well as in utero transfer of the chemicals from mother to fetus.

In a major shift, Northwest tribes — not US officials — will control salmon recovery funds
The deal not only offers $1 billion in new funding for Columbia River salmon restoration, but for the first time it also grants states and tribes control — not the Bonneville Power Administration, which sells hydropower from Northwest dams — over how that money gets spent.

Two PNW tribal nations sue oil companies over costs of climate change
Major oil companies for decades deliberately sought to downplay and discredit scientific warnings about the central role of fossil fuels in causing climate change, alleges two lawsuits filed this week by the Makah and Shoalwater Bay tribes.

Friday, December 15, 2023

Salish Sea News Week in Review December 15 2023

Aloha Bill of Rights Friday!
On December 15, 1791, Virginia ratified the first ten amendments of the Constitution. Known as the Bill of Rights, the first ten amendments outline the rights of citizens vis-à-vis the federal government. They guarantee that citizens have civil rights and liberties such as freedom of speech, press, and religion; they establish rules for due process of law; they confirm that citizens have rights beyond those spelled out in the Constitution; and they affirm that powers not delegated to the federal government are left to the people and states. It is on today's anniversary of the ratification and implementation of the Bill of Rights that we celebrate Bill of Rights Day.

Washington State residents ask: What is our wildlife agency for?
Public backlash over a new policy reveals a deeper divide over the future of conservation.

How WA’s king tides amp up flood risks amid global sea level rise
Last winter, when the king tide rolled in with heavy rains and an extreme low-pressure system, water from the Duwamish River rushed into Seattle’s South Park neighborhood, flooding homes, sparking broader evacuations and catching the city off guard. Decades ago that flood would have been thought unlikely, perhaps even statistically impossible, But no more.

Olympic Pipeline leak released 25,000 gallons of gasoline
A small tube between the main portion of the Olympic Pipeline and a pressure-check valve failed Sunday in the Skagit Valley, spilling gasoline into nearby creeks not far from Mount Vernon. About 30,660 gallons were released when a tube — 3/8 of an inch in diameter — failed.

18 California children are suing the EPA over climate change
Eighteen California children are suing the Environmental Protection Agency, claiming it violated their constitutional rights by failing to protect them from the effects of climate change. This is the latest in a series of climate-related cases filed on behalf of children.

Dredging Neah Bay Entrance Channel will improve Strait of Juan de Fuca, Salish Sea oil spill response
A hydraulic pipeline dredge will deepen the 4,500-foot entrance channel to -21 feet from its current depth, allowing unrestricted access for ocean-going tugs, barges, and larger ships transiting Neah Bay during low tide.

Mlitary testing reveals hundreds of drinking water wells contaminated with PFAS in WA
Hundreds of drinking water wells near military bases or other facilities in Washington have been contaminated by per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, according to a Seattle Times analysis of the past two years of test results published by the military.

Climate talks end on a first-ever call for the world to move away from fossil fuels
In the final weeks of the hottest year in recorded history, the international body responsible for limiting global warming and its disastrous effects called on countries to transition away from the chief cause of climate change – fossil fuels – for the first time.

Arctic "report card" points to rapid and dramatic impacts of climate change
The Arctic is warming nearly four times faster than the global average as a result of human-caused climate change, driven primarily by burning fossil fuels, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's annual Arctic Report Card, released Tuesday.

Washington raises $2B in first year of carbon pollution auctions
Washington raised another $373.6 million in its final carbon auction of 2023, bringing the total to slightly more than $2 billion in the first year of the state cap-and-invest program, the Ecology Department announced Wednesday.

The future of ‘cap-and-trade’ carbon markets could hinge on Washington state
Washington state is facing backlash over the program’s perceived contribution to high gas prices. A voter initiative that’s likely to be on the ballot next year, stoked by anger over prices at the pump, threatens to repeal it altogether.

Friday, December 8, 2023

Salish Sea News Week in Review December 8 2023

The hanukkiah

Aloha Hanukkah Friday!
A Hanukkah menorah, or hanukkiah,is a nine-branched candelabrum lit during the eight-day Jewish holiday of Hanukkah. Eight of the nine branches hold lights (candles or oil lamps) that symbolize the eight nights of the holiday; on each night, one more light is lit than the previous night, until on the final night all eight branches are ignited. The ninth branch holds a candle, called the shamash ("helper" or "servant"), which is used to light the other eight.

B.C. environment minister hails climate progress but advocates say LNG growth risks it all
B.C.'s environment minister says 2023's progress report on greenhouse gas reductions shows the NDP government's climate plan is working but environmental groups warn continued development of the liquefied natural gas sector could reverse those reductions.

