A short film about the shellfish industry

Posted on August 11, 2014 by Al Bergstein

This is about us, now. The impact of ocean acidification on our shellfish industry. Today. A great short film by students at the University of Oregon. Watch it.

This piece explores the effects of ocean acidification because of pollution from CO2 from the point of view of Oregon’s oyster farmers. The state of our ocean’s water quality is changing at a rate that can not be ignored.

 

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Health risks estimated for Port Gamble Bay shellfish – Kitsap Sun

Posted on May 25, 2014 by Al Bergstein

http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2014/feb/10/health-risks-estimated-for-port-gamble-bay/#axzz2szYnGC6a (subscription)

Chris Dunagan of the Kitsap Sun reports in this subscription only article about the risks of consuming significant quantities of shellfish from Port Gamble Bay.

According to the story,

Out of every 1,000 people who eat 1.1 pounds of clams, oysters and crabs every day over a lifetime, two people could be expected to get cancer because of those shellfish… which focuses on shellfish taken from the upper portion of Port Gamble Bay….

There’s lots more to the article. Read it at the Kitsap Sun link above.

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New law: Septic system inspections required at time of property sale in Clallam County  – PDN

Posted on April 28, 2014 by Al Bergstein

I was pondering this very issue as I drove through the Sequim valley last week. Thousands of homes, virtually all of them on septic systems, and the knowledge that the beaches around the Dungeness estuary, Spit and surrounding areas are often closed to shellfish harvest because of fecal coliform levels. While many, if not most septics are fine, having at least a check every time a sale is transacted is a good start.  The thing to remember is that there is groundwater under there. At some point a failing system is likely to affect it.

http://peninsuladailynews.com/article/20140428/NEWS/304289982/new-law-septic-system-inspections-required-at-time-of-property-sale

A septic system inspection will be required at the time of a property sale under a revised Clallam County sewage code that takes effectThursday (May 1). 

 

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10 million scallops are dead; Qualicum company lays off staff – Parksville Qualicum Beach News

Posted on February 28, 2014 by Al Bergstein

This in from just over the border. What I understand about scallops is that they are the hardest shellfish to grow, and recent attempts to re-establish them in US Puget Sound waters have been unsuccessful (to commercially viable sizes). Maybe this is why.

High acid levels in the waters around Parksville Qualicum Beach have killed 10 million scallops and forced a local shellfish producer to scale operations back considerably.

Island Scallops CEO Rob Saunders said the company has lost three years worth of scallops and $10 million.

“I’m not sure we are going to stay alive and I’m not sure the oyster industry is going to stay alive,” Saunders told The NEWS. “It’s that dramatic.”

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China Imposes First-Ever West Coast Shellfish Ban – KCTS9

Posted on December 13, 2013 by Al Bergstein

Huge news just in…this seriously effects many jobs and businesses, both tribal and non tribal, on the Olympic Peninsula.  

China has suspended imports of shellfish from the west coast of the United States — an unprecedented move that cuts off a $270 million Northwest industry from its biggest export market. China said it decided to impose the ban after recent shipments of geoduck clams from Northwest waters were found by its own government inspectors to have high levels of arsenic and a toxin that causes paralytic shellfish poisoning. The restriction took effect last week and China’s government says it will continue indefinitely. It applies to clams, oysters and all other two-shelled bivalves harvested from the waters of Washington, Oregon, Alaska and Northern California. U.S. officials think the contaminated clams were harvested in Washington or Alaska. Right now they’re waiting to hear back from Chinese officials for more details that will help them identify the exact source. Katie Campbell, Ashley Ahearn and Tony Schick report.

http://earthfix.kcts9.org/flora-and-fauna/article/china-imposes-first-ever-ban-on-nw-shellfish/

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2013 NW Straits: Alexis Valauir -Ocean Acidification Effects on Global Communities

Posted on December 5, 2013 by Al Bergstein

From the 2013 NW Straits Annual Conference, a most interesting talk:

Alexis Valauri-Orton recently completed a year-long Watson Fellowship investigating human narratives of ocean acidification in Norway, Hong Kong, Thailand, New Zealand, the Cook Islands and Peru. Over the year, she traded her lab coat for a pair of gum boots, experiencing firsthand the role marine resources play in coastal communities. Investigating narratives of acidification in such diverse communities, she discovered the importance of understanding and navigating the social structures that shape our vulnerabilities and responses to environmental issues. She holds a degree in Biology and Environmental Studies from Davidson College, in North Carolina, and now lives in her hometown of Seattle. She believes increasing scientific literacy and public awareness on issues like ocean acidification is the key to creating a sustainable future.

