Olympic Peninsula Environmental News

While we can cheer the growth of sea lions, our sea birds are vanishing, and have been for some years now.

To the untrained eye, there is nothing remarkable about the loose knot of waterbirds bobbing innocently just offshore, south of the Tsawwassen ferry terminal. To biologist Pete Davidson, however, they are signs of trouble brewing in the Salish Sea. Coastal waterbirds in B.C. slipping away

http://www.vancouversun.com/technology/Coastal+waterbirds+slipping+away/6463446/story.html

Filed under: Puget Sound | Tagged: Puget Sound | Comments Off on Coastal waterbirds in B.C. slipping away – Vancouver Sun

Larry Pynn in the Vancouver Sun writes: “The shared inland waters of Juan de Fuca Strait, B.C.’s Strait of Georgia, and Washington state’s Puget Sound may once again approach its former greatness. Steller sea lions have thrived since the federal government afforded them protection in 1970 — with new abundance estimates pegging their population at 48,000 animals in winter on the B.C. coast. The breeding population had dipped to an estimated 3,400 animals before their protection. Similarly, harbour seals today total an estimated 105,000 animals, one of the densest such populations on earth, compared with fewer than 15,000 in the late 1960s.”

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/oceans/Marine+mammals+coming+back+Salish/6456476/story.html

Filed under: Puget Sound | Tagged: Puget Sound | Comments Off on Marine mammals coming back to the Salish Sea – Vancouver Sun

If you like to watch: KCTS 9 and EarthFix on Wednesday at 7 PM chronicle the historic removal of two dams from the Elwha River, and show how it will impact people, salmon and the environment for years to come.

Undamming the Elwha http://kcts9.org/undamming-elwha

Filed under: Puget Sound | Tagged: Puget Sound | Comments Off on KCTS special on the Elwha Dam Removal – Weds. 4/17 @ 7PM

Clallam County invites you to attend, learn more about, and comment on the Shoreline Master Program Update at one of the 4 upcoming public forums.

The updated draft SMP Update incorporates information from the existing SMP.  It proposes new policies and regulations intended to achieve the goals of the Shoreline Management Act and the community’s vision for shoreline management.  See the Forum Schedule below.  For more information visit the Clallam County SMP webpage at:  http://www.clallam.net/RealEstate/html/shoreline_management.htm

EVENT

Day/Time

Place

SMP PUBLIC FORUM #1

Tuesday—April 24, 2012

5:30 – 8:00 p.m.

Sekiu Community Center, Lower Level

42 Rice Street, Sekiu

SMP PUBLIC FORUM #2

Wednesday—April 25, 2012

12:30 – 3:00 p.m.

Pioneer Memorial Park, Sequim Prairie Garden Club Bldg.

387 East Washington Street, Sequim

SMP PUBLIC FORUM #3

Wednesday—April 25, 2012

5:30 – 8:00 p.m.

Clallam County Courthouse, BOCC Room 160

223 East 4^th Street, Port Angeles

SMP PUBLIC FORUM #4

Thursday—May 10, 2012

5:30 – 8:00 p.m.

Forks Community Center, Main Dining Room

91 Maple Avenue, Forks

Public Forums begin with a half hour Open House, followed by a presentation of the draft SMP Update, and end with time for public comment.

The SMP Public Forums Flyer is at the following  link: http://www.clallam.net/RealEstate/assets/applets/SMPFlyer042012.pdf

The SMP Public Forum Press Release link is:  SMP Public Forum Press Release

Please feel free to forward it to interested folks.

