A Lesson Trump and the E.P.A. Should Heed (New York Times
| Opinion)
In March 1983, President Ronald Reagan asked me to return
to Washington to run the Environmental Protection Agency. I had been the
E.P.A.’s first administrator, from 1970 to 1973, and over the agency’s first 10
years, it made enormous progress in bringing the country’s worst pollution
problems under control despite resistance from polluting industries and their
lobbyists. A worried and outraged public had demanded action, and the
government responded. Yet the agency and its central mission came under attack
during the 1980 presidential campaign. The Clean Air Act was criticized as an
obstacle to growth. The agency was seen as bloated, inefficient, exceeding its
congressional mandates and costing jobs. The Reagan administration and its new
administrator were going to fix that. Sound familiar?
To read more >>
Don’t let President Trump trample on Puget Sound’s
environmental gains (Seattle Times | Opinion)
Washington state has proven to be a formidable opponent
to President Trump’s misguided and harsh immigration orders. The state should
next prepare to challenge the Trump administration over environmental issues.
Of particular concern are potential cuts to Puget Sound restoration work and
rule changes that could affect threatened salmon and waters statewide. Trump
should recognize what a bad deal his administration could be making.
To read more >>
Cuts to Puget Sound EPA, NOAA Programs Could Hurt
Businesses (Public News Service)
The Trump Administration has proposed cutting
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) funding for Puget Sound restoration by 93
percent, and that could be bad news for businesses that rely on the continued
water cleanup efforts. Funding would drop from $28 million to $2 million. Bill
Dewey is director of public affairs for Taylor Shellfish Farms, a company that
has harvested in Puget Sound for more than a century. He says the cuts would be
devastating for water quality in the region.
To read more >>
As sea level rises, NOAA cuts would hit coastal
communities (Everett Herald | Associated Press)
A proposed White House budget for the National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration could put coastal communities throughout the
nation at a major disadvantage as they struggle to adapt to threats from
sea-level rise, severe storms and other climate-related events, scientists and
other experts said. That’s because the budget, revealed by The Washington Post
last week, targets a handful of programs that provide important resources to
help coastal states prepare for the coming effects of climate change.
To read more >>
Trump's EPA cuts will drain cleanup programs for Puget
Sound (KUOW)
Puget Sound may have a murky future. The White House is
proposing a 93 percent cut to the Environmental Protection Agency's budget for
Puget Sound restoration. The proposal would cut the EPA’s overall budget by
about $2 billion. That news caused "nothing short of panic" at the
state run Puget Sound Partnership, according to Executive Director Sheida
Sahandy.
To read more >>
Also see:
Trump’s EPA Cuts Worry Nisqually Tribe (Nisqually Valley
News)
Memo: Trump Would Cut Puget Sound Cleanup Budget 93
Percent (Patch.com)
Puget Sound would be affected by proposed EPA cuts (KIRO
7 News)
Proposed NOAA Budget Cuts Would Jeopardize Essential
Tools (Pacific Standard)
Trump pitches tsunami of cuts to NOAA (SeattlePI.com)
White House proposes steep budget cut to leading climate
science agency (Washington Post)
Rules Frozen by Trump Could Melt Away Without a Trace
(Pacific Standard magazine)
Ridding daycare centers of fluorescent lightbulbs with
toxic PCBs. Requiring a back-up engineer on freight trains to avoid crashes.
Restricting drones from flying over people. Federal agencies were preparing
these rules and dozens more when Donald Trump was elected. In one of his first
acts, the president quietly froze them.
To read more >>
DISCLAIMER: Many media outlets require paid subscriptions to view web content. The links below are provided as a courtesy and do not guarantee access to the cited article. The Puget Sound Partnership is not responsible for, and does not endorse, any advertisements that might appear when a link is accessed.
Wild river creates hurdles for visitors, but freed Elwha
now a better home for fish (Peninsula Daily News)
Olympic National Park is in a fight with the Elwha River
in its goal to maintain visitor access to the Elwha River valley. At the same
time, officials are seeing the Elwha River provide a more hospitable welcome
for fish. The river, now free from the two dams that regulated its flow for a
century, continues to force park officials to close the gate on Olympic Hot
Springs Road near the Madison Falls trailhead.
