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Wind, Fog, and Eggs!

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Weather: 

  • Visibility varied today. This evening visibility is excellent, 10-13 miles. This afternoon we were surrounded by fog and could not see even nearby north rock (less than 1 mile).
  • Wind this evening is blowing 30-40 knots. This morning was calmer, 12 knots.
  • Sky clear. This was interrupted mid afternoon by thick fog.
  • Water white capping and breaking into spindrift.

Boats/Visitors: 

  • Today was fairly quiet, with only a few whale watching boats in the morning which seemed to mostly keep a good distance. Greg visited this afternoon to deliver water as we are still waiting for the new desalinator. A former student visited as well.
  • The swiftsure international sailing race passed Race Rocks on Saturday, so we have been seeing the boats trickle back towards Victoria over the past couple of days.
  • Yesterday we spotted a rental boat from Pedder Bay Marina attempt to pass through the channel between our main island and the south islands.
  • Lately whale watching boats have been present viewing the elephant seals and sea lions. Many have appeared to be well within the 100m distance from sea lions required by DFO.

Whale watching boat disturbs sea lions on jetty

Whale watching boat approaches sea lions on rocks

Ecological: 

  • Two evenings past we noticed the first seagull eggs of the season. We noticed that one nest was missing its egg the next morning. The seagulls have become quite aggressive towards us but only if we get too close to their nest by accident.
  • There are still four elephant seals on the island, two moulting, the juvenile male from this past spring, and an older female.
  • The sea lions have remained on the SE side of the island, although fewer than what we were seeing before surrounding our jetty. They have been enjoying surfing the waves periodically.
  • Another oyster catcher nest spotted on the SW side.
  • We have been finding dead seagulls presumably killed by the bald eagles that have been hanging around. They especially like to sit on top of camera three.

Seagull guarding its egg and nest.

Other: 

  • Except for in the occasional presence of fog, we have been able to operate the island completely with solar on clear days.
  • We were in need of batteries so missed a few days of salinity/temperature data collection.

Oil cleanup near Island impossible much of the year TC May 2019

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I was involved as an intervenor  in the NEB reconsideration Hearings in the fall of 2018. We presented the wind data from Race Rocks which confirms much of the information in this newspaper article. Note Race Rocks is also  mentioned below:

From The Times Colonist -Island Voices: May 26 2017 

Oil cleanup near Island impossible much of the year

If an oil spill occurred in the Juan de Fuca Strait, a cleanup would be impossible or severely limited 198 days of the year, according to Christianne Wilhelmson, executive director of the Georgia Strait Alliance

If you are wondering whether our coast is ready for an oil spill, you might like to know that responding to one at the mouth of the Juan de Fuca Strait, near Port Renfrew, would be impossible or severely limited 198 days of the year.
As part of the National Energy Board’s re-review of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, Georgia Strait Alliance examined the physical limits of booms, which are foundational pieces of equipment to contain and deflect spilled oil. We compared their limits to wind, wave and currents along the tanker route, and found that responding to a spill on our coast is likely to result in a significant amount of oil being left in our marine environment.

Most of the booms used to respond to spills along the tanker route are meant for protected water areas, such as harbours. They aren’t built to withstand the currents we find along the route, with 87 per cent of them failing at about 1.5 knots (2.8 km/h). Even the most effective high-current booms on our coast fail at four knots. Meanwhile, in some locations, such as Race Rocks on the southern tip of Vancouver Island, currents can exceed seven knots.
Strong wind and waves carry oil over or under booms, sometimes even breaking them. In the heaviest weather, booms can’t be deployed. Wind and waves surpass boom capabilities for days, sometimes weeks, at a time during the fall and winter at the mouth of the Juan de Fuca Strait. If an oil spill were to happen during one of these periods, our coast would likely be awash in oil.
When the tug Nathan E. Stewart sank in Heiltsuk Nation territory in the northern part of the province in 2016, weather conditions suspended spill cleanup for 11 of 40 days of recovery efforts recovered 1,400 litres of oily water and waste, leaving 110,000 litres of fuel and lubricant in the surrounding waters. The spill contaminated shellfish harvesting areas, forcing the Heiltsuk to halt food and commercial harvests, as well as cultural practices.
Unfortunately, this level of failure is common. The International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation estimates that 10 to 15 per cent of spilled oil is recovered, with the weather limits of spill equipment being a major factor. Spills are complex and difficult to manage — and their repercussions last for decades. We’re 30 years on from the Exxon Valdez disaster in Alaska, which saw the loss of thousands of local jobs and the functional extinction of a pod of orcas, and oil is still being found on beaches in Prince William Sound.
An outcome such as this isn’t one that the people who live and work in the Salish Sea area should have to navigate. The federal government can say no to the expansion of the Trans Mountain pipeline and protect our coast from the risk of a future spill.
The government’s rationale for the pipeline expansion is unravelling: The NEB acknowledges there would be devastating impacts to southern resident orcas; Alberta’s carbon tax and oil-production cap are on the chopping block with the election of Premier Jason Kenney; and oil-spill response is nowhere near being “world-class.” The NEB recommends reviewing nearly every aspect of how we respond to spills — from response resources to the methods we use for spill response to including Indigenous and municipal governments in planning.
The federal government continues to claim that this project is in the national interest, while evidence and research suggest otherwise. The economic case for fossil fuels is unravelling, as the benefits of government revenues and jobs decline, while the impacts of their production on climate change and the natural world continues to climb.
It is time for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to acknowledge that the government’s case for Trans Mountain is crumbling and move on from this project that puts our coast at risk.