Thank you,

Hannah Merrill

DCD Natural Resources Planner
Clallam County Dept. of Community Development
223 East 4th Street, Suite 5; Port Angeles, WA  98362-3015
T:  360-417-2563  W:  http://www.clallam.net/RealEstate/html/shoreline_management.htm

Filed under: Puget Sound | Tagged: Puget Sound | Comments Off on Clallam County SMP now ready for public comment

This is excellent news. While not perfect, this will lower green house gases, and it’s pretty cheap at current. A win all around while on our way to non polluting sources altogether, which likely will be end of century the way things are going…
———————–

Two large Puget Sound-area ship operators are planning to spend $100 million each to convert their vessels from diesel fuel to liquefied natural gas — and they expect to save a lot of money in the process. The Washington State Ferries and cargo operator Totem Ocean Trailer Express (TOTE) are just two among many big energy users turning to natural gas as its price plummets. State ferries seek $100M conversion to liquefied natural gas

http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/print-edition/2012/04/06/state-ferries-seek-100m-conversion-to.html

Filed under: Puget Sound | Tagged: Puget Sound | Comments Off on Two Ship operators converting to natural gas

The 2012 salmon fishing seasons, developed by the state Department of Fish and Wildlife and treaty tribes, were finalized yesterday during the Pacific Fishery Management Council meeting in Seattle. The package sets regulations for salmon fisheries in Puget Sound, Washington’s ocean and coastal areas and the Columbia River.

http://blog.thenewstribune.com/adventure/2012/04/05/washington-tribes-agree-to-salmon-fishing-seasons-for-2012/

Filed under: Puget Sound | Tagged: Puget Sound | Comments Off on Washington, tribes agree to salmon fishing seasons for 2012

North Sound Baykeeper blogs: “What happens when a dozen farmers, a half dozen interested citizens, a shellfish farmer, a Skagit County Commissioner, staff from Skagit County Public Works and the Skagit Conservations District, and a couple environmentalists all get together? A lot of ideas are generated! This happened during a recent meeting at the Alger Community Hall hosted by the Skagit Conservation District. The purpose of the meeting was to give everyone a chance to talk about ways to solve fecal coliform pollution in the Samish River caused by animal waste.”

Brainstorming for Clean Water at the Alger Community Hall – Got Ideas?

http://northsoundbaykeeper.blogspot.com/2012/04/brainstorming-for-clean-water-at-alger.html

Filed under: Puget Sound | Tagged: Puget Sound | Comments Off on Unlikely allies come together to solve fecal coliform problems

The Port Townsend Marine Science Center  invites you to come learn from distinguished lecturer, Dr. Steve D’Hondt. speaking about "Life in the Subseafloor Ocean."

Date: April 16th

Time: 7:00 pm

Where: Natural History Exhibit building (across from the pier) at Fort Worden State Park

Fee: Donation

Discovery Pass: Not required if parked near the the Natural History Exhibit

More about out the lecture:

Dr. Steve D’Hondt

Earth’s subseafloor ocean contains a vast ecosystem. Exploration of that ecosystem by scientific ocean drilling directly addresses several fundamental topics such as Earth’s total biomass, the distribution of life, and the factors that control it. We also determine the impact of subsurface life on Earth’s surface, ocean and atmosphere. Additionally we discover new organisms, measure the rates at which they live and die, and chart the border of the organic-fueled world. Finally, we examine the possibility of life on other worlds.

Dr. Steve D’Hondt was co-chief scientist of the first and second ocean drilling expeditions to focus primarily on life beneath the seafloor. He is a professor of oceanography at the University of Rhode Island.

Filed under: Puget Sound | Tagged: Puget Sound | Comments Off on April 16- Lecture on Life in the Subseafloor Ocean

The Port Townsend Marine Science Center has announced that Eleanor Stopps, the great citizen activist who was extremely influential in seeing Protection Island turned into a national bird sanctuary, is in failing health.

We wish our best to this enormously influential lady, who shows again how much one person can do to make a positive difference in this world.

Eleanor has lent her name to a yearly award that celebrates the people making a difference on the Olympic Peninsula.

Filed under: Puget Sound | Tagged: Puget Sound | 1 Comment »

Got a good idea for a project? Marine Reseach, education or public outreach allows a wide range of opportunities. Be creative!

