Tippets: Legislation on Lake Okeechobee, Christo Cancels Arkansas River Project, Predation on Puget Sound Chinook Salmon, Environmental DNA Sampling

February 1, 2017 By: Erin Block

  • Florida Senate Bill 10 has been filed by State Senator Rob Bradley.  It proposes to reduce harmful Lake Okeechobee discharges by purchasing 60,000 acres of land south of the lake to build a reservoir to hold excess water, which will reduce discharges to the coasts.
  • The internationally known artist Christo announced he has canceled his “Over the River” project in protest of the new administration. The controversial project would have draped the Arkansas River in fabric. “The federal government is our landlord. They own the land. I can’t do a project that benefits this landlord.” Via The Gazette.
  • A new study indicates that populations of seals and sea lions are eating more threatened chinook salmon in Puget Sound than previously estimated, potentially hampering recovery efforts for both salmon and endangered killer whales. Via Encyclopedia of Puget Sound.
  • Environmental DNA sampling could be a game changer for helping to monitor and protect endangered fish species. “Just by taking a water sample, you can tell somewhere in basin above you, there was this range of species and something about their relative abundance,” says biologist Shaun Clements of the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. Via NPR.