Christianne Wilhelmson is the executive director of Georgia Strait Alliance, a regional marine conservation organization and intervener in the National Energy Board process.

New Eco-Guardians, Many Visitors, and Catastrophic Moults

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We’re Mara and Kai, the new Eco-Guardians. We’re very excited to be on Race Rocks. It’s been a busy few days (we arrived Monday), but lots has been done so far. Now that we are settling in, we’ll be sure to log post more frequently and with pictures!

Weather:

Visibility: 20 miles

Wind: 30 knots S

Sky: Overcast

Water: Waves up to half a metre, whitecaps

Boats/Visitors:

Over the last few days there has been traffic: visitors including people working on costal radar, the weather station, seismic monitoring, and guests of Pearson College. The costal radar antenna had to be shipped back to its manufacturer to be recalibrate, and is now working as intended.

Some whale watching boats have been getting close, well inside of 100m of the animals. They usually make more distance if they can see us. Lots of traffic today specifically, well over twenty visits by whale watching.

Maintenance:

The desalinator is still broken so we are conserving water, and our drinking water is being brought from Pearson College. Earlier this week they brought a fire hose to pump clean water into the tank when we get low. A new four wheeled cart was brought to facilitate safer diesel fuel transfers between the shed by the jetty and the generator room.

Ecological:

One elephant seal has been on land near the boat ramp for days now. It seems to be undergoing catastrophic moulting, a process in which they shed all of their fur as well as the underlaying skin. They appear to be sick, but we’ve been assured it’s normal.

Yesterday’s Census:

9 elephant seals: youngest one is still here on our lawn, two moulting

About 30 sea lions

2 families of geese with 6 goslings per

5 additional pairs of geese (one laid eggs today that we had to collect and addle)

About 200 seagulls- they are starting to build nests and are becoming more aggressive

About 20 pigeon guillemots

A handful of oyster catchers

A hub of research activity at Race Rocks today.

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A lot of activity was going on today in the reserve.  Guy drove out myself and Laura Verhegge and several others to attend to equipment  at Race Rocks. Already there was a crew with Kevin of Oceans Network Canada who were reinstalling the CODAR sea surface monitor. This was last commented on in a log on  September 28 Also accompanying us was Ed Weibe, of the UVic School of Earth and Ocean Sciences — EOS 110 Labs Vancouver Island School-Based Weather Station Network http://victoriaweather.ca , who monitors the  Davis weather station for our weather page on this site and the UVic Schools  Weather program.  He was there to change the humidity sensor and check on the equipment.  Lucinda Leonard was along to take down the GPS earthquake monitoring equipment after its successful deployment for the past week.  (See the May 10 log)

 

The other activity going on was the installation of a CODAR  monitor by the crew with Kevin from Oceans Network Canada.

GPS Survey for Earthquake Hazard Assessment on Southern Vancouver Island

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I accompanied Lucinda Leonard and two students from UVIc  Megan Caston and Yijie Zhu – they are both working towards Masters degrees in Geophysics, working on earthquakes and faults to Race Rocks along with 6 students from Pearson College for the installation of two GPS stations. Many years ago , perhaps as early as 1991, this plug had been installed a meter in front of the Camera 5 location , and it had not been rechecked since.  Laas was able to get this picture of it to verify that it was still there .

gps marker

The following is the research proposal by Lucinda Leonard, Assistant Professor (Geophysics) School of Earth and Ocean Sciences, University of Victoria PO Box 1700 STN CSC, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada V8W 2Y2

GPS Survey for Earthquake Hazard Assessment on Southern Vancouver Island

Participants: Lucinda Leonard, Assistant Professor, School of Earth and Ocean Sciences, University of Victoria
Julie Elliott, Assistant Professor, Purdue University
Yan Jiang, Research Scientist, Natural Resources Canada, and Adjunct Professor, University of Victoria 2-3 students will also take part in the fieldwork.

