Salish Sea News Week in Review November 30 2025

Aloha Rosa Parks Day!
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, on the date in 1955 on which she refused to give up her seat on a bus in Montgomery, Alabama.

Can a watershed have legal rights? The Snohomish River debate deepens
Snohomish County Superior Court Judge Jennifer Langbehn ruled Tuesday that a voter-approved initiative making the Snohomish River a “rights-bearing entity” and giving community members the right to go to court on the watershed’s behalf was invalid. 

Makah Tribe’s treaty-protected whaling rights remain blocked 
Despite the Makah Tribe’s success in getting a waiver to carry out their exclusive treaty right for whaling, the permitting process that had dragged on for over 20 years has now been effectively delayed another year and a half because of bogged-down federal bureaucracy.  

Pipeline fined $3.8 million for 2023 gasoline spill near Conway
Washington Department of Ecology has issued a $3.8 million penalty to Olympic Pipe Line Company LLC and BP Pipelines (North America) Inc. for the release of 21,000 gallons of gasoline from the Olympic Pipeline near Conway in December 2023, sending 4,000 gallons to a nearby fish-bearing stream and resulting in a school to close temporarily.

EPA to abandon air pollution rule that would prevent thousands of U.S. deaths
The Environmental Protection Agency will no longer defend Biden-era limits on fine-particle pollution, which causes heart and lung disease. 

Legal challenge looming as Island First Nation fights for BC’s herring stocks
First Nations and conservation groups in British Columbia are rallying for an immediate ban to herring fishing, warning the fish is vanishing from the Salish Sea — but the fisheries department insists the numbers tell a different story. 

Edmonds students win President’s Environmental Youth Award for their Salish Sea documentary
Four former Hazelwood Elementary fourth and fifth-grade students helped create a documentary highlighting the Edmonds Underwater Park, a marine protected area located just off the city’s shore.

Climate justice group Kicking Gas is expanding efforts to Snohomish County
The Whidbey Island-based climate justice group Kicking Gas is expanding its mission of helping households transition to electric appliances across Snohomish County, supporting the switch by covering up to 75% of installation costs. 

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)salish-current.org .Your email information is never shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.

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Salish Sea News Week in Review November 21 2025

 

Aloha Cranberry Friday!
Cranberries are a group of evergreen dwarf shrubs or trailing vines in the subgenus Oxycoccus of the genus Vaccinium. Cranberries are low, creeping shrubs or vines up to 2 meters long and 5 to 20 centimeters in height; they have slender stems that are not thickly woody and have small evergreen leaves. In 2020, the U.S., Canada, and Chile accounted for 97% of the world production of cranberries.

WA and Alaska halibut fishing crews see troubling signs
Halibut stocks have plunged from record highs of the 1990s across a broad range of the North Pacific. Halibut now appear to be at, or near, their lowest point of the past century. 

ICE looks to WA tribes to house detained immigrants 
As the Trump administration searches for more space to detain immigrants, it is approaching Washington tribes to see if they will participate. 

EPA moves to limit scope of clean water law to reduce amount of wetlands it covers
The Environmental Protection Agency announced Monday it is redefining the scope of the nation’s bedrock clean water law to significantly limit the wetlands it covers, building on a Supreme Court decision two years ago that removed federal protections for vast areas.

BC’s Flood Prevention Promises Remain Unfulfilled
Four years after flooding devastated several British Columbia communities, key government promises made in the wake of the disaster remain unfulfilled.

Jet fuel spill shuts down Northwest's main oil pipeline
Spill-response crews planned to start digging up a blueberry farm near Everett on Tuesday to find the cause of a jet-fuel spill that shut down the Pacific Northwest’s primary oil pipeline. The farm sits on the route of the Olympic Pipeline, a mostly underground, 400-mile system of pipes owned by BP.

Emergency declared as Northwest’s main oil pipeline shuts down again
The Northwest’s primary oil pipeline has shut down for the second time in a week, this time leading Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson to declare an emergency. 

Bear Gulch Fire fully contained after four months and 20,000 acres burned
The Bear Gulch Fire was 100% contained as of Nov. 6, according to the official fire update webpage managed by the USDA Forest Service. Since July 6, the human-caused fire has burned 20,232 acres in Olympic National Forest.

Trump administration seeks to roll back protections for imperiled species and habitat 
President Donald Trump’s administration moved Wednesday to roll back protections for imperiled species and the places they live, proposing elimination of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s “blanket rule” that automatically protects animals and plants when they are classified as threatened.

Seattle-bound barge loaded with containers and vehicles sinking off B.C. coast
A barge carrying numerous cargo containers is sinking in the waters off British Columbia's central coast, and the local First Nation says there is concern about possible pollution because it's unclear what's on board. 