To read more >>
Kilmer, Murray re-introduce Wild Olympics legislation
(Peninsula Daily News)
U.S. Rep Derek Kilmer and Sen. Patty Murray have
re-introduced Wild Olympics legislation to protect environmentally sensitive
areas, support outdoor recreation and preserve and grow jobs on the Olympic
Peninsula, they said last week. The Wild Olympics Wilderness and Wild and
Scenic Rivers Act would designate 126,554 acres of Olympic National Forest as
wilderness and 464 miles of rivers and streams and as wild and scenic rivers.
To read more >>
Rayonier: 20-year anniversary sees site still dormant,
with 2026 as cleanup target (Peninsula Daily News)
Tuesday marks the 20th anniversary of the Rayonier Inc.
pulp mill’s demise, the death of what was Clallam County’s largest employer,
the final work whistle for the plant’s 365 employees. The 75-acre parcel 2
miles east of downtown on Port Angeles Harbor has lain dormant since Feb. 28,
1997, awaiting final cleanup of harbor waters, which state Department of
Ecology Southwest Region Manager Rebecca Lawson said Friday might not be
completed until 2026.
To read more >>
Hearing set on plan to clean up old Hylebos Waterway
chemical plant site (Tacoma News Tribune)
A long-discussed plan to clean up chemical contamination
along the Hylebos Waterway from Occidental Chemical’s 76-year manufacturing
operation will come up for public comment at a hearing Wednesday (March 8). The
hearing will cover the options for cleaning up the site, which is part of the
Superfund-designated pollution of Commencement Bay.
To read more >>
Everett still waiting for cleanup of former mill site
(Everett Herald)
The city of Everett is anxious to return a vacant plot of
land on its waterfront to industrial use. The 66-acre site of the former Kimberly-Clark
pulp mill has been empty since the mill closed in 2012 and the buildings were
demolished. When it was announced last week that a cargo handling company
planned to set up shop on the parcel, many people cheered the possible arrival
of 100 more jobs to Everett’s working waterfront. There’s a hitch, however: The
city sued Kimberly-Clark in 2014 over what it contends is the company’s failure
to properly clean up the property.
To read more >>
Local foundation gives funds to strengthen land
conservation efforts (Sequim Gazette)
The First Federal Community Foundation has awarded a
grant for $5,000 to North Olympic Land Trust aimed at strengthening the
organization’s abilities to conserve local lands that sustain the communities
of Clallam County. The support from the foundation will enable the Land Trust
to stretch financial support from new, individual donors — leveraging an
additional $10,000. The Land Trust seeks to use these funds to further implement
the “Love Where You Live” initiative, an ongoing authentic place-based outreach
and engagement campaign intended to enhance the community’s passion for and
desire to invest, support and engage in local businesses, agriculture, tourism
and outdoor recreation opportunities.
To read more >>
Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke Brings Back Lead Ammo In
Parks And Refuges (Huffington Post)
As the internet freaked out over Interior Secretary Ryan
Zinke riding a horse to his first day on the new job Thursday, environmental
activists expressed outrage over one of his first actions: overturning a
federal ban on hunting with lead ammunition in national parks and wildlife
refuges. Zinke signed Secretarial Order 3346, which repeals a U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service directive the Obama administration issued the day before
President Donald Trump took office barring the use of lead ammunition and
fishing tackle in national parks and wildlife refuges. Zinke also signed an
order to expand hunting, fishing and recreation access on federal lands.
To read more >>
Volunteers prepare to join Salish Sea Stewards (Skagit
Valley Herald)
It was an exciting day for volunteers at Bowman Bay as
they netted 181 young chum salmon Thursday as part of an ongoing research
project. The volunteers, including several Salish Sea Stewards, participated in
a beach seine at a stretch of the bay at Deception Pass State Park.... This
week, a group started training to become Salish Sea Stewards. They will join
the ranks of volunteers who take part in research and restoration projects
throughout Skagit County.