Objectives:

(1) To quantify seismic hazard of crustal faults on southern Vancouver Island. (2) To improve understanding of crustal deformation in subduction zone forearcs.

Scope of fieldwork:

The research project will establish and survey a relatively dense network of high-precision Global Positioning System (GPS) sites across fault zones on southeastern Vancouver Island that may host significant earthquakes. The 2018 survey will involve temporary instrument deployments at a number of pre-existing survey markers as well as new markers emplaced in bedrock. We anticipate future deployments every 1-2 years over the next 5-10 years.

Rationale:

Southeastern Vancouver Island is a region of high seismic hazard due to its location above the Cascadia subduction zone – the region is susceptible to damage from: earthquakes on the Cascadia megathrust fault offshore (magnitude ~9; similar to the devastating 2011 tsunamigenic Japan earthquake), deep earthquakes beneath the Salish Sea and Puget Sound (up to magnitude ~7; e.g., 2001 earthquake in Nisqually, Washington, that caused minor damage in Victoria), and earthquakes on poorly-understood shallow crustal faults (up to magnitude ~7.5; similar to the 2011 damaging earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand). Crustal earthquakes, although smaller in magnitude than megathrust events, may produce strong shaking in urban areas due to their shallow source and possible close proximity. Modelling of a scenario crustal earthquake beneath the City of Victoria estimates extensive damage to 64% of building stock, 75% of the water pipeline system, and 90% of the sewer pipeline system in the city (VC Structural Dynamics Ltd., 2016).

Crustal faults remain poorly understood in the region, although recent progress includes the identification of surface-rupturing Holocene earthquakes on the Leech River fault (Morell et al., 2017) and its likely offshore equivalent, the Devil’s Mountain fault (Barrie and Greene, 2018). Fault mapping and trenching are important to determine the maximum magnitude of past and future earthquakes on individual fault strands, but these methods cannot provide accurate estimates of slip rates on fault zones, as required for input into seismic hazard assessments. GPS surveying can be used to track the relative motion of survey markers over time; a sufficiently dense GPS network can be further used to identify the location of active faults and to quantify their slip rates (e.g., Marechal et al., 2015). The existing network of continuous GPS stations on southeastern Vancouver Island is inadequate for this purpose, e.g., there are only three stations within 20 km of the active Leech River fault zone. Campaign-style deployments, repeated every 1-2 years over a time-span of 5-10 years, will provide the greater density of survey locations needed to assess strain build-up on fault zones. Several sites were established in 1991 and re-surveyed in 1996 (Henton, 2000; Mazzotti et al. 2003) – we propose to re-occupy these sites, where possible, and to establish a denser network of campaign GPS sites for temporary deployments (2-4 days at each site).

1

Methodology
Site locations:
Site requirements: accurate GPS positioning (to within 1 mm) requires the GPS antenna to have a good view of the sky in order to maximize the satellite signals received. It also requires a marker to be emplaced in a stable substrate, ideally bedrock. Thus bedrock hilltops provide optimum site locations. In this region, many optimal locations are located within parks.

Proposed deployments include 5 pre-existing sites, in addition to ~16 new sites, at an average of ~3 km spacing perpendicular to the Leech River fault zone and adjacent faults offshore (Figure 1; Table 1). The greater number of sites to the north of the fault zone reflects greater accessibility over a larger land area in this region.

Figure 1. Proposed locations of campaign GPS sites. Also shown are the locations of continuous GPS sites, pre-existing campaign GPS sites, and mapped faults.

Table 1. Locations of existing and proposed GPS campaign sites available by contacting the research proponenet

For a continuous period of 2-4 days at each site (maximum of once per year), a 1.7-m high mast with GPS antenna will be set up over an existing or new marker in the bedrock at each site, attached by cable to a receiver in a locked box on the ground. During deployment, the mast will be secured to the anchors using chains (Fig. 2a). At sites not conducive to the mast set-up, a tripod (Fig. 2b) or spike mount (Fig. 2c) will be used instead. New sites will be established by using epoxy to fix stainless steel marker pins into the bedrock. These will penetrate 6 inches into the rock, with a diameter of 0.5 inches, to lie flush with the ground surface. For mast sites, three stainless steel anchor bolts will also be bolted into the rock to a depth of ~2 inches, each attached to a 2-inch diameter stainless steel ring flush to the ground, at a distance of ~0.5 m from the central marker.

Approximate schedule for 2018 fieldwork:

The fieldwork will be carried out in August 2018, with each site being surveyed for 2-4 days. The proposed schedule is shown in Table 2 below, although actual dates may differ.