Ocean acidification to hit Puget Sound harder, study says 
The waters of Puget Sound are more susceptible to ocean acidification and sliding faster into dangerous territory for its marine wildlife than other places around the world, a new study shows.

Trump administration announces plan for new oil drilling off the coasts of California and Florida
The Trump administration announced on Thursday new oil drilling off the California and Florida coasts for the first time in decades, advancing a project that critics say could harm coastal communities and ecosystems, as President Donald Trump seeks to expand U.S. oil production.

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)salish-current.com .Your email information is never shared and you can unsubscribe at any time.

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Salish Sea News Week in Review November 14 2025

Aloha Pickle Friday!

The term "pickles" is usually refers to cucumbers that are preserved in brine – salted water – with spices and herbs. In general, however, pickles are vegetables, fruits and other food items that are preserved in brine, salt and oil, or vinegar. The process is called pickling, and it kills bacteria in food, either by immersing them in an acidic solution, such as vinegar, or by fermentation. 

A visit to the pristine Western Arctic, which faces gas and oil drilling
Lynda Mapes discusses the trip she recently made to the Western Arctic, a vast region in the northernmost part of North America where the Trump administration plans to open for oil and gas drilling. 

Dave Upthegrove on land sales, federal funding cuts and wildfire immigration raids
Washington state’s new public lands commissioner came into office with his own ambitious agenda. It’s playing out against a shifting backdrop in D.C. 

Another humpback whale found dead in the Salish Sea
A humpback whale has been found dead in the Salish Sea, the second confirmed humpback death in coastal B.C. waters in just over two weeks. The whale was identified through photographs as Polyphemus (BCZ0342), a 21-year old humpback known to migrate to Hawaii. 

“I've been thinking about this possibility for 15 years": Killer whale experts make new discovery off North American coast
New research has revealed that West Coast transient killer whales – found from south-eastern Alaska to southern California – are two distinct communities that rarely encounter each other. 

Boaters witness epic orca hunt and rescue a seal in Puget Sound
A seal pursued by a Bigg's orca escaped by jumping into a boat where photographer Charvet Drucker caught the action. 

This lab is key for tracking deadly waves. Its sensors are about to go offline.
After NOAA ceased funding to the lab that’s been monitoring seismic activity for more than 25 years, nine stations tracking tsunami-causing earthquakes for the agency will go offline by the end of the month. 

B.C.’s century-long feast on big, old trees has sent forests into freefall 
A close look at the province’s old-growth data reveals a gap between political promises and what’s happening on the ground. 

Wildfire risk is making timberland less valuable
Longer harvest rotations are also becoming less feasible, meaning trees may have to be logged before their optimal age. 

How climate change is threatening the future of winter sport
Melting glacier at Whistler Blackcomb a stark reminder of the toll of a warming planet. 

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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Salish Sea News Week in Review November 7 2025

 

Happy Birthday, Joni!

Roberta Joan Mitchell (b. Nov. 7 1943) is a Canadian-American singer-songwriter, painter, and multi-instrumentalist. A highly regarded figure in folk music, Mitchell's influential albums from the 1960s to the 2000s sold millions of copies and inspired generations of artists.

Newest J-Pod orca calf missing, presumed dead
The Center for Whale Research said its latest observation of J-Pod on Oct. 23 did not find J64, born in September, when it encountered the entire pod, including the calf’s mother, J42, in Swanson Channel off Mayne Island. 

Forest Service restarts effort to change decades-old Pacific Northwest forest policy 
The U.S. Forest Service is going back to the drawing board with an update to the Northwest Forest Plan, a set of policies that broadly dictates where logging can occur on 25 million acres of forests in Oregon, Washington and northwest California. 

Tiny birds, and their tiny superfood, could decline due to ‘irreversible’ effects of Vancouver port expansion
The Roberts Bank Terminal 2 expansion at Canada’s busiest cargo port could be fast-tracked by the federal government. It’s a major stop for 3.5 million western sandpipers to eat and recharge while travelling the entire Pacific. 

Young Chinook salmon in Puget Sound near urban waterways found containing ‘forever chemicals’ 
A study led by WDFW’s Toxics Biological Observation System unit and researchers from the University of Washington discovered various “contaminants of emerging concern” in waterways around the Sound. 

WA tribe settles lawsuit over oil-train trespass 
The Swinomish Indian Tribal Community said Tuesday it had reached an agreement with BNSF Railway, putting an end to a lawsuit over the railway’s trespass over tribal land. In June 2024 a Seattle judge ordered BNSF Railway to pay the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community nearly $400 million in profits from trespassing on the reservation. BNSF appealed. 