To read more >>
Puget SoundCorps uproots invasive species to safeguard
waterways, native plants (Washington Governor's Office blog)
It’s easy to spot while driving on Interstate 5 through
Olympia and elsewhere in the state: English ivy, covering concrete walls and
climbing up trees. It’s more than an issue of aesthetics. The ivy is a
nonnative species in the Pacific Northwest with the potential to cover and kill
native plants, including trees. Those native plants play a vital role in
protecting the quality of Washington’s waterways, yet the plants themselves
need protection, too. That’s where the Puget SoundCorps — which employs
veterans and young adults to restore native habitat and protect the Puget
Sound — comes in.
To read more >>
Watershed grants awarded to restore salmon habitat
throughout King County (Soqualmie Valley Record)
Habitat for endangered salmon and other wildlife in three
King County watersheds will see added improvements, thanks to more than
$614,864 in Puget Sound Acquisition and Restoration grants recently awarded
from the state Salmon Recovery Funding Board. ... The grants will not only help
repair damage to salmon habitat and conserve land important to salmon recovery,
they will also put people to work. According to the state, every $1 million
spent on watershed restoration results in an average of 16.7 jobs and up to
$2.6 million in total economic activity with 80 percent of funds spent in the
county where the project is located.
To read more >>
Plans for mountain biking at Lord Hill worry some
parkgoers (Everett Herald)
On a damp, misty day, Rick Reed trekked to one of the
wettest parts of Lord Hill Regional Park to show off one facet of its delicate
beauty. Within a few minutes’ walk of a parking lot, a path led into
moss-carpeted world straight out of J.R.R. Tolkien’s fantastical Middle-earth.
A canopy of western red cedar and bigleaf maple loomed over a wetland dubbed
“Wayne’s World” after a local man who blazed a trail through it. On the ground,
a procession of boot prints and bicycle tire ruts interrupted the illusion of
an undiscovered wonderland.
To read more >>
Stillaguamish plant trees to honor Billy Frank Jr.
(Everett Herald)
The Stillaguamish Tribe of Indians hosted a celebration
Thursday to mark Billy Frank Jr. Day on what would have been the late Nisqually
leader’s 85th birthday. A day-long series of events started off with a low-key
activity that hewed close to Frank’s vision: restoring salmon habitat.... In
this case, honoring Frank’s legacy included planting 500 trees and shrubs in
the flood plain on the north bank of the Stillaguamish River.
To read more >>
Progress, not perfection, at Port of Olympia (The
Olympian)
The Port of Olympia is soon putting its foot in the door
of northeast Thurston County for the first time. ... Downing said in a meeting
with The Olympian Editorial Board this week that the port’s retooled mission
has three overlapping goals. One is to focus on improving economic opportunity
for all of Thurston County; another is to continue the port’s environmental
stewardship, which includes the cleanup of polluted lands such as property near
the Hands On Children’s Museum that is being converted to multifamily housing;
a third is to enhance community assets that range from trails to a marina, a
shipping terminal and an airport in Tumwater.
To read more >>
Unpacking Government: What Good Are Environmental Impact
Statements? (KNKX)
Environmental impact statements are often in the news.
They’re lengthy public documents that government agencies have to issue before
taking actions that might cause harm to ecosystems or public health. Most often, they’re required before
permitting of major infrastructure, such as sports stadiums or export
terminals. But projects can also be exempted or, as in the recent standoff over
the Dakota Access Pipeline, the process can be skipped over. So where do they
come from and what good are they?
To read more >>
OIL SPILL PREVENTION AND RESPONSE
Emergency crews responding to diesel spill near northern
Vancouver Island (CBC News)
Emergency crews are responding to a diesel spill at a
fish farm near the northern tip of Vancouver Island. Officials say at least
1,500 litres of diesel overflowed from the Burdwood Fish Farm in Echo Bay,
B.C., northeast of Port McNeill. Farm crews reported the smell of diesel to
Emergency Management B.C. just before 5 a.m. PT, according to an official
report. Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) says the spill was caused by a diesel
pump that was left on overnight.
