Cascadia Daily: Mar. 28, 2018

by Andrew Engelson

Cascadia Magazine poetry: The Return of the Elwha King

Ever since the Glines Canyon Dam on the Elwha River in Washington state was removed in 2014, the river has begun to return to its natural state, and runs of king salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) have begun to spawn in the river once again.

In “The Return of the Elwha King,” a new poem now online at Cascadia Magazine, Paul Nelson sings the praises of king salmon coming back to the Olympic peninsula:
“He’s back! Belly full of planktonic diatoms, copepods, kelp, seaweed, jellyfish, starfish, bugs, amphipods & crustaceans so delicious served up at Sakura as sake or sakekama w/side of Mu poured by Sam.”

Read the entire poem online here.

Cascadia challenges Trump on census citizenship question

It didn’t take long for Washington attorney general Bob Ferguson to announce he will challenge a Trump administration proposal to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census. Other leaders across Cascadia, including Seattle city council member Teresa Mosqueda, spoke out on the change, which they believe will lead to an undercount: “The reality is that it will sabotage, it will destroy, and it will put at risk our ability to get accurate data.”

Sketchy practices in Portland’s hot real estate market

Willamette Week reports on a questionable practice going on in Portland’s market for foreclosed properties. It’s a sketchy transaction that takes advantage of obscure rules on redemption rights, and often leaves low income people forced to foreclose on their homes with nothing and investors with sweet deals.

British Columbia construction union supports Site C dam

Brian Cochran, a manager for International Union of Operating Engineers Local 115, writes for The Tyee that construction unions in British Columbia generally support the proposed $10 billion hydroelectric dam in the northeast corner of the province, claiming it will provide emissions-free electricity and fund thousands of jobs. Meanwhile, DeSmog Canada criticizes  how Site C was exempted from BC’s Clean Energy Act.

Megaquake would produce 60-foot-high tsunami on WA coast

The Olympian reports on a new study from the Washington Geological Survey that examines what a magnitude 9 earthquake  would do to Grays Harbor, Long Beach and other coastal communities in Washington. It’s not pretty (although the maps are)–with a 60-foot-high tsunami inundating much of the coast in 10 to 15 minutes.

It’s whale watching season in Depoe Bay

Northwest TripFinder has a weekend getaway suggestion: Depoe Bay, Oregon, where the shores are rocky and wild, there are abundant seafood restaurants and now is prime whale-watching time. And the good news is that Oregon gray whale sightings are up significantly this season.

A poem by Bellingham’s Andrew Shattuck McBride

The Cascadia-based literary journal Crab Creek Review has a new issue out soon (you can pre-order or subscribe here). Among the gems in the new issue, you’ll find Andrew Shattuck McBride’s “I Was Happy as an Ant,” inspired by a line from John Ciardi’s translation of Dante’s Inferno.
“After transformation I don’t know
what disturbs me most. New sensations. My size. Loss
of antennae, loss of two legs. Walking upright.”
Read the full poem here.

That’s today’s news, arts & culture from across Cascadia. ??  –Andrew Engelson

Photo credit: tsunami map courtesy of Washington Geological Survey.