‘Native Grown and Gathered Food Expo’ launches inaugural, and potentially last, gathering
Native food producers and procurers came together for the first Indigenous foods expo in Seattle this October to connect and help build Indigenous food ways economically, but a one-year run may be all that’s in store as federal funding cuts strip monies available for future gatherings.

Elevated levels of 'forever chemicals' found in sea otters near B.C. cities: study
Contamination levels were about three times higher in animals found near shipping lanes and urban centres. 

B.C. premier, First Nations call on feds to continue oil tanker ban
B.C. Premier David Eby stood with members of numerous First Nations from B.C.’s northern coast on Wednesday to support and sign a declaration that asks Ottawa to continue a moratorium on oil tankers in the province’s northern waters. 

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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Salish Sea News Week in Review October 31 2025

 

Aloha Lemur Friday!

World Lemur Day celebrates lemurs and inspires a love for them and actions to save them from extinction. Lemurs are wet-nosed primates of the superfamily Lemuroidea, divided into eight families and consisting of 15 genera and around 100 extant species. They are endemic to the island of Madagascar. 

Harbour authority abandons shore-power plan for cruise ships
The Greater Victoria Harbour Authority is pulling the plug on a plan to install shore power for cruise ships docking at Ogden Point, saying its share of the cost is prohibitive, despite millions promised by the federal and provincial governments. 

Experts expect the recent arrival of chum salmon to bring orcas back to Puget Sound
Chum salmon are on the run into Puget Sound, and our southern resident killer whales may not be far behind...While the orcas prefer Chinook salmon, they appear more than willing to settle for chum when those fish are in abundance — as they were this time last year when a record number of chum began showing up in Central/South Puget Sound. 

'Very sad and tragic': Humpback whale found dead off Keats Island, B.C. 
A four-year-old humpback whale was found dead in the same area where a humpback whale was struck by a whale-watching vessel on Oct. 23. A statement from whale-watching company Prince of Whales said that based on timing and location, it believes this could be the whale involved in Thursday's incident. 

Tokyo Gas signs preliminary agreement with trans-Alaska gas pipeline developer
Tokyo Gas, the largest gas company in Japan, has signed a letter of intent signifying that it would buy up to 1 million tons of liquefied natural gas per year from the proposed trans-Alaska natural gas pipeline. The development moves the project closer to a financial finish line that would allow the borrowing needed to build the project. 

Klamath River temperatures changed dramatically after dam removal. That’s helping salmon swim farther upstream 
Water temperatures below the former dam sites are more natural. Dissolved oxygen — what fish and other creatures need to breathe — has stabilized. Toxic cyanobacteria, which often clogged the dam reservoirs during the late summer, have nearly disappeared. 

8 new Washington bee species identified
The unexpected finds in Chelan County have important implications for biodiversity and knowledge about expanding ranges. 

Helion gives behind-the-scenes tour of secretive 60-foot fusion prototype as it races to deployment
Helion Energy is trying to replicate the physics that fuel the sun and the stars — hence the celestial naming theme — to provide nearly limitless power on earth through fusion reactions. 

‘Who is going to pay?’: Climate and energy experts question B.C. government’s plans to electrify heavy industry
From building the North Coast transmission line to reducing electrification costs for industry, the B.C. government is planning big changes to energy policy with Bill 31. Experts have big questions. 

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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Salish Sea News Week in Review October 24 2025

Happy Birthday, United Nations!
United Nations Day recognizes the founding of the United Nations (UN) in 1945. The celebration is observed annually on October 24th. 

3 Indigenous-led marine refuges established off B.C.'s North Coast
The federal government and two First Nations have jointly announced the establishment of three marine refuges along British Columbia's North Coast. All three sites have been established under an initiative meant to increase Indigenous-led marine conservation efforts on the West Coast, while also advancing reconciliation.

Rare 'septopus' believed to have been found on shore of B.C.'s Pender Island
A scientist based in Washington state is celebrating after identifying what she believes to be a seven-arm octopus — typically found in the Atlantic Ocean — on B.C.’s coast. 

Salmon clear last Klamath dams, reaching Williamson and Sprague rivers 
Just a year after four dams were removed, fall Chinook have migrated nearly 300 miles into the Upper Klamath Basin in Southern Oregon.

Ferry likely struck humpback calf ‘Skipper:’ researchers
Photos of the calf taken by whale-watching operators on Oct. 16 and then again after the Hullo ferry strike on Oct. 20 revealed a large gash on the small whale’s back. Darron Kloster reports. (Times Colonist) 

B.C. bets big changes to energy policy will reap massive rewards
The province says Bill 31 will speed up construction of the $6-billion North Coast transmission line as it looks to electrify mines, LNG projects and ports in northwest B.C. S

Derelict barge sat in Tacoma waterway for 2+ years. Cost to remove it: $463K
The Port of Tacoma approved a resolution to remove a derelict boat that has been sitting in the Hylebos Waterway since March 2023. After two of its most recent owners failed to remove it, taxpayers will, at the cost of $463,000,

On Friday, the County Superior Court will decide if the Snohomish River has rights
Developers are taking an initiative that grants the Snohomish River legal standing rights to court, arguing the law oversteps its bounds. 