Subject: Request for Proposals: North Pacific Coast MRC 2012-13

The North Pacific Coast Marine Resources Committee (NPC MRC) is soliciting project proposals to be completed on the ground between July 2012 and June 2013. Attached is the application package. PROPOSALS ARE DUE May 11th, 2012.

Projects must be for marine oriented research, education or public outreach activities that focus on the Washington State outer coast between Cape Flattery and Kalaloch, or also engages the other Coastal MRCs for a coast-wide project. Proposals can range from $500 to $20,000 and can be stand alone or part of a match for a bigger project. If you want more information or have any questions please email or call at the contact information below.

PLEASE FEEL FREE TO DISTRIBUTE.

———————————————————————-
Richard Osborne, Restoration Coordinator / Planner II

North Pacific Coast Lead Entity & MRC (WRIA 20)
Clallam County, DCD, Natural Resources

223 E. 4th Street #5, Port Angeles, WA 98362

Filed under: Puget Sound | Tagged: Puget Sound | Comments Off on North Pacific Coast MRC looking for submissions for proposals

So far, so good, but continued monitoring is needed, as the story shows. The good news is that there isn’t wide spread dangerous levels being seen in waters that are easily tied to the food chain, and to the surface. But obviously, this is preliminary data, and will need more study.

An international research team is reporting the results of a research cruise they organized to study the amount, spread, and impacts of radiation released into the ocean from the tsunami-crippled reactors in Fukushima, Japan. The group of 17 researchers and technicians from eight institutions spent 15 days at sea in June 2011 studying ocean currents, and sampling water and marine organisms up to the edge of the exclusion zone around the reactors.

Filed under: Puget Sound | Tagged: Puget Sound | Comments Off on Scientists tracking Fukashima nuclear radiation – Science Daily

More fuel for the fire of global warming science, pun intended…

Nearly 140 years after Canadian-born scientist John Murray began gathering the first comprehensive data on sea water temperatures around the world, a team of U.S. and British researchers has revisited the pioneering discoveries from the famous 1872-76 voyage of the HMS Challenger to create the clearest picture yet of the steady warming trend now threatening the planet’s marine environment.

http://www.timescolonist.com/technology/Canadian+scientist+year+data+sheds+light+global+warming/6402350/story.html

Filed under: Puget Sound | Tagged: Puget Sound | Comments Off on Canadian scientist’s 140-year-old data sheds light on global warming

Billy Frank, Jr. at Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission says what’s killing our fish is a poison soup of brake pad dust, oil, gasoline and other pollutants that are washed by rain or melting snow from yards, sidewalks, parking lots and roads, right into our streams and Puget Sound.

These stormwater permits have already been delayed by the political process. They need to move forward, and soon. Puget Sound chinook have been on the Endangered Species Act list for more than a decade, yet there have been no substantial improvements to the environmental laws that got us into the problem to begin with. That needs to change, and the stormwater permitting process is a step in the right direction.

Read the rest of the story at:
http://nwifc.org/2012/04/stop-the-slow-down-to-save-puget-sound/

Filed under: Puget Sound | Tagged: Puget Sound | Comments Off on Billy Frank Jr on storm water permitting problems

Snohomish Public Utility District is exploring whether undersea turbines near Fort Casey could someday generate electricity for Puget Sound homes and businesses by placing two test units in Admiralty Inlet within several years.

http://www.whidbeynewstimes.com/news/144440375.html

Filed under: Puget Sound | Tagged: Puget Sound | Comments Off on Turbines explored for Admiralty Inlet placement

Developers will get more time to bring their projects to construction under a bill sponsored by Rep. Jan Angel, R-Port Orchard, and signed into law Thursday by Gov. Chris Gregoire.

Under the new law, developers will have seven years to complete any plat approved before Dec. 31, 2014. For plats approved after that, the developer will have five years. Developers given
more time for plats

http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2012/mar/30/developers-given-more-time-for-plats/

Filed under: Puget Sound | Tagged: Puget Sound | Comments Off on Governor signs bill to extend land developers projects

Received this from Michelle McConnell of the County Department of Communicty Development. You might be on her mailing list, but if not and interested, here’s the news. Essentially, still in limbo.

