species protection

page: 2

Legislative Action Alert: Protect the Southern Residents from Vessel Disturbance & Noise

February 15, 2019

Have you ever been in such a noisy or crowded room that you find yourself yelling to be heard and sometimes giving up on getting food? Imagine what the Southern Resident orcas (SROs) face as they forage for scarce Chinook salmon while being accompanied by boats. Please join us in urging your state legislators to ... read more

End of the Year Actions to Protect What You Love

December 19, 2018

Here are five important things you can do today to support our Salish Sea as we close out 2018… Make an Impact to Protect What You Love: 1. Give Southern Residents their fair share of salmon. Ask the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife Commission to allocate 410,000 Chinook salmon for the Southern Residents annually. ... read more

How do we find forage fish eggs? Learn about it here!

December 6, 2018

Post by Jess Newley, Marine Program Assistant Last week I got to hang out with the forage fish guru himself, Dan Pentilla. Since starting with Friends as the marine program assistant a month ago, I have been busy out on the beaches around San Juan and Lopez islands, collecting sand samples to help us document ... read more

Action Alert: Ensure oil spill prevention and response readiness in the Salish Sea!

November 8, 2018

Washington State requires refineries to have a state-approved oil spill response plan that ensures their ability to respond to major oil spills. Ecology is asking for public comments on the contingency plan for the Anacortes refinery that used to be called Tesoro, was then re-branded as Andeavor, and has now been bought by Marathon Oil. Your ... read more

Action Alert: Speak up for Southern Resident Killer Whales this Week!

October 11, 2018

Governor Inslee’s Southern Resident Killer Whale Recovery and Task Force has issued the updated draft recommendations for actions to recover Southern Resident Killer Whales (SRKW). Show your support for SRKW protection and recovery actions by taking the survey! Click here for the online public comment portal. Comments must be submitted no later than midnight, Monday October 29, via the Task Force ... read more

We’re heartbroken about J35 – What we can do to help.

July 30, 2018

The news of J35’s deceased calf has hit us all hard. She carried her deceased daughter for 17 days and hundreds of miles – it was truly heartbreaking to see this mother orca mourning the death of her newborn calf. It is also a stark reminder of the trouble the Southern Resident Killer Whales are in.It ... read more

Upcoming Lecture: Atlantic Salmon Farms & Implications for Chinook Recovery

July 27, 2018

Friends has joined with the Wild Fish Conservancy to bring you a public discussion about Atlantic salmon net pens and PRV (Piscine Reovirus) in Puget Sound. Details: ATLANTIC SALMON NET PENS and their residual implications for Chinook Salmon and Southern Resident Killer Whale Recovery Wednesday, August 8, 7:00 pm, The Commons at Friday Harbor Laboratories on San Juan ... read more

Friends Appeals the Tesoro/Andeavor Xylene Project

April 5, 2018

On April 4, seven local and regional environmental organizations appealed Skagit County’s approval of a project that would ship hundreds of millions of gallons of toxic chemicals through the Salish Sea every year, much of it destined for Asia. The groups maintain that the approval for the Tesoro (recently renamed Andeavor) Anacortes Refinery petrochemical expansion ... read more

Look what we all did in 2017!

December 21, 2017

All of us at Friends of the San Juans are very appreciative of our members and partners as we reflect on 2017 – thank you for being part of our community who cares deeply for orca, salmon, clean water free of Atlantic salmon netpens and oilspill free oceans. We wanted to give you an update ... read more

Speak out against Xylene in the Salish Sea – November 2!

October 26, 2017

In May 2017, many of you wrote comments on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for Tesoro (now re-named Andeavor) Anacortes Refinery’s proposal to manufacture and export xylene to Asia. Xylene (pronounced ZIE-leen) is a highly volatile, hazardous and toxic petrochemical which has never before been manufactured in our region and transported through our waters. ... read more

It means so much to me to have helped protect the rural environment and natural beauty of the San Juan Islands during the 1980s and 90s. Now I get to share my appreciation of these beautiful islands with my grandchildren, too.

Nancy DeVaux

former Executive Director and member, San Juan Island