WA state employee files claim over order to falsify fuel forecast
A recently retired state economist has filed a complaint against the Washington State Department of Transportation, alleging he was ordered not to include Washington’s cap-and-invest costs in an early 2023 revenue forecast.

Industrial site in Whatcom County penalized $900,000 for dangerous waste violations
After two multi-million-dollar federal cleanups on the toxic polluted site owned by Trefoil in Whatcom County, the state Department of Ecology has issued a $900,000 penalty to the property owners, Jagroop S. Gill and Campbell Land Corporation (collectively referred to as Treoil), for failure to comply with Washington’s dangerous waste laws.

Feds propose shooting one owl to save another in Pacific Northwest
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is proposing to enlist shooters to kill more than 500,000 barred owls over the next 30 years in the Pacific Northwest to preserve habitat for northern spotted owls, a protected species.

Canada thinks LNG exports can reduce carbon pollution. Now it’s digging for proof
Oil and gas industry lobbyists have long pushed a controversial theory that exports of Canadian LNG could actually help lower global greenhouse gas emissions by displacing more carbon-intensive energy sources like coal.

Huge spike in herring killed in B.C. salmon farm operations: DFO data
Some juvenile herring caught in salmon hydrolicing are having their eyes blown out, says conservation group.

WA proposes ban on ‘forever chemicals’ in clothes, other products
The Washington State Department of Ecology has proposed bans and new reporting requirements for toxic chemicals used to repel water, heat and fuel in some clothing, firefighting gear and cleaning products.

Friday, December 1, 2023

Salish Sea News Week in Review December 1 2023

Aloha Rosa Parks Friday!
Rosa Parks Day celebrates the legacy of Rosa Parks, a woman who is a symbol of equality, civil rights, and the American Civil Rights Movement. The holiday is celebrated on December 1, the anniversary of the date in 1955 on which she refused to give up her seat on a bus in Montgomery, Alabama. On that day, Rosa Parks was riding a Montgomery bus home from her department store job, where she worked as a seamstress. She was seated in the front row designated for black people, and when some white passengers boarded the bus and had to stand, the bus driver, James F. Blake, moved back by a row the sign that separated the races and told four black riders in the row to move back. Three complied, but Rosa Parks would not. Blake called the police and Parks was arrested. She had violated Chapter 6, Section 11 of the Montgomery City Code. Rosa Parks's refusal to give up her seat sparked the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Rosa Parks Day is also celebrated on her birthday, February 4.

West Coast toxic hot spots threaten endangered salmon and killer whales
Newly identified toxic metal hot spots on the West Coast further threaten endangered killer whales and their key food source, a recent study shows.

Group wants herring fishery pause in Strait of Georgia
Saanich Inlet Protection Society wants the allowable catch to be zero and a recovery plan for some areas of the strait.

Incoming: King tides to Puget Sound
The highest tides of the year are on their way. “King tides” are expected in Puget Sound on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday mornings (Nov. 25-28). King tides come every November, December, and January, when the moon, sun, and earth line up just right...The Olympia and Shelton areas get the highest tides on Puget Sound, just as the end of a bathtub gets the highest sloshing. John Ryan reports. (KUOW)

Eelgrass Is Amazing. Here’s Who’s Saving It
When her daughters were young, Dianne Sanford toted them to the beach to wade alongside her in the dense eelgrass meadows growing just off the shores of where they lived in Delta, B.C...Beginning in 2002, Sanford has dedicated much of her life to mapping once-abundant eelgrass and its decline. In a “piecemeal” fashion, she surveyed roughly 80 per cent of B.C.’s coastline from Gibsons to Pender Harbour.

U.S. government invests $11M in Washington conservation efforts
The U.S. Interior Department announced this week $11 million in grants for conservation projects in Washington state. The federal grants are part of the “America the Beautiful Challenge” to restore land and water across the nation.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service lists wolverines as ‘threatened’ under Endangered Species Act
After more than two decades of petitions by wildlife conservation groups, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has listed wolverines as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act.

Stanley Park is set to lose 25 per cent of its trees due to infestation
160,000 trees to be removed over next few years due to hemlock looper moth infestation.

Feds consider removing Snake River dams in leaked agreement with plaintiffs in lawsuit
The Biden administration and federal agencies are prepared to remove four lower Snake River dams to save imperiled salmon species, according to a leaked proposal among parties in a federal lawsuit and the administration’s environmental council.