County and Ecology staff last met with the Board of County Commissioners (BoCC) in late-February and proposed an idea brought forth by Ecology to get the new SMP adopted and work out the in-water finfish aquaculture details later.  The suggestion under consideration is to:

1. Adopt w/ CUP– Adopt the new SMP with an allowance for in-water finfish aquaculture with a Conditional Use Permit (CUP).  This would require new applications to meet specific criteria/standards and the permit process would include public notice and a public hearing in front of the Hearing Examiner who would make the final permit decision; and

2. Moratorium – Enact a moratorium to prohibit new applications for in-water finfish aquaculture for up to 18 months to allow further evaluation; and

3. Siting Analysis – Conduct a GIS mapping exercise to evaluate how the existing guidance about where to locate in-water finfish aquaculture operations applies ‘on the ground’ in Jefferson County.  This analysis could reveal there are specific areas where in-water finfish aquaculture would be feasible from the ecological protection and use conflict perspectives, or that there are indeed no locations where such use is feasible; and

4. SMP Amendment – The outcome of the siting analysis would likely lead to  the County making a limited amendment to the new SMP, either to specify where in-water finfish aquaculture can be proposed/sited or to prohibit the use completely from Jefferson County waters.  The amendment process would include public notice, public hearings and require final approval by Ecology.

Staff believes that moving forward with the suggested approach (Adopt/Moratorium/Analysis/Amend) would have several benefits, including;

· Get the new SMP in effect after a long process.  The finfish issue is currently holding up the whole Program.  There are projects pending application that are waiting for the new shoreline provisions to be available.

· Simplify answers to public questions.  The Coaching Services now offered through the Watershed Stewardship Resource Center often requires staff to interpret two different versions of the shoreline regulations – those currently in effect, and those anticipated to be in effect upon final adoption.

· The County’s participation in a partnership project with Clallam County to better understand how to monitor and achieve the ‘no net loss of shoreline ecological functions’ requirement is being delayed as long as the new SMP is not in effect.  This project  is anticipated to be a significant revenue source.

· A project proposed by the Port Townsend Paper Corporation is stalled due to the Mill Pond location currently being in shoreline jurisdiction but that will not be included in shoreline jurisdiction upon final adoption of the new SMP.

· Ecology has indicated availability of some fiscal support to conduct the siting analysis (approx. $10 – 25K) that would provide a dedicated funding source for the work anticipated to be completed by staff and consultants.

· Once Jefferson County finds a solution to the challenge of how to regulate in-water finfish aquaculture, Ecology can provide guidance to many other jurisdictions in the Puget Sound region (and the State) that are also updating their SMPs.

At the BoCC’s direction, staff is currently working to prepare three items to assist the Board’s consideration of the suggested approach:

A. Draft CUP criteria that would be included in the new SMP;

B. Scope of work for the siting analysis; and

C. Work plan and timeline for the moratorium.

Staff will bring these three items to the BoCC as soon as they’re ready and look for further direction from the Board on how they wish to proceed.  Staff is also working with local in-water finfish aquaculture net pen operators/suppliers to arrange for a few site visits for the Commissioners to become more familiar with how these facilities look and function.

There is currently no estimate as to when the Board may take action or when the new SMP will be in effect.  This email list will be kept up to date when more information is available.