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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Salish Sea News Week in Review October 17 2025

 

Aloha Mulligan Friday.
Mulligan is a term used in golf when someone who shoots a bad shot is given a do-over. Mulligan Day is a day when people redo something that didn't turn out the first time. It's a day when people give themselves or others a second chance. The word likely came from David Mulligan, a Canadian golfer prominent in the 1920s, who either hit a poor tee shot, was jumpy and shaky after a shot, or overslept and was late for a shot.

Republicans try to weaken 50-year-old law protecting whales, seals and polar bears
Conservative leaders feel they now have the political will to remove key pieces of the Marine Mammal Protection Act, enacted in 1972 to protect whales, seals, polar bears and other sea animals. The law also places restrictions on commercial fishermen, shippers and other marine industries. 

A push for ‘global energy dominance’ puts Alaskan wildlands at risk
The National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A), at 23 million acres, is the largest sweep of public land in the country, and it has remained largely undeveloped. Now President Donald Trump in his second term, just as in his first, is calling for full-on extraction of oil and gas here. 

Southern resident killer whales show signs of slow decline toward disappearance 
There's 'a fairly good chance' at least one of the three orca pods being gone within the next 50 years, says a director with the Center for Whale Research. 

 University of B.C. launches mushroom-powered toilet, turning waste into fertilizer
The toilet turns human waste into compost using mycelia, the root network of mushrooms. The MycoToilet separates liquids from solids, with the solid waste going into a mycelium-lined compartment, where lab tests have shown 90 per cent of the odour-causing compounds are absorbed. 

With one mystery solved, researchers examine new strategies for sea star recovery
Knowing the cause of sea star wasting disease allows scientists to look for ways to increase resilience among the ravaged sea star population. 

Oregon, environmental groups ask courts to help Columbia Basin fish 
Environmental groups and the state of Oregon asked a judge Tuesday to OK a suite of changes to dam operations in the Columbia Basin to reduce harm to endangered salmon and steelhead. The requests are the first major development in a decadeslong legal battle in the basin since the Trump administration blew up a 2023 agreement that had provided a path to dam removal on the lower Snake River. 

New research links wildfire smoke to lower sperm counts
A study comparing the sperm samples of 84 men who donated during potentially high exposure to smoke showed lower counts, as well as more inactive sperm, compared to samples taken when the air was cleaner. 

Scientists Hope Underwater Fiber-Optic Cables Can Help Save Endangered Orcas
Scientists from the University of Washington recently deployed a little over 1 mile of fiber-optic cable in the Salish Sea to test whether internet cables can monitor endangered orcas like a continuous underwater microphone to capture the clicks, calls and whistles of passing whales — information that could reveal how they respond to ship traffic, food scarcity and climate change.

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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Salish Sea News Week in Review October 10 2025

 

Aloha Squid Friday!
There are over 300 species of squid, which are in the Teuthida order. They live in every ocean, alone or in schools. They range in size: The giant squid may grow as long as 59 feet, while the pygmy squid is about the size of a pinky fingernail. They have a sleek, torpedo-like body, and are much quicker than cuttlefish. They use jet propulsion to move: They fill their mantle with water from small openings in their head, then shoot it out a funnel called a siphon, which they can move to change the direction they want to go. Squids have a pen, a flexible, feather-like structure, and a type of internal shell that supports the mantle and allows it to keep its shape.

Why too many pink salmon in Snohomish County may not be a good thing
New study shows booming pink salmon populations affect threatened Chinook salmon and Southern Resident orcas. 

Marine carbon removal system launches after testing phase
The energy company Ebb Carbon’s Project Macoma marine carbon removal system officially launched Thursday following a testing phase this summer on the Port Angeles waterfront. The project is designed to enhance the ocean’s ability to absorb and store carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and in the process help make seawater less acidic and thus able to capture more CO2 than untreated seawater.

Supreme Court shoots down challenge to WA carbon market 
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear a high-profile challenge to Washington’s Climate Commitment Act, marking yet another victory for the state’s keystone climate policy. 

Metro Vancouver votes to scale down sewage treatment project from $10B to $6B
The new $6-billion plan is to upgrade the existing facility in phases to comply with provincial and federal regulations for "secondary-level" treatment, which removes up to 90 per cent or more of pollutants typically found in wastewater, such as small suspended solids.