The Powerpoints of her talk are found at the NW Straits web site:

http://www.nwstraits.org/Whats-New/Meetings-Events/2013-MRC-Conference.aspx

or directly here (This downloads the presentation to your computer)

Array

You can download this for use on a device like an ipod or iphone, or just listen to it right here on your computer.

https://soundcloud.com/mountainstone/alexis-valauir-on-ocean

 

 

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Expert: critique of Seattle Times “Sea Change” project ignores the science

Posted on October 14, 2013 by Al Bergstein

Cliff Mass has long been suspect as a climate change denier, often saying that there is not enough proof to make suggestions that global warming is affecting us locally. His recent blog post has gotten wide spread reading as he is considered very thoughtful in his pronouncements. Last week he published a story that said that he didn’t believe that ocean acidification was causing problems with the shellfish here in the Sound and along the coast, both of which active investigations by shellfish growers here in the State. Now, Seattle Times reporter Craig Welch takes Mass to task for his recent post.

Let’s be clear, as stated in the article: “Mass is not a chemical oceanographer, but he is a scientist with some familiarity with these issues.”

Seattle Times reporter Craig Welch, author of the series “Sea Change,” rebuts Cliff Mass’s critique of the series. “Ocean acidification actually is to blame for current problems with Northwest oysters. And that fact is supported by strong evidence. Suggesting otherwise is a misreading of the science. Readers need not take our word for it.”

<a href="http://blogs.seattletimes.com/seachange/2013/10/12/expert-critique-of-seattle-times-sea-change-project-ignores-the-science/“>

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Toxic Algal Blooms And Warming Waters: The Climate Connection – Earthfix

Posted on October 1, 2013 by Al Bergstein

“First U.S. Case of Diarrhetic Shellfish Poisoning.” The event described in this article happened with shellfish collected in Sequim Bay. The Jamestown Tribe is highlighted in the story as having a biologist on staff to test for shellfish issues. They harvest lots of shellfish from the bay and surrounding areas, so they are very aware of the risks involved and what needs to be done to protect their customers. The article does not make any point of clarifying whether the Willifords harvested at a beach that was known to be closed to harvest.

The mussels the Willifords ate around the campfire that night were indeed poisoned. But it was a natural type of poison. The shellfish had sucked up a toxin produced by a certain type of algae called dinophysis.


http://earthfix.kcts9.org/water/article/toxic-algal-blooms-and-warming-waters-the-climate-/

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Warnings on oysters – Multiple sources.

Posted on July 3, 2013 by Al Bergstein

Oysters are considered an aphrodisiac, but what happens to them in hot weather isn’t so sexy. Warm air and water during summer make an ideal environment for a natural bacteria called vibrio parahaemolyticus to grow in oysters. Raw oysters, especially ones with the bacteria, can make people who eat them sick. Gina Cole reports.

Raw oysters risky during warmer months  http://www.goskagit.com/all_access/raw-oysters-risky-during-warmer-months/article_67523d12-e37a-11e2-bc29-0019bb2963f4.html

See also: Be vigilant about illness from tainted commercial shellfish, B.C. doctors told http://www.vancouversun.com/news/vigilant+about+illness+from+tainted+commercial+shellfish/8608330/story.html

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Taylor Shellfish Tour in Quilcene on Saturday – noon to 2PM.

Posted on March 29, 2013 by Al Bergstein

I was given a tour of the facility as part of an interview done for the Jefferson County Marine Resource Committee. If you have any interest in finding out how shellfish are raised here in the Salish Sea, this is a good place to start. It would be a great short day for either pre-teens or teens to see. And it’s a beautiful beach. The drive down is pretty good also.

You can see a bit of the facility on the first interview on the video I did for the MRC>
https://vimeo.com/53916496

Shellfish farm tours

QUILCENE — Public tours of Taylor Shellfish Farms’ hatchery, 701 Broad Spit Road, will be offered from noon to 1 p.m. today, with a beach tour from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m.