Filed under: Puget Sound | Tagged: Puget Sound | Comments Off on Update on Jefferson County SMP

And so it goes…
“The state Department of Ecology also was pleased.”
No doubt. To be clear, there is no real monitoring of the plume that engulfs Port Townsend on any given day. We have no idea where the current toxic chemicals are falling. Think I’m crazy?
Here’s the official list of the toxins coming out of the mill.
http://iaspub.epa.gov/enviro/tris_control.tris_print?tris_id=98368PRTTW100PA

To sum it up so you don’t have to jump links, into the air around here they are dumping 3200 pounds of lead, 20000 pounds of Hydrocloric Acid, 17000 pounds of Formaldehyde, 76000 pounds of Ammonia, 29000 pounds of Acetaldehyde, 11000 pounds of Acetaldehyde, and 380000 (right 380 hundred thousand) pounds of various Methanol, among other compounds a year. Now they want to change the mix, but don’t want to go through the process of producing an Environmental Impact Statement.

All this ‘looking the other way’ under a democratic regime in the state, and locally. Lord knows how much worse it would be with Republicans in command…

It’s really a scandal and people wonder why voter turnout is low. Third party anyone?

Thurston County Superior Court Judge Thomas McPhee has affirmed a decision by the state Department of Ecology that the Port Townsend Paper Corp.’s $55 million biomass energy project doesn’t need an environmental impact statement.

http://www.ptleader.com/main.asp?FromHome=1&TypeID=1&ArticleID=31181&SectionID=36&SubSectionID=55

Filed under: Puget Sound | Tagged: Puget Sound | 3 Comments »

Representatives Van De Wege and Tharinger held an online town hall tonight. Hundreds of constituents from across the district called in. It was, very interesting.

In this year of crashing budgets, very little environmental questions were asked. (we did miss the first few minutes, but hope to get the transcript).

When asked what they felt their achievements in environmental legislation were, Tharinger started out by saying that It was a year of restoring cuts rather than trying to get new things done. Steve said that his restoration of Salmon Recovery Lead Entities to the budget was something that he was proud of, since this is a multiyear effort that would have been crippled by de-funding it.

Representative Tharinger also sited putting back into the budget the work of the Department of Ecology in Water Resource planning. Again, a multiyear effort would have been gutted.

Representative Van De Wege mentioned that he had tried to push through the Toxic Toy Bill, HB2266 and that it is still a possibility in the Special Session. It sounded as if Kevin had become educated to the dangers of toxic toys during this effort. He seemed genuinely surprised at the findings. The background on this is that the US is the dumping ground for Chinese toys that are unsafe for sale in Europe, as the EU has already banned these toys. We still allow them in. So guess who buys them? Us. Time to stop that from happening.

The oddest thing of the meeting was a question from a woman from Port Townsend, asking about the rumor that a failed candidate for city council has been making political hay on, which is that Kevin is a member of a very conservative think tank, the group ALEC (The American Legislative Exchange Council). While conspiracy theorists in PT have gone wild over this, Kevin admitted  that he is a member, that he represents many constituents in his district, and that some of them are quite conservative. He felt that, since this organization is so active in promoting conservative agendas, he should check it out (he didn’t mention if they asked him to join). He stated he has very little in common with their goals, and this reporter can state that no one seriously in bed with ALEC would ever support the legislation that Kevin has supported. Given that Kevin’s wife is an educator, and ALEC does support education initiatives that include electronic text books, it makes some sense to see him there.  Since ALEC seems to put forward ready made legislation for folks like Kevin to vote on, he likely sees their proposals come across his desk, and needs to better understand their goals. For now, it’s a tempest in a teapot to this reporter, and we’ll have to see if hanging out with folks that John Stewart regularly lampoons turns Kevin into a Forks vampire. Frankly, it seems more benign than cancerous. Kevin always has stood with environmental legislation, sometimes needing to keep an open mind to do it, but an open mind is something rare in politics today.  Case closed for now.

Filed under: Puget Sound | Tagged: Puget Sound | 3 Comments »

Caroline Gibson of the NW Straits Commission, and someone who lives on the Peninsula helped write this letter to the editor on saving forage fish. Short but keeps up the drumbeat to get meaningful legislation and enforcement in place. Where is the Puget Sound Partnership leadership role in all this?

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/northwestvoices/2017815000_fishlet23.html

Filed under: Puget Sound | Tagged: Puget Sound | 1 Comment »