SOUND WATERS One-day Conference, Feb. 6, 2010

Plan now to attend Island County Beach Watchers annual SOUND WATERS conference on Feb. 6, 2010. Held at Coupeville High School, the theme of the one-day conference this year will be: "Puget Sound Starts Here: Why Act? What Works"

Following a keynote address by Dr. Nathaniel Scholz of NOAA, entitled: "Stormwater, Salmon, and the Health of Puget Sound," there will be two sessions of presentations during the morning and one in the afternoon, with a lunch break and time to view a gymnasium full of exhibits.

Several SJC Beach Watchers attended the conference last year and found it very informative and helpful. (Talk to Claire, Shirley, Beverly, Susan, Andrea or Quinn to find out more.) We should be able to carpool so only a few people will need to drive.

Important: The most difficult part of the conference is that you can only attend one presentation per session, and it will be hard to choose. Also, the most interesting presentations fill up quickly. Registration forms are already being distributed in Island County, and will be available on line on January 4. Sign up as soon as you know you can go, to have the best choices. For descriptions of the presentations (and registration forms after January 4,) go to: http://www.beachwatchers.wsu.edu/island/soundwaters/

This is a really fun event! If you decide to attend, please reply as a comment to this entry, so we'll know how many will be going. Thanks.

Ways of Whales Seminar

If you want to learn more about whales, this seminar is for you. It is sponsored by Orcanet and will be held on Saturday, January 23, 2010, from 9 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. at the Coupeville Middle School Performing Arts Center, 501 S. Main St., Coupeville. There are great speakers and includes current information on salmon restoration as well.

Speakers will be:

Dr. Mike Ford, NOAA Fisheries, will speak on recent Southern Resident Orca DNA paternity research. Who are the fathers within the Southern Resident Orca Community? (other than Ruffles!)

Dr. Fred Sharpe, Alaska Whale Foundation, will entertain with stories and photos of his amazing research on the feeding habits of humpbacks in SE Alaska, including cooperative bubble net feeding.

Howard Garrett, Orca Network, will present an update on the status of the Southern Resident orcas, and a quick "Orca 101" to set the stage for the day.

The day will be end with Another Dam Panel, with Michael Garrity, Washington State Conservation Director for American Rivers, and Robert Elofson, River Restoration Director for the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe, to discuss the important issues of dams, salmon restoration, and keeping our Resident orcas fed.

Workshop cost is $25. Lunch will be available on-site (lunch price & choices on the sign up form). Contact Orca Network at 360-678-3451 or Orca Network (info@orcanetwork.org ) for more information.

Report on local salmon research

A presentation will be given by KWIAHT at the Lopez Center for Community and the Arts.

Saturday January 9th
4:00 pm
Admission: By Donation
Food and drink appropriate for the occasion, and salmon related art!

Hundreds of thousands of juvenile salmon spend each summer on the south end of Lopez. Kwiaht and Lopez volunteers are studying what they eat, how long they stay, where do they come from, and what can we do to improve their chances of survival. It`s been a year since Lopez volunteers reported their initial findings to the community: juvenile salmon come here from every major watershed in western Washington and BC. And much of what salmon were eating was insects! This summer local volunteers caught five times as many juvenile salmon, and have learned much much more about their diet, behavior, and needs. Be among the first to find out what new has been learned! Listen, enjoy some food with us, and join the adventure.

http://www.lopezcenter.com/

Indian Island night time low tide beach walk

On December 1st Russel and Madrona led a few brave souls around Indian Island on a low tide at 8:30PM. It was a clear beautiful night, full moon and 38 degrees. We saw some amazing marine life. Here a a few pictures that Madrona took.

The first is a panorama of some of our team working their way along the rocky edge of Indian Island with headlamps to guide them.

A young Black-Clawed Crab, one of the relatively rare crab species in our waters; it is a member of the brightly colored Xanthid family of crabs. Adults can be orange to neon blue in color, and tend to be very aggressive if disturbed. These crabs prey on clams, snails, and barnacles, crushing their shells in the crab’s strong claws.

The Frosted Dirona, a delicate milky nudibranch or “sea slug” of the rocky inter-tidal zone that feasts on small snails and bryozoans, is a year-round resident of Indian Island.

Melibe leoninus is a free-swimming nudibranch that captures its prey—small crustaceans such as shrimp—by throwing its tentacled hood over them. Melibes appear to migrate into East Sound in September and lay their eggs on eelgrass beds around Indian Island. As this night walk demonstrated, many stay until winter!

We also saw kelp crabs mating; and a very large number of sunflower stars hunting for clams in some of the sandier patches around the island. “A good time was had by all,” with a clear sky and full moon directly overhead!

Port of Friday Harbor Monitoring Project

The Port of Friday Harbor has officially approved the monitoring project. Russel Barsh of Kwiaht, Shann and Beach Watchers have been busy planning for the start of the project in January. So far we have “walked the docks” to find suitable sampling locations, identified equipment we will use, and began putting together species field guides and checklists for all volunteers to use. Our next meeting will be on January 13 at 1 p.m. We will meet at the top of the docks near the Port offices spending an hour or so there then head to the FH Labs for discussion and maybe some work in the shop.