Attendees should arrive between 10 to 15 minutes early.

Taylor Shellfish Farm spawn clams, mussels, oysters and geoduck, with larvae planted at beaches around Hood Canal and Puget Sound.

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Highly Controversial Decision Against Point Reyes Oyster Farm- Marin Independent Journal

Posted on November 29, 2012 by Al Bergstein

We here on the Olympic Peninsula and Salish Sea, aren’t the only ones dealing with the controversy over aquaculture farming. The shellfish industry is up in arms, even up here, over the ruling by Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar, to end the lease with Drake Bay Oyster Co. on Point Reyes. This action, if left to stand, will end with the removal of the farm, the loss of 30 jobs, and the closing of one of the last oyster farms left in California.

The controversy exists over the reading of the lease, which apparently offered the shellfish farm with the ability to renew the lease, but the Parks department is saying that is not the case.

With powerful political allies like Senator Diane Feinstein siding with the oyster company, and the shellfish industry that is planning to sue to overturn the decision, I don’t think we have heard the end of this issue.

The bizarre part of this, is that the decision allows continued ranching and farming within the park, which one could argue would be vastly more destructive to the land than a small oyster farm operation. Also, given that the decision came just after the election, that this was in the works for months, with the election holding back the decision.

It is hard to understand the science behind this decision. These decisions often are not based in sound science, as witnessed by the NOAA decision last year to push whale watch boats even farther away from the Orcas in the San Juans. Having read the science behind the decision, I have to feel that there was more politics at play than reasonable science based decision making.

In the notion of “following the money”, it would be interesting to know who owns the ranches that were granted the free ride, and whether those people donated to any major political campaigns or not.

http://www.marinij.com/basketball/ci_22090541/drakes-bay-oyster-company-will-have-leave

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Acidifying Water Takes Toll On Northwest Shellfish – Earthfix

Posted on November 29, 2012 by Al Bergstein

Thanks to Earthfix for doing a good job on reporting on this.

“Rescuing shellfish from the rising acidity in Puget Sound will require a wide-ranging response: Everything from curbing greenhouse gases and controlling water pollution to growing more seaweed and putting restaurant-discarded oyster shells into shallow bays.”

Ashley Ahearn, Katie Campbell and David Steves report.

http://earthfix.kuow.org/water/article/acid-water-take-toll-on-puget-sound-shellfish/

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Taylor Shellfish Denied Mussel Farm Expansion in Thurston County

Posted on November 19, 2012 by Al Bergstein

Thurston County Commissioners have denied Taylor Shellfish’s mussel farm permit because cumulative impacts were not adequately considered. This doesn’t seem to mean that Taylor cannot come back with more data. The refusal had to do with not presenting what the Hearing Examiner, a lawyer by trade, felt was compelling cumulative impacts of the proposed farm.

The legal precedent behind this decision appears to have been from a variety of already resolved lawsuits, including one by the coalition of a group of six citizen organizations that have been fighting the expansion of shellfish farms, mainly in the South Sound.

Again, it’s interesting to note that the Puget Sound Partnership did not weigh in at all on this case, for either side.

Read the short PDF of the ruling here. There is a longer document of the actual findings from the Hearings Examiner available on line if you wish.

http://www.co.thurston.wa.us/permitting/hearing/decisions/2012/961372.bocc.decision.taylor.pdf

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On Dabob Bay, man and nature nurture preservation – Seattle Times

Posted on November 17, 2012 by Al Bergstein

Nice overview of the environmental story in Dabob Bay, reported by Ron Judd, with quotes from local environmental leader Peter Bahl, Chris Davis of the Nature Conservancy and Taylor Shellfish’s Bill Dewey.

I love Dabob Bay, it represents one of the few nearly pristine bays on the Salish Sea. (I disagree with Mr. Judd that it’s in “Puget Sound”, as most of us who have lived and sailed here for a long time, know that Hood Canal has always been considered a separate body of water from Puget Sound, as are the Straits. That’s why the naming of the Salish Sea was added). The bay is wonderfully quiet, and little of the houses can be seen from shore, giving the look of almost wilderness to it.

“Few places in the Northwest boast the odd mix of ingredients — man, mollusk, mammal and military — found in the deep mixing bowl that is Dabob Bay.”