To read more >>
Company ’highly regrets’ fuel spill at B.C. fish farm (Vancouver
Sun)
The owner of a British Columbia salmon farm where
hundreds of litres of fuel spilled on the weekend says it “highly regrets” the
incident and will review its procedures. Cermaq Canada says coast guard staff
performed a fuel reconciliation and determined the spill was closer to 600
litres and not the 1,500 litres the company reported earlier. It says spill
pads and booms were immediately deployed at the farm off the north coast of
Vancouver Island and quick actions by staff helped reduce the impact on the
environment.
To read more >>
Oily sheen from B.C. diesel spill can't be recovered but
will evaporate, officials say (CBC News)
An oily rainbow-like sheen on the water left by a diesel
fuel spill off the north coast of Vancouver Island cannot be cleaned up, sparking
concerns for a nearby First Nation that relies on clam digging for food and
economic security. The thin layer of fuel, which covered a 5.5-kilometre radius
at one point outside the salmon farm where the spill originated, has been
deemed unrecoverable because it cannot be captured by skimmer vessels or
sorbent materials, British Columbia's Environment Ministry said. Fuel has made
contact with some shorelines in the Burdwood Island group, a sensitive area
teeming with clam beds that the Kwikwasut'inuxw Haxwa'mis First Nation says are
crucial to its economy.
To read more >>
Low-cost monitoring device uses light to quickly detect
oil spills (Science Daily)
Researchers have developed a simple device that can
detect an oil spill in water and then pinpoint the type of oil present on the
surface. The device is designed to float on the water, where it could remotely
monitor a small area susceptible to pollution or track the evolution of
contamination at a particular location.
To read more >>
It won’t be easy to save the marbled murrelet (Crosscut)
It was a clever invitation: “Marbled Merlot Anyone? Come
by my house for a glass of merlot (or cup of tea) to support meaningful
conservation of the endangered Marbled Murrelets on state lands in Washington.”
You have to go a little further when you are trying to rally people to action
on behalf of a bird few have seen and that has been described as a brown potato
with a beak. The invitation came from Maria Mudd Ruth, who has literally
written the book on murrelets.
To read more >>
Northwest Tribes Cooking Up Opposition To Genetically
Modified Salmon (KNKX)
Genetically engineered salmon were approved by the FDA
nearly two years ago. They don’t appear to be on supermarket shelves yet in the
Northwest. But tribes and community groups are holding a cookout this weekend
to raise awareness about their concerns. AquAdvantage salmon were the first
genetically engineered animal product meant for human consumption to be
approved by the FDA. It combines the genetic material of Chinook and Atlantic
salmon with eelpout to make it grow nearly twice as fast as its conventionally
farmed counterparts.... Tribes and consumer groups have sued the FDA, saying it
was approved without adequate environmental review.
To read more >>
Bumper harvest as herring return to Strait of Georgia in
great numbers (Vancouver Sun)
The commercial roe-herring fishery opened with a flourish
over the weekend as the gillnet fleet took its share of what the federal
government predicts to be “near-historic” returns to the Strait of Georgia. The
height of the action took place just north of Parksville, where gillnetters
unfurled their nets in choppy seas and high winds along the east coast of
Vancouver Island. Curious onlookers lined the shoreline, some with cameras and
others with sport-fishing rods. Gulls and sea lions patrolled for their own
catch. Milt — the seminal fluid — released by the male herring gave the cobalt
ocean waters an exotic milky-turquoise colour.
To read more >>
Gray whales make annual visit to Puget Sound (KOMO News)
Grab your camera, gray whale watching season has
officially arrived around Puget Sound. These gray whales - referred to as
"Sounders" - were spotted swimming around North Puget Sound by two
photographers, who reported the sightings to the Orca Network. First to report
a sighting was Gary Lingenfelter, who saw grays feeding on the inter-tidal
flats off Tulalip at the mouth of Port Susan, on February 28 and March 2.