This is a large and important project, so we need as many BWs as we can get. It is also going to be a lot of fun—plus you will become a pro at identifying marine life. If you have not let Russel know that you are interested in the project, please email him at rlbarsh@gmail.com
Looking forward to see you on the 13th.

Sign Up for SeaDoc's E-Course on Ecological Principles

SeaDoc's free Top Ten Principles e-course will cover the key ecological principles for designing healthy coastal ecosystems. You'll get an informative email every three days, each covering one of the ten ecological principles that provide a big picture view of how to create and safeguard a healthy ecosystem. You’ll also be able to use on-line forums to discuss with other educators how to most effectively teach these principles. These principles can serve as a foundation for educating the public and for designing a healthy Salish Sea and other coastal ecosystems for future generations.

The 10-part e-course will delivered by email every three days, starting January 4, 2010.

For more information or to sign up, visit http://www.seadocsociety.org/courses/topten

Lopez Meeting with Prospective Beach Watchers

Shann and a few Beach Watchers met at the Lopez Library today for an informational meeting about Beach Watchers and the 2010 class. Eight interested Lopez residents dropped by for tea and cookies during the afternoon, and had a chance to learn more about the program and ask questions. There was quite a bit of interest shown by the visitors, as Shann gave a synopsis of the activities we've been involved in this year, and a couple of the attendees seemed ready to apply by the end of the meeting. Geneva Mottet, Beverly Zapalac and Susan Muckle were able to share some of their enthusiasm for the program, and Ulanah McCoy also came by and had a chance to talk about some of her activities. Shann hopes to have one or two similar meetings on Lopez later in the winter, as well as on other islands. If you know of any SJ islanders you think might be interested, please share contact info with Shann. Susan and Bev are very excited at the prospect of additional Beach Watchers on Lopez!

The 2010 class will begin on March 25 and continue till May 13, and as in 2009, sessions will rotate between SJI, Orcas, Lopez, (and maybe even Shaw!)

Beach Planting at Shoal Bay on Lopez: Final Step in Beach Restoration Process

In Mid-October Friends of the San Juans oversaw the removal of a tidegate that had partially blocked the entrance channel to the Shoal Bay Lagoon since the 1980s. More than 15 truckloads of concrete, steel and fill were removed from the site over a period of several days, the channel was deepened, and the banks on either side were re-shaped to more natural and sustainable contours.

On a beautiful November 11 morning, Tina Whitman and Jana Marks from "Friends," and Beach Watcher Susan Muckle, completed the final stage of the project by planting about 700 plugs of native plants and grasses on both sides of the bank. In addition to these new plants, which will help hold the banks in place, Tina was encouraged to note how many other grass seedlings were already sprouting in the area. Established plants from further down the beach will also spread seeds and rhizomes into the newly graded area.

The lagoon is home to Jones Family Farm's shellfish beds, and owner Nick Jones stated how pleased he was with the outcome of the project. The lagoon is still adapting to the changes, and will continue to do so for awhile, but it "has a more natural feeling to it now," according to Nick.

A lot of behind the scenes engineering and environmental preparation by Friends' staff preceded the actual removal of the tidegate, and the organization will continue to monitor the beach and lagoon on an ongoing basis. But all indications are that this project has been a big improvement to the Shoal Bay ecosystem.

Extended Deadline for Comments to NOAA on Vessel Regs

NOAA has now extended the deadline for comments to January 15, 2010.
http://www.nwr.noaa.gov/Marine-Mammals/Whales-Dolphins-Porpoise/Killer-Whales/ESA-Status/Orca-Vessel-Regs.cfm

Comments may be submitted by:
Email: orca.plan@noaa.gov
Federal e-rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov/
Mail: Asst. Regional Administrator
Protected Resources Division
Northwest Regional Office
National Marine Fisheries Service
7600 Sand Point Way NE
Seattle, WA 98115

Further information can be obtained from Lynne Barre, NW Regional office, 206-526-5745; or Trevor Spradlin, Office of Protected Resources, 301-713-2322.

Big Step Forward. We now live in the Salish Sea!

On Friday, October 30, the State Board of Geographic Names voted 5 to 1 in favor of adding "Salish Sea" as one of the approved names for the body of water that includes Puget Sound, Strait of Georgia, and Strait of San Juan de Fuca. The existing names will not be replaced, but Salish Sea will be an added "umbrella" designation to refer collectively to all of these ecologically-vital waters.

This is not the end of the process, as the name still awaits approval by the U.S. Board of Geographic Names, as well as its Canadian counterpart. But this could come as early as next month.

The salmon and orcas know no geographic names nor national boundaries for the waters they migrate through. If we are to have any success in restoring their endangered habitat, it is critical that we all come to view these waters as one unified sea, and work collectively across borders and cultures to protect it.