Trump Signs Order to Approve Ambler Access Road for Mining in Alaska
President Trump signed an executive order on Monday directing the government to approve a 211-mile industrial road that would cut through pristine Alaskan wilderness to reach a proposed copper and zinc mine.

Beavers disappeared from syilx territories. Could imitating their habitats bring them back — and restore their wetlands?
Historically seen as a ‘nuisance’ species to be trapped and removed, beavers may be key to restoring ecosystems amid deforestation and climate change. 

Record number of sockeye salmon return to Skagit River system
About 92,000 adult sockeye made the annual migration to the Baker River and eventually to Baker Lake from June through October. Also worth noting, a record number of juvenile sockeye — about 1.5 million — headed down the Skagit River and out to sea. 

Major solar farm in eastern Washington on cusp of approval
A large solar farm proposed in eastern Washington appears on course to clear a critical regulatory hurdle this month, despite opposition from the Yakama Nation. 

Return of The Blob: Heat wave spans Pacific Ocean
Water temperatures several degrees above normal span thousands of miles, though they have mostly stopped short of the Pacific Northwest coast. Cool water welling up from the depths is thought to be keeping surface temperatures near the Oregon and Washington coasts closer to normal. 

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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Salish Sea News Week in Review October 3 2025

 

Aloha Butterfly and Hummingbird Friday.

There are about 20,000 species of butterflies—some sources say there are 17,500, while some say there are as many 24,000. There are about 750 species found in the United States. Butterflies generally have short lives, with most only living for two to four weeks, during which they mainly eat and mate. There are about 325 species of hummingbirds, but only eight of them regularly breed in the United States. Although, up to two dozen species can be found there at various times. Most species of hummingbirds can be found in South America, Central America, and the Caribbean, and there are no hummingbirds outside of the Western Hemisphere.

Study finds Skagit River delta restoration projects positively impacted salmon 
Many restoration projects both large and small have been undertaken throughout the delta in the past few decades, totaling an area of about 630 acres. According to a study  published in Frontiers in Marine Science, the restoration efforts show a cumulative population response. 

Alaska’s Bristol Bay sockeye run and harvest increased this year, with fish sizes a bit bigger
The run of sockeye salmon, also known as red salmon, exceeded preseason expectations and totaled 56.7 million fish, the seventh highest since 2005. However, Bristol Bay’s harvest of Chinook, also known as king salmon, hit a 20-year low this year, totaling only 6,148 fish, compared to the most recent 20-year average of 33,469 Chinook. 

B.C. First Nations want meeting with Carney about salmon, need for open-net farm ban
The First Nations Wild Salmon Alliance says the federal government should create a First Nation-led plan to protect the wild fish, similar to one created for the Great Bear Rainforest. 

Saving Puget Sound's puffins: Bringing these ocean ambassadors back from the brink
In 1954, a Walla Walla College biology professor named Ernest Booth recorded tufted puffins on Williamson Rocks.  Seventy years later, you’re more likely to encounter peanut butter Puffins in the cereal aisle of a Friday Harbor supermarket than an actual tufted puffin anywhere in the San Juan Islands. 

Scientists Release Breathtaking Close-Up Drone Footage of Endangered Orca Pod
Footage taken by scientists with the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance shows the Southern Resident killer whale pod swimming together in the Salish Sea. 

Environmentalists, politicians, celebrities recall life and influence of primatologist Jane Goodall
Tributes are pouring in from around the world honoring the life and influence of famed primatologist Jane Goodall. 

As Smith Pushes New Pipeline Plan, Eby Says No Way
British Columbia Premier David Eby said Wednesday that if he has failed to clearly condemn Alberta Premier Danielle Smith’s push for a new bitumen pipeline to B.C.’s north coast, it’s only because he was being polite. 

WA’s active wildfires offer warning, state lands chief says
Two wildfires burning east of the Cascade crest are now the state’s largest, and serve as a reminder that, despite rainy, fall weather in Western Washington, fire season rages on.

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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Salish Sea News Week in Review September 26 2025

Aloha koala Friday!
Save the Koala Day is observed on the last Friday in September to raises awareness for the plight of the koala and the importance of conserving the koala’s natural habitat. Even though it’s called a koala bear, the koala isn’t actually a bear. Instead, the koala is a marsupial. This means that the koala is a mammal that carries its young in a pouch. In the late 18th century, English-speaking settlers in Australia called the animal a bear. These settlers thought the koala looked and behaved like a bear. Since then, many people call these animals, koala bears. Australia provides the only natural habitat in the world for the koala. Known as tree-hugging mammals, koalas live in eucalyptus trees. They grow up to 3 feet tall and weigh anywhere from 9 to 30 pounds.