To read more >>
Underwater robots map grey whale habitat off Vancouver
Island (CBC)
Three underwater robots spent weeks listening to grey
whales off the west coast of Vancouver Island last month, so scientists can
learn more about what the whales are doing in northern waters. The two-metre
long yellow gliders travelled together in underwater canyons over the
continental shelf near Clayoquot Sound…. Glider pilots talked to the robots
through satellites several times a day and gave them commands on where to go
next. Researchers are now using the data to figure out what the whales are
encountering in our waters as they migrate up the coast from their winter
habitat off California, to their rich feeding grounds in the Bering Sea off
Alaska.
To read more >>
Vancouver Park Board votes to end display of cetaceans at
aquarium (CBC News)
In a unanimous vote, the Vancouver Park Board has decided
to change its bylaws to end the display of live cetaceans at the Vancouver
Aquarium. The Thursday night vote came at the end of a lengthy, emotional
debate that spanned two nights and heard from more than 60 speakers.
Ultimately, all seven commissioners voted in favour of a motion to amend bylaws
"to prohibit the importation and display" of live cetaceans —
porpoises, whales or dolphins — at the aquarium.
To read more >>
Rare Northwest delicacy making a comeback in Puget Sound (King
5 News)
Divers off the shores of Lopez Island are searching the
depths of Puget Sound for a rare delicacy that hasn't surfaced here for more
than 20 years…. Singing Pink Scallops were fashionable in upscale restaurants
all along the West Coast in the 1980s and 1990s. Increased regulation made the
harvest too difficult, and the shellfish all but disappeared from people's
plates. Pink Singers, as they're known, are considered even more rare than
Beluga Caviar. That's because you can only harvest them in the San Juan and
Canadian Gulf Islands, and divers have to hand pick them at depths of up to 110
feet.
To read more >>
Using Nonnative Oysters to Help Restore Native Oysters in
the Puget Sound (Earth Island Journal)
The rubber boots are essential to our endeavor. ...As much as we prize
our bivalves, they aren’t of this place. In fact, 98 percent of oysters farmed
in Washington State last year were nonnative Pacific oysters. The state’s only
native oyster — the Olympia oyster (Ostrea lurida/conchaphila), which is the
only oyster native to the West Coast and once thrived along coastlines from
Southeast Alaska to Baja, California — has stayed out of the shellfish farming
limelight for years now. But new restoration efforts using nonnative Pacific
oyster shells are making the little Olympia oyster mighty again.
To read more >>
Bringing the shellfish back: How Drayton Harbor overcame
a legacy of pollution (Encyclopedia of Puget Sound)
After a long struggle with pollution, Drayton Harbor has
reopened to year-round commercial oyster harvesting for the first time in 22
years. Here’s how the community cleaned up its act, potentially showing the way
for shellfish recovery throughout Puget Sound.
To read more >>
Editorial: Why grizzly bears need to return to the North
Cascades (Everett Herald | Opinion)
As awe-inspiring as the North Cascades National Park and
its adjacent wilderness areas are, there is something missing, something that
has left the wilderness without an important player in that ecosystem for about
150 years. ... For the same reason we want to save wild salmon runs and preserve
pods of orcas in Puget Sound and the Salish Sea, we need to bring grizzlies
back to the North Cascades: The wilderness would be less without them, as would
we.
To read more >>
Backyard bird count shows B.C. has most diversity in
Canada (Times Colonist)
B.C. boasts Canada’s greatest diversity of wintering
birds, especially in the southwest of the province, according to a
citizen-science survey conducted in backyards. A total of 2,227 British
Columbians participated in the annual Great Backyard Bird Count over four days
in February, recording a total of 206 species.