Read the whole story at:
http://seattletimes.com/html/pacificnw/2019630870_pacificpdabob18.html

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Some beaches open for shellfish – PDN

Posted on November 12, 2012 by Al Bergstein

Ok to do some shellfish harvesting.

Port Townsend Bay, Oak Bay, Admiralty Inlet and North Hood Canal have reopened for recreational shellfishing. Levels of the marine biotoxin that causes Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning, or PSP, are now below the recreational closure level for these four areas, the Jefferson County Public Health announced Friday. Other beaches in Jefferson County — and all beaches in Clallam County — remain closed because of marine biotoxin levels or pollution. Kilisut Harbor, including Mystery Bay, remains closed to butter clams only.

Read the rest of the story at:
http://peninsuladailynews.com/article/20121111/news/311119990/some-beaches-open-for-shellfish

Support local news: Subscribe to the PDN.

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DSP shellfish closure extends to Seabeck – Kitsap Sun

Posted on October 23, 2012 by Al Bergstein

Shellfish closures extend down Hood Canal. An emerging shellfish toxin, diarrhetic shellfish poison, has resulted in an expanding closure area in central Hood Canal — with the latest closure covering shellfish beaches in the Seabeck area.

Read more: http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2012/oct/22/dsp-shellfish-closure-extends-to-seabeck/

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Hood Canal beaches reopen to recreational shellfish harvesting – PDN and others Hood Canal beaches reopen to recreational shellfish harvesting

Posted on September 18, 2012 by Al Bergstein

Hood Canal from Seal Rock south to the Mason County line has reopened for recreational shellfishing. Levels of the marine biotoxin that causes diarrhetic shellfish poisoning — or DSP — are currently below the recreational closure level, according to the Jefferson County Public Health Department. Many of East Jefferson County beaches were closed in July because of elevated levels of DSP as well as the more potentially serious paralytic shellfish poisoning — or PSP. Many remain closed by the state Department of Health because of marine biotoxin levels, with PSP the primary biotoxin of concern.

http://peninsuladailynews.com/article/20120916/news/309169996/hood-canal-beaches-reopen-to-recreational-shellfish-harvesting

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Hood Canal Shellfish Closed Due To Vibrio – State of WA

Posted on August 23, 2012 by Al Bergstein

If you have purchased or dug shellfish on Hood Canal in the last few days, you might want to consider this news.

Hood Canal 5 growing area is closed effective immediately because of a Vibrio parahaemolyticus-associated illness outbreak involving six unrelated people. According to the Model Ordinance Chapter II, when a
growing area is closed for naturally-occurring pathogens, a recall must be initiated; the recall will apply to all oyster product harvested on and after August 16, 2012. All growers in Hood Canal 5 will be
contacted telephonically with details. The growing area may be reopened when it is determined that the naturally-occurring pathogen is no longer a risk to public health. If you have any questions, please contact Richard G. Lillie, MPH State Standardization Officer at 360.236.3313 or via email, or Cari Franz-West at 360.236.3326. Questions about the recall may be addressed to Frank Cox at
360.236.3309.

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‘Red tide’ closure for shellfish harvesting expands – Kitsap Sun

Posted on August 16, 2012 by Al Bergstein

Marine biotoxins that cause paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP), also known as “red tide,” have been detected in high levels in shellfish samples from north Hood Canal. As a result, the Washington State Department of Health and the Kitsap Public Health District have closed recreational shellfish harvesting in north Hood Canal from Foulweather Bluff south to the Hood Canal bridge, including all bays and inlets, for all species of clams, oysters and mussels. An existing PSP closure for all species of shellfish remains in effect on the eastern shoreline of Kitsap County from Foulweather Bluff south to the Pierce County line.

http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2012/aug/15/red-tide-closure-for-shellfish-harvesting/

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Huffington Post Video on Taylor Shellfish

Posted on July 27, 2012 by Al Bergstein

While we support Taylor shellfish by eating their products, and it is worth reminding folks that they actively support clean water environmental initiatives, this seems to be part of a larger PR campaign to defang the opposition to the expansion of the shellfish industry in the South Sound.

A 4th Generation Oyster Fisherman, and Early Ties to the Oyster Industry (VIDEO) http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rebecca-gerendasy/a-4th-generation-oyster-f_b_1706782.html

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