Newborn orca spotted with Northwest's endangered J Pod
The newborn orca has been born to the J pod, and SeaDoc says it appears the mother is 18-year-old J42, also known as "Echo." 

Invasive green crabs continue to spread
The state Department of Fish and Wildlife reports that about 174,000 green crabs were removed this spring and summer, an increase from about 130,000 in 2024, but a decrease from 485,000 in 2023. This summer, 1,413 were found in North Puget Sound. 

Nations ratify the world’s first treaty to protect international waters
The High Seas Treaty is the first legal framework aimed at protecting biodiversity in international waters, those that lie beyond the jurisdiction of any single country.

Defense Department Delays Cleanup of ‘Forever Chemicals’ Nationwide 
The new timeline could slow cleanup in some communities by nearly a decade. The chemicals, widely used in the military, are linked to cancers and other health risks.

With local orcas ‘in desperate condition,’ Snuneywuxw is monitoring ships’ noises
The First Nation is collecting sound data, hoping to protect at-risk southern resident killer whales from ‘acoustic smog’ of increased maritime traffic. 

'Green scam': At UN, watched by drowning nations' leaders, Trump assails the ethos of climate change
In his address at the United Nations General Assembly, U.S. President Donald Trump excoriated renewable energy, international climate diplomacy, the science of global warming and other environmental issues. 

LNG Expansion Brings New Health Risks to Kitimat 
The project’s fast-tracked second phase would push a key pollutant far above current limits, documents reveal. 

Totem pole reaches Elwha after 1,700-mile journey
After a 1,700-mile journey around the Pacific Northwest to bring attention to the potential harms posed by the Trump administration’s plan to repeal the Roadless Rule, a totem pole has reached its final destination. 

At Global Climate Summit This Week, U.S. Isolation Was on Full Display
On Wednesday in New York, countries lined up to say they would accelerate their efforts to cut greenhouse-gas emissions. In staying away, the U.S. was all but alone.

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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Salish Sea News Week in Review September 19 2025

 

Aloha Talk Like A Pirate Day!
International Talk Like a Pirate Day is a day for everyone to talk like a pirate, and it was thought up by John Baur and Mark Summers of Albany, Oregon. They were playing racquetball on June 6, 1995, when they began to talk like pirates. They decided there should be a holiday dedicated to pirate talk, and since they didn't want the day to coincide with D-Day, Mark came up with September 19 as its date, which was his ex-wife's birthday. It was not until 2002 that the day began to be celebrated on a larger scale, as Dave Barry wrote a column that brought the attention of the holiday beyond the purview of John and Mark's friends.

Orca mom carries dead newborn calf in San Juans
An endangered orca was spotted Friday carrying a dead newborn on her nose, umbilical cord still attached, between Orcas Island and Cypress Island in Washington state. 

A PNW bird is in mysterious decline. Two Salish Sea islands hold clues
In Washington, the tufted puffin has seen a 90% reduction in population in recent decades with fewer than 2,000 of the birds remaining on the West Coast. When Washington listed the species as endangered in 2015, the agency wrote that with the current rate of decline, the state’s population could be gone by 2055. 

4 years after Fairy Creek, a new battle over B.C.’s old-growth forests looms in the Walbran Valley
 A B.C. justice has granted an injunction against a group of people blocking a logging road on southern Vancouver Island. The decision paves the way for the RCMP to move in. 

Feds greenlight killing more sea lions to protect endangered salmon as controversy fades 
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service renewed a 2020 permit that had allowed the removal of 540 California sea lions and 176 Steller sea lions from Bonneville Dam and Willamette Falls. 

Canada calls this newly approved LNG project green. For now, it will run on fossil fuels
Despite being touted as a clean energy project, B.C.’s Ksi Lisims LNG will likely run on fossil fuels for years before hydro power reaches the site. Matt Simmons reports. 

Robert Redford remembered for his deep legacy in environmental activism and Native American advocacy
Fellow actors and leaders of the causes he fought for spoke of his unusually deep legacy, his fight for Native Americans and the environment that began at the height of his stardom.  

Youth, scientists, argue for court to halt Trump executive orders 'unleashing' fossil fuel industry 
For the second time in two years a youth-led lawsuit challenging the government’s role in climate change is seeing the inside of a Montana courtroom. 

In an unprecedented warning, leading climate think-tank says Canada won't meet 2030 climate target 
Years of progress on bringing Canada's carbon emissions down have stalled, and future progress looks increasingly fragile, according to an early 2024 emissions estimate from the Canadian Climate Institute (CCI).