To read more >>
Editorial: Save EPA, but let state take lead on clean
water rules (Everett Herald | Opinion)
Nuance and moderation have not seen the outside of
President Trump’s tool bag during his first few weeks in the White House, which
is why in seeking a reconsideration of the federal government’s 2015 Waters of
the United States rule, part of the Clean Water Act, he recently called for the
“elimination of this very destructive and horrible rule.” The “destructive and
horrible rule” actually guarantees protections for bodies of water from small
streams and wetlands on up to larger bodies of water such as Puget Sound, the
Salish Sea and the Great Lakes that help provide clean, drinkable water, and
resources that protect the health of fish and wildlife.
To read more >>
Float switches may have failed at flooded West Point
wastewater plant (Seattle Times)
Amid dueling calls for an independent investigation into
the flood that extensively damaged the West Point wastewater-treatment plant,
King County wastewater managers Tuesday revealed preliminary findings into the
causes of the flood. While still ongoing, the review, so far, points to failed
float switches that allowed raw sewage and stormwater to keep pouring into the
plant at maximum flow during a rainstorm. That happened even as crew members
struggled to restart failed pumps that were supposed to be taking treated water
from it.
To read more >>
Investigate West Point plant breakdown that dumped sewage
into Puget Sound (Seattle Times)
SINCE the catastrophic failure of King County’s sewage
treatment plant at Discovery Park on Feb. 9, nearly 235 million gallons of
untreated stormwater and raw sewage — enough to fill about 352 Olympic-sized
swimming pools — have dumped into Puget Sound. ... King County needs a thorough, independent investigation of the
breakdown at the West Point plant — and it should be led by the County Council.
To read more >>
Sewage spill reveals double standard in environmental
priorities (Seattle Times | Opinion)
IF hundreds of millions of gallons of untreated
stormwater and raw sewage flows into Puget Sound, but politicians and
environmental groups don’t make a peep, did it really happen? That’s what we’re
left to wonder after the catastrophic failure at King County’s West Point
Treatment Plant last month. Due to a power outage that caused critical
equipment to fail, more than 300 million gallons of untreated stormwater and
raw sewage were sent straight into Puget Sound.
To read more >>
Clean Samish Initiative Week highlights pollution
evaluation (Skagit Valley Herald)
The Board of Skagit County Commissioners has proclaimed
this week Clean Samish Initiative Week. The Tuesday proclamation is the latest
effort to bring attention to the Clean Samish Initiative, which involves
various groups working to reduce fecal coliform pollution in the Samish River
and Samish Bay. Fecal coliform is a bacteria associated with human and animal
feces. Its presence in the Samish River indicates other illness-causing
bacteria may be present, raising health concerns for water quality and
shellfish harvest downstream.
To read more >>
Ready to go all CSI on dog owners who don’t scoop the
poop? (Bellingham Herald)
West Vancouver district Councilor Mary-Ann Booth is tired
of unscooped poop and has suggested a doggie DNA registry could help crack down
on offending pet owners. Booth walks her Yorkie-Maltese, Gibson, down by the
beach every day. “Just on the short five-block walk, I’m quite disappointed by
how many people don’t pick up after their dogs, and it gives all dog owners a
bad name,” Booth said, according to CBC News.
To read more >>
B.C. researchers race to find the source of microplastics
choking the world's oceans (CBC News)
Scientists are growing increasingly concerned about
microplastics in water and in the food chain, but they face some daunting
challenges in the race to uncover the sources of the problem. "We're
encountering a pollutant unlike any pollutant we've ever seen before,"
says Dr. Peter Ross, director of ocean pollution research at the Vancouver
Aquarium. "This is not a chemical pollutant, it's a structural
pollutant." Recent samples his team have taken off the B.C. coast
contained up to 25,000 plastic particles and fibres in just one cubic metre of
water.
To read more >>
Pacific Coast utility regulators reaffirm climate change
goals (Washington Governor's Office blog)
On the West Coast, major threats from climate change
include worsening wildfire seasons, persistent drought and ocean acidification.
And part of the answer to addressing those threats comes from an unexpected and
behind-the-scenes source — utility regulators. Earlier this week, top utility
regulators in Washington, Oregon and California convened to reaffirm their
commitment to taking action against climate change.