Putting this new name on the map is a welcome first step. No longer will we have to describe ourselves as located between Puget Sound and the Strait of Georgia. Instead, we can tell people that our beautiful islands are the heart of the Salish Sea!

Water Quality Monitoring expands to Friday Harbor

Russel Barsh has compiled and tabulated the data collected in 2009 from Fishing Bay in East Sound. As plans progress for Beach Watchers to continue this work next year, Russel is simultaneously expanding this monitoring program to the Port of Friday Harbor. Russel met with a number of Beach Watchers at the Friday Harbor labs on Tuesday, Oct. 20. After a preliminary discussion of plans for next year, the group moved to the FH Port and observed and collected plants and animals from the docks. Preparatory work on this project will continue, and active monitoring will begin in the spring.

Meanwhile Russel, on behalf of Kwiaht, is taking preliminary steps to establish a similar monitoring program on Lopez, hopefully in conjunction with the 2010 Beach Watchers class.

Micro-Plastics Monitoring on local beaches

On Monday, Oct. 19, Jen Kingfisher from the Port Townsend Marine Science Center met with Beach Watchers at San Juan Island's Jackson Beach. In conjunction with the Department of Ecology, the PT Marine Science Center is sampling beach debris in all seven Washington counties that border the U.S. portion of the Salish Sea for "micro-plastics." -- the small fragments that often are ingested by marine animals. Jen's paraphernalia included buckets, sieves, and garden trowels, which she used to demonstrate the sampling protocol. Three 1-meter square sections of the beach are chosen at 30 foot intervals from which sand and other beach debris are gathered. These bucketfuls of material are then shaken through different-sized sieves to collect the human-made debris that remains, after the organic material is removed. The debris is then analyzed and counted by category. The sampling is being done twice a year - with samples from all beaches collected the same week in October, and again in March. Samples and data sheets are forwarded to Jen for further analysis and recording.

After the group practiced the techniques by collecting samples from three quadrates on Jackson Beach on Monday, Jen left the sampling gear behind to use on other island beaches. Kim Secunda and Susan Muckle collected samples from Orcas and Lopez, and the San Juan Beach Watchers met in the rain at South Beach on Wednesday.

The data collected will provide a baseline for determining the quantity and types of plastics that are showing up on Salish Sea beaches, as a first step towards finding local solutions to this world-wide problem.

Everyone is encouraged to help with the 2nd sampling session in March; more information will be posted when the date gets closer.

Chemistry 101 - a workshop with Russel Barsh

Several Beach Watchers met on Orcas on Oct. 15 as a follow-up to the Fishing Bay monitoring the group has been doing this year in East Sound. At this first of two workshops designed to evaluate the monitoring already done and plan for next year, Russel devoted a good portion of the time to an in-depth look at the molecular structure of anionic and non-ionic surfactants, to help us understand why they work the way they do, and why they are so harmful to the marine environment. Russel feels that it is important that we as "citizen scientists" have a solid understanding of the work we're doing and its scientific foundation. The day ended with a look at the different kinds of research equipment that can be used to measure surfactant concentration in the water. The second workshop on October 29, also at the Orcas Fire Station, will continue this discussion and lead into planning for next year's research. All Beach Watchers are welcome at the second workshop, starting at 10 am.

TOXINS IN OUR WATER

After the Hedrick Smith Evening at the Orcas Center in August I went away with more questions than answers. The event was very informative in many ways, but was lacking in answers to the questions of 'what can we do to help'. I think that was the general feeling from the rest of the audience as well. Everyone wanted more information on how to help, what products to buy, or not buy. Here is a link to the 'Friends' newsletter that has a good article on surfactants. There are lists of good resources and a list of the 'dirty dozen'--top product ingredients to avoid.

Please read the 'Toxins in our Water" article

http://www.sanjuans.org/news/Newsletter%20Summer%202009_WEB.pdf

If you have any information that may be helpful, please comment on this blog. If you use products that you have researched and know are safe, please share that information so we can all be better stewards of the earth.

Thanks, N. Alboucq

GREAT NEWS regarding California's sustainable seafood bill!

Success! Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has signed California's Sustainable Seafood Bill (AB 1217) into law!

"The bill was sponsored by the Monterey Bay Aquarium and we were pleased to work with Assemblyman Bill Monning in shaping this important legislation. At a time when the oceans are in crisis, commercial fishermen are struggling and fisheries are in decline, it's more important than ever to support those who fish responsibly. This bill will ensure that fishermen get the assistance they need to seek official certification of their fisheries and bring sustainable seafood to market." - quote from the Monterey Bay Aquarium newsletter.


Click on these links to read more about the new bill.


http://www.aroundthecapitol.com/Bills/AB_1217/


http://app.bronto.com/public/?q=preview_message&fn=Link&t=1&ssid=10832&id=3jrde320tntjh86k2v667ogxxscbb&id2=1frmzoqiyee6n0ek4fou4rydjfbvj&subscriber_id=bkvphtotibkoshhatfhiaymvpowxbmf&messageversion_id=ajltxqaquxzvzczlgdcpgvcpkjtbbjc&delivery_id=bzemehfvw