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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Salish Sea News Week in Review September 12 2025

 

Flipper the Dolphin

Aloha Dolphin Friday!
A dolphin is a common name used for some of the aquatic mammals in the cetacean clade Odontoceti, the toothed whales. Dolphins belong to the families Delphinidae, along with the river dolphin families Platanistidae, Iniidae, Pontoporiidae, and probably extinct Lipotidae. There are 40 extant species named as dolphins.

Musqueam to appeal Cowichan Tribes ruling on Aboriginal title
The Musqueam Indian Band is the latest government to announce its plans to appeal the recent B.C. Supreme Court decision that found another First Nation government holds Aboriginal title for land and fishing rights in an area of Metro Vancouver. 

Warming seas threaten key phytoplankton species that fuels the food web, study finds
For decades, scientists believed Prochlorococcus, the smallest and most abundant phytoplankton on Earth, would thrive in a warmer world. But new research suggests the microscopic bacterium, which forms the foundation of the marine food web and helps regulate the planet’s climate, will decline sharply as seas heat up. 

Who’s keeping an eye on B.C.’s oil and gas boom? Fewer people than you might think
Internal documents show inspectors lack training to manage long-term contamination, raising questions about oversight across the province

B.C. orders forage farmers to stop using water to protect endangered chinook salmon
The order applies to 490 users in the Salmon River and Bessette Creek watersheds, including farmers who grow grass, alfalfa and corn. 

WA pink salmon populations surge in some Puget Sound areas, stagnant in others
The Puget Sound region is anticipating a substantial increase in pink salmon returns for 2025, with forecasts predicting a total of 7.76 million fish. This figure represents a 70% rise from the 10-year cycle average and is expected to be the third-largest return on record. 

Invasive emerald ash borer has reached Portland, dooming ash trees 
An invasive, tree-killing pest has made its way to Portland, spelling trouble for the many ash trees that cool residential neighborhoods on hot summer days. Forestry officials say Oregon will lose 99% of its ash trees to this pest in time. 

How much have fossil fuel giants contributed to heat waves such as B.C.'s heat dome?
The deadly 2021 heat wave over B.C. was an estimated 2.3 degrees hotter because of climate change, says a new study.

Trump Moves to Scrap Biden Rule That Protected Public Lands
The proposal from the Bureau of Land Management would prioritize the use of public lands for oil and gas drilling, coal mining and other industrial activities. Maxine Joselow reports. (NY Times) 

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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Salish Sea News Week in Review September 5 2025

 

Skagit Helping Hands [Nichole Long]

Aloha Food Bank Friday!
National Food Bank Day was created in 2017, to commemorate fifty years since the founding of St. Mary's Food Bank Alliance, the first food bank in the world, and to "recognize the outstanding contributions of food banks around the country".St. Mary's was founded by John ven Hengel in 1967, and its mission is to "alleviate hunger through the gathering and distribution of food while encouraging self-sufficiency, collaboration, advocacy and education."

Wildfire retardants help stop fires — but also impact ecosystems
In the rush to put out wildfires, hundreds of millions of litres of fire retardant are dropped on forests across North America. New research shows the effects they can have on water and ecosystems — especially when accidents happen. 

 Way of Masks and Totem Pole Journey.
 Se'Si'Le, House of Tears Carvers and partnering NGOs present "Way of the Masks and Totem Pole Journey" events Sept.6-20 to narrate the interrelatedness of Treaty rights and inherent rights, Indigenous ways of knowing nature and environmental justice, healthy rivers and salmon habitat, spiritual and ecological balance, and ancient forests and climate resilience. Sept. 6, Bellingham; Sept. 8, Olympia, are Washington events. Information. 

Trump administration cancels $679 million for offshore wind projects at ports
The Trump administration is cancelling $679 million in federal funding for ports to support the country's offshore wind industry, the latest move in President Trump's ongoing campaign against wind power. 

Scientists Denounce Trump Administration’s Climate Report
More than 85 American and international scientists have condemned a Trump administration report that calls the threat of climate change overblown, saying the analysis is riddled with errors, misrepresentations and cherry-picked data to fit the president’s political agenda. 

Smoketember Is Rolling In. Here’s How to Protect Yourself 
There is no safe level of exposure to wildfire smoke. 

WA plan to conserve 77,000 acres of older forests draws fire 
Washington loggers, school leaders and conservation activists on Wednesday decried the state lands commissioner’s proposal to set aside 77,000 acres of older forests while opening 29,000 acres back up for logging.  Some said the plan, announced by Public Lands Commissioner Dave Upthegrove last week, didn’t do enough to protect the state’s older forests, while others said it would lead to layoffs, business closures and delay of critical school construction projects. 

Why Trans Mountain wants to expand when the oil pipeline isn't even full
A little more than one year after completing construction of the Trans Mountain expansion oil pipeline, the Crown corporation is pursuing two different methods to increase how much oil can be exported. The pipeline is operating at about 80%, while tankers are only 70% full.  

