Puget Sound

Newfoundland went centuries believing it could never exhaust its abundance of cod. Until it did. A reflection from the waters of Vashon Island and Mistaken Point.

Obama science goes schizophrenic on salmon restoration

Posted Wed, Sep 23, 6 a.m.

A Biological Opinion factors in the effect of climate change on California salmon runs and the orcas that depend on them. So why is the recent BiOp by NOAA on the Columbia and Snake so oblivious?

The bully of Puget Sound

Posted Fri, Sep 18, 6 a.m.

Seattle has a great international brand, but locally, the Emerald City image is tarnished. New leadership could give us a fresh start.

The classic ferries that got away

Posted Fri, Sep 11, 6 a.m.

By Scott St. Clair

The state should have found a way to save its 1927-vintage Steel Electric-class boats, ultimately sold to Mexico for scrap. Sinking one to create artificial reefs for divers, as B.C. has done, was one big missed opportunity.

Sea rise and climate change: let's do the science

Posted Thu, Sep 10, 6 a.m.

By Todd Myers

The sea is rising, and may go up about a foot in the next 100 years in Puget Sound. That's serious, but much less alarming than the usual figures cited.

A nick-of-time court ruling stops the gravel project on Maury Island

Posted Mon, Aug 17, 6 a.m.

Judge Ricardo Martinez broadly rejected the Corps of Engineers' approval of the request, even offering some sweeping language about 'cumulative impact' of such projects. A victory for Puget Sound, or just an eddy against the bigger tide?

Can we stop NOAA from departing Seattle?

Posted Wed, Aug 5, 2:26 p.m.

By Jean Godden

Soon we will know why NOAA picked Newport, which one would have thought ranked dead last in the criteria. Then may come a long-shot effort at reversing the strange decision.

Drawing the line on Everett landmarks

Posted Fri, Jul 24, 6 a.m.

By Pete Jackson

Everett has a remarkable string of historic buildings and landmarks, as well as a record of losing many of them. The battle with the Port of Everett over the Collins Building has become a dramatic last stand for preservationists.

The little tugboat that could

Posted Fri, Jun 12, 6 a.m.

The legislative session wasn't generous to the environment, especially Puget Sound. But there was one victory of 'dumb doggedness': the rescue tug at Neah Bay, a key to fighting oil spills.

And for Seattle's next 'world's fair,'...

Posted Fri, Jun 5, 6 a.m.

Puget Sound boosters are proposing to launch an annual Global Health Celebration in 2012 to re-brand Seattle for the new century.

Mud fight on the Skagit

Posted Thu, Jun 4, 6 a.m.

By Bob Simmons

Which is more threatened: wetlands or farmlands? And bear in mind that Skagit Valley farmland is perhaps the finest dirt in the world.

The ultimate beach boy

Posted Wed, Jun 3, 6 a.m.

A Puget Sound beachcomber and U.W. oceanographer has expanded our understanding of the oceans by studying driftwood and rubber duckies. Here's an unbeatable "beach read" for the summer.

Sea change

Posted Wed, May 20, 6 a.m.

Washington State will officially consider altering the map by naming the inland waters of the Pacific Northwest the Salish Sea.

Is Seattle's best mayor in Bremerton?

Posted Thu, Apr 30, 11:15 a.m.

Cary Bozeman may have insulted Seattle's leadership, vision, and downtown icons with his blunt critique of the city, but he's mostly right.

Saving our region: Nice plans, but...

Posted Thu, Apr 16, 6 a.m.

By Douglas B. MacDonald

A candid look at the efforts to preserve Puget Sound and surrounding lands discovers inconvenient truths. Population growth is not going where planned. Studies replace courageous action on Puget Sound. And land use loopholes invite blockbuster developments in rural areas.

Cliff Mass, what was that slop outside?

Posted Wed, Apr 15, 6 a.m.

For a variety of reasons, our weather is confusing. Fortunately, if a weather expert doesn't get through to you, here's some Northwest folk wisdom to fall back on.

Save the planet: Get rid of your cat

Posted Thu, Apr 2, 6 a.m.

Evidence is mounting that having a cat isn't very green: Along with humans, they are having a devastating impact on birds and marine life.

Muddy waters of the Salish Sea

Posted Fri, Mar 27, 6 a.m.

A new name for the Northwest waters could be a setback for those charged with cleaning up Puget Sound. On the other hand, maybe a fresh start is what's needed.

What we need is 'one orca, one vote'

Posted Fri, Mar 20, 5:26 a.m.

THE TYEE (VANCOUVER, B.C.)

It’s hard to save Puget Sound when we're rummaging under the couch for spare change.

Other media

A one-man cleanup crew under the West Seattle Bridge Thinking about local birds and massive islands of garbage in the Pacific, Neal Chism has been on a mission: Picking up trash along the rocky shores of the Duwamish.

WEST SEATTLE BLOG

Killer whales are picky eaters, preferring chinook salmon That could be a problem, scientists warn, leading to further limits on fishing so that the orcas have enough of their preferred menu.

OREGONIAN (PORTLAND)

Some toxin levels reduced in Elliott Bay Improvements for PCBs, flat for arsenic, getting worse for zinc, but overall things are getting better down there on the bottom.

SEATTLEPI.COM

A good stimulus story: Removing old nets from Puget Sound The nets survive underwater and are a hazard to fish and wildlife. Along comes federal stimulus money and out go the boats and divers to rid the waters of the nets.

NEW YORK TIMES

In search of the vanishing Olympia oyster A great delicacy, they are hard to find, but you can find some places in B.C. where they are thriving.

Blog posts

I Forgive You, Paul Dorpat (and maybe Ivar’s, too)

Posted Thu, Nov 12, 11:10 a.m.

by Feliks Banel

Absence of Mollusk? Sure, the underwater billboards were a hoax. But Keep Clam! It was a great promotion in Ivar Haglund's classic style.

U.S. approves Salish Sea name

Posted Thu, Nov 12, 1:42 p.m.

But not everyone was enthusiastic about the new name, like some folks in Pierce County.

Salish Sea it is!

Posted Fri, Oct 30, 3:34 p.m.

Get set for a new name on Northwest maps.

B.C. approves "Salish Sea" proposal

Posted Fri, Oct 23, 10:10 a.m.

That is, if Washington and the U.S. follow suit. The name would enhance but not supplant existing names for inland waters on either side of the border.

Smooth sailing for the Salish Sea?

Posted Thu, Aug 20, 3 p.m.

In an unusual act of international cooperation, the proposal to name the inland waters of the Pacific Northwest is being handled by both countries at once.

River of coffee?

Posted Thu, Apr 2, 2 p.m.

A Washington place name proposal that could make a mark in latte land.

Mossback talks "Pugetopolis"

Posted Fri, Jan 9, 10:54 p.m.

The launch of a book and readings for a Crosscut columnist. (Or as Joel Connelly like to say, "calumnist.")

Sobering lessons for Puget Sound clean-up

Posted Mon, Dec 29, noon 2008