To read more >>
King County among U.S. hotbeds of belief in global
warming (Seattle Times | Column)
Even though 2016 was Earth’s hottest year on record — and
the third consecutive record-breaking year, if you’re keeping track — there are
still plenty of folks who don’t think global warming is real. Not many of them
live in King County, though. More than 80 percent of adults here believe that
global warming is happening, according to new data from the Yale Program for
Climate Change Communication. That ranks King 15th out of more than 3,100 U.S.
counties.
To read more >>
Health District considers regulations for small water
systems (Kitsap Sun)
Kitsap Public Health District is considering new rules
and fees for hundreds of small residential drinking water systems scattered
across the county. The proposed ordinance would tighten oversight of
"Group B" water systems, which serve between three and 14 residential
connections. There are about 870 Group B systems serving more than 4,000
households in Kitsap, according to the Health District. The ordinance also
would allow the district to charge permit fees to cover staff time devoted to
keeping tabs on the systems, estimated at 300 hours a year.
To read more >>
Information about JBLM water tests flows too slow (Tacoma
News Tribune | Opinion)
Look past the security gates, and Joint Base
Lewis-McChord hums along much like any mid-sized American city, with similar
demands on its infrastructure. It has a police force and two golf courses, a
hospital and public works department, and a water system that supplies more
than 45,000 people.... Those customers would be right to question why JBLM
waited until last week to inform them it had ceased using three drinking water
wells — a step taken over several months to meet new federal health guidelines
about potentially harmful chemicals.
To read more >>
Whidbey Island drinking-water wells polluted with
firefighting chemicals near Navy airstrips
(Seattle Times)
A potentially hazardous chemical, found in firefighting
foam, has been discovered in a few wells on Whidbey Island. While the Navy
distributes bottled water and plans for expanded testing, homeowners worry
about longlasting harm.
To read more >>
Will Washington Legislature tackle the state’s toxic lead
problem? (Investigate West)
In the wake of the lead-poisoning water scandal in Flint,
Michigan, and with 10 Washington children a week being diagnosed with
dangerously elevated lead levels, Washington lawmakers this year proposed
several measures to focus attention on the state’s long-neglected lead
contamination problems. But the two measures that would have done the most good
have died. And state health officials say what they really need from the
Legislature isn’t passing new laws – it’s getting the Legislature to put more
money into the existing system to alert doctors, parents and others to the
dangers.
To read more >>
Feds renew B.C. oyster warning as norovirus infections
continue (CBC News)
As more people continue to get sick, Canadians are being
warned yet again about an outbreak of norovirus and other gastrointestinal
illnesses linked to undercooked and raw oysters from B.C. The Public Health
Agency of Canada (PHAC) said 22 more people have contracted the illness since
Feb. 24, bringing the total number of cases since December to 289.
To read more >>
Nisqually Tribe Celebrates Billy Frank Jr. Day (Nisqually
Valley News)
On Wednesday the Nisqually Indian Tribe celebrated the
birth of Billy Frank Jr. with its annual day of remembrance. To honor Frank,
tribal and community members gathered at Franks Camp to help clean up the land
along the Nisqually River where tribal members have fished for generations,
said Debbie Preston, Nisqually tribe public information officer.
To read more >>
EYE ON OLYMPIA: Peninsula legislators expect expansion of
halibut season (Peninsula Daily News)
With several communities voicing opposition to a proposed
three-day halibut fishing season this year, legislators from the 24th District
are confident it’ll rise to seven days. ...Though the state halibut fishing
season is determined by the International Pacific Halibut Commission and
implemented by National Marine Fisheries, state officials have some input and
have requested a seven-day season for 2017.
To read more >>
OUTDOORS: Salmon returns in area rivers projected to be
low this year; state sets meetings (Peninsula Daily News)
Low returns of wild salmon to several rivers are being
projected by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife this year. That was
the prediction of fishery managers at a public meeting held Feb. 28, when
forecasts for chinook, coho, sockeye, chum and pink salmon were released. The
forecasts were developed by the WDFW and treaty tribes. The forecast meeting in
Olympia marks the starting point for developing 2017 salmon-fishing seasons in
Puget Sound, Columbia River and Washington’s Pacific Coast areas.