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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Salish Sea News Week in Review August 29 2025

Aloha Friday Before Labor Day!
Labor Day is a federal holiday in the United States celebrated on the first Monday of September to honor and recognize the American labor movement and the works and contributions of laborers to the development and achievements in the United States. (Wikipedia)

Victoria area in B.C. breaks over 100-year-old temperature record amid hot spell 
Lytton records high of 38.6 C as temperature records broken throughout province. 

B.C. recreational anglers get rare chance to reel in sockeye amid bumper salmon run
Fisheries and Oceans Canada opens recreational fishing for species on stretch of Fraser River for limited time. 

Trump administration halts work on an almost-finished wind farm
The Trump administration has ordered companies to stop construction of a wind farm that's being built off the coast of Rhode Island. 

Frustrated Commercial Fishers Are Hungry for More Sockeye
This year’s huge Fraser salmon return is lifting spirits. And raising questions about how DFO sets catch limits. 

WA to conserve 77,000 acres of older forests on state lands
The move is in line with promises Lands Commissioner Dave Upthegrove made while campaigning. Timber industry groups and some activists fighting to save “legacy forests” were both unhappy with the outcome. 

Ferguson pauses approval of major solar project in central Washington
The governor wants the Carriger Solar project to proceed, but not until the Yakama Nation has more time to weigh in on cultural resource protections. 

Trump administration advances plan to reverse federal rule that limits logging in national forests
The ‘Roadless Rule’ has prohibited new road construction, a prerequisite for large-scale logging, on vast swaths of federal land since 2001. 

Steven Cook, a Former Chemical Industry Lawyer, Now at E.P.A., Wants to Change PFAS Rules 
A Trump appointee has proposed rewriting a measure that requires companies to clean up “forever chemicals,” documents show. The new version would shift costs from polluters. 

Ten years of confronting a costly green crab invasion in Puget Sound
Since that first discovery, nearly nine years ago, green crabs have spread to more than 30 trapping sites throughout the northern half of Puget Sound and Hood Canal. 

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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Salish Sea News Week in Review August 22 2025

Aloha Dorothy Parker

Dorothy Parker, born on this day in 1893, was an American poet, literary critic and writer of fiction, plays and screenplays based in New York; she was known for her caustic wisecracks, and eye for 20th-century urban foibles. Quotable Parker.

Drought is a big problem in Canada — and it’s getting worse
A rush of water-hungry AI data centres is just one reason to rethink industrial water use, as drought becomes a real, year-round problem across Canada. 

Dwindling kelp beds gain protection with partnership between Squaxin Island Tribe, DNR

DNR’s Commissioner of Public Lands Dave Upthegrove met with Squaxin Island Tribe chairman Kris Peters to sign an order creating the Squaxin Island Kelp Protection Zone, in an effort to bring the kelp bed and others around Puget Sound back to full health. 

UW lab's seaweed-infused cement could slash carbon emissions
Cement is the source of as much as 10% of all carbon dioxide emissions worldwide. That’s according to materials scientists at the University of Washington who are aiming to reduce that carbon footprint, by adding seaweed to the mix. 

Study finds impacts of colonization destroyed nearly 90% of Burrard Inlet food ecosystems 
A new research study, in partnership with the səl̓ilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nation and the University of B.C., has found the impacts of colonization from as early as 1750, including smallpox, overfishing and industrialization, destroyed nearly 90 per cent of the food systems and sources in the Burrard Inlet in Metro Vancouver. 

Salmon habitat is destroyed for development. Is it possible to replace what’s lost?
A human-constructed marsh in B.C.’s Fraser River was meant to mimic natural feeding and breeding grounds. Offset projects can succeed — if someone sticks around to care for them. 

 Well-known orca dies in Johnstone Strait surrounded by family, dolphins
There was no immediate word on what caused the death of the killer whale known as I76, but threats to the species include lack of prey, toxin accumulations and vessel impacts. 

BC’s Coastal Fires Have Entered a New Era
The Mount Underwood fire near Port Alberni wasn’t your typical Vancouver Island blaze. But what is normal is changing. Thanks to droughts and heat waves, tiny fires that crews were once able to extinguish in a matter of hours are now ballooning into major blazes. 

Monsanto settles with over 200 exposed to chemicals in Monroe school 
This week’s announcement marks the largest, and only significant, PCB personal injury settlement since Monsanto was acquired by Bayer Pharmaceuticals in 2018, Bayer said. And it appears to be among the largest, if not the largest, PCB settlement stemming from a single site containing the pollutant.  

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.

Salish Sea News: Communicate, Educate, Advocate

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