To read more >>
Whatcom County Council curbs building that relies on
wells for six more weeks (Bellingham Herald)
The Whatcom County Council is restricting new rural
developments that rely on domestic wells for another six weeks, much shorter
than the six months originally before them. Six months would have taken them
through the end of the session for the Legislature, which the council hopes can
remedy the fallout from a state Supreme Court decision that said Whatcom County
failed to protect water resources as required by the Growth Management Act.
To read more >>
Olympia council approves new water reservoir in LBA Woods
(The Olympian)
The Olympia City Council has approved a contract to build
a new water reservoir that will serve customers in southeast Olympia for
decades. Construction will begin this spring on a 5.2 million-gallon reservoir
on about 5 acres of undeveloped land in the LBA Woods.... Plans for the
reservoir have been in the works since 2004 to address a water storage
shortfall of about 1.2 million gallons, according to the city.
To read more >>
Proposed reservoir awaits land transfer, funding (Sequim
Gazette)
There’s plenty of local support percolating for a planned
reservoir along the Dungeness River. However, as the Legislature meets, the
project, like many other statewide, remains on hold for funding until the
state’s budget is set.... The proposed $24-$35 million Dungeness Off-Channel
Reservoir includes a new 88-acre reservoir along the Dungeness River inside a
proposed 320-acre Clallam County park off River Road in Sequim. Its purpose is
to store water in the winter and spring to help with river flow late in the
irrigation season, typically Aug. 15-Sept.15, and contain possible flooding
during heavy rains.
To read more >>
Bills alive, dead or signed in the Legislature (Kitsap
Sun | Associated Press)
Washington state lawmakers are more than halfway through
this year's 105-day legislative session, and fully funding education has been
the top issue at the capitol, with Senate Republicans and House Democrats
having each passed their own education funding proposals but still working
toward negotiating a final plan.... Meanwhile, both chambers have passed
hundreds of bills before this past Wednesday's deadline for many bills to be
voted off of the chamber floor of their house of origin to advance.... A bill
that seeks to reverse a recent state Supreme Court decision involving water
rights and the use of domestic wells has passed the state Senate and is
awaiting consideration by the House.
To read more >>
'Boomer' February Means Good News For Washington’s Water
Supply (KNKX)
The latest Washington state water supply forecast is out
and managers said Monday there’s no reason to believe the state might face
drought this year. Scott Pattee keeps track of the water supply in Washington
for the USDA’s Natural Resource Conservation Service. He said things are
looking good as Washington’s growing season approaches. “Unless something
really crazy and unworldly happens over this month or even April, I just don’t
see there being really any shortages of water anywhere to speak of,” Pattee
said.
To read more >>
Puget Sound’s heavenly Harstine: Sometimes you just need
an island (Seattle Times)
The gentle, rhythmic sound of waves rolling over the
beach was therapy to the soul. Just offshore, a harbor seal broke the glassy
water and curiously eyed my family. I noticed the smell of briny sea air mixing
with the loamy forest, and for a moment all was right with the world. My family
had been through a stressful period last November. There are times when life
throws overwhelming stress, loss or grief at you. If you’re like me, those are
the moments when you fantasize about running away to an island.
To read more >>
Hyak going strong after 50 years on water (Kitsap Sun)
A half-century ago, the new ferry Hyak departed San Diego
Bay for its Seattle home. Onboard was young machinist John Milner, among a
National Steel and Shipbuilding crew delivering the $6.5 million vessel up the
coast to Washington State Ferries.... On Independence Day 1967, with flags and
banners flapping, the Hyak reached Seattle, spinning figure eights around
Elliott Bay amid sprays from fireboats, Milner said.
To read more >>
How is the Puget Sound ecosystem doing?
The 2015 State of the Sound reports on the current state of the ecosystem and the status of regional recovery actions. Learn more at www.psp.wa.gov/sos.
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