Table 2. Approximate schedule for fieldwork in August 2018 Approx. Dates Tasks

Aug 1 Aug 2 Aug 3 Aug 4 Aug 5 Aug 6 Aug 7 Aug 10

Aug 11 Aug 12 Aug 13 Aug 14 Aug 15 Aug 16 Aug 17 Aug 18

Team 1: Deploy PBHY, HIGH, SHER
Team 1: Deploy MLHT, TOLM, check others, babysit TOLM
Team 1: Stay at TOLM, check others
Team 1: Babysit TOLM, Demob PBHY, HIGH, TOLM (after 5 pm) Team 1: Demob MLHT, Deploy HAVN
Team 1: Check HAVN
Team 1: Demob HAVN after 5 pm
Team 1: Paperwork; deploy BEAR, STEW
Team 2: Deploy BBEC, DEVO, MILL
Team 1: Deploy OAKH, DOUG, check BEAR, STEW, babysit DOUG Team 2: Deploy PEDD, check BBEC,DEVO, MILL
Team 1: Babysit DOUG, check STEW, OAKH, BEAR
Team 2: Check DEVO, PEDD, BBEC, MILL
Team 1: Demob STEW, BEAR, Babysit DOUG then demob after 5 pm Team 2: Demob BBEC, DEVO, MILL
Team 1: Demob OAKH, Deploy THET, DISC (by boat)
Team 2: Demob PEDD, deploy LONE, CAMO
Team 1: Deploy WELS, MOSS, SUMM
Team 2: Deploy OBSV, check LONE, CAMO
Team 1: Check WELS, THET, MOSS, SUMM
Team 2: Check LONE, CAMO, OBSV
Team 1: Demob DISC (boat), THET
Team 2: Demob LONE, CAMO
Team 1/2: Demobilize WELS, MOSS, SUMM, OBSV

4

Plans for on-site security, site control and general safety?

The deployment of passive GPS equipment poses little risk to the public. Flagging will be placed on the equipment to mitigate any potential tripping hazards. Signs will be posted at all sites, with the following text (correct dates to be inserted): “Surveying for earthquake hazard study in progress from August 3-6 – please do not disturb. For more information, please contact Lucinda Leonard, School of Earth and Ocean Sciences, University of Victoria: 778-676-9621 or lleonard@uvic.ca”. At locations that are popular with the public, sites will be manned during daylight hours. Sites that see less pedestrian traffic will be visited 1-2 times per day during the deployment.

Data processing and analysis:

Geodetic data will be processed using standard routines to determine precise daily average locations for each site. Positional time series will be analyzed to provide site motions (direction and rate of motion) in a North America reference frame. Analysis of relative motion between sites will enable determination of strain across fault zones and improve seismic hazard assessment for southern Vancouver Island.

References:

Barrie, V., and H. G. Greene (2018), The Devils Mountain Fault zone: an active Cascadia upper plate zone of deformation, Pacific Northwest of North America, Sedimentary Geology, v. 364, p. 228-241, doi: 10.1016/j.sedgeo.2017.12.018.

Henton, J.A. (2000), GPS studies of crustal deformation in the northern Cascadia subduction zone. Ph.D. thesis, Univ. Victoria, Victoria B.C., Canada, 169p.

Marechal, A., S. Mazzotti, J.L. Elliott, J.T. Freymueller, and M. Schmidt (2015), Indentor-corner tectonics in the Yakutat-St. Elias collision constrained by GPS, Journal of Geophysical Research, v. 120, p. 3897-3908, doi: 10.1002/2014JB011842.

Mazzotti, S., H. Dragert, J. Henton, M. Schmidt, R. Hyndman, T. James, Y. Lu, and M. Craymer (2003), Current tectonics of northern Cascadia from a decade of GPS measurements. J. Geophys. Res. 108(B12):2554.

Morell, K. D., C. Regalla, L. J. Leonard, C. Amos, and V. Levson (2017), Quaternary rupture of a crustal fault beneath Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, GSA Today, v. 27, no. 3.

VC Structural Dynamics Ltd. (2016), Citywide seismic vulnerability assessment of the City of Victoria, Report prepared for the corporation of the City of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada, 43p, available online at: http://www.victoria.ca/assets/Departments/Emergency~Preparedness/Documents/Citywide- Seismic-Vulnerabilities-Assessment.pdf

See the follow-up  when the instrument was removed on the May 15 log

Sooke Christmas Bird Count

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Weather:  Continued west wind up to 30 knots in the morning and some lingering swell, sunshine for a change.

Ecological:

Guy brought Kim and Jim out in the morning for the annual “Sooke Christmas Bird Count”.  They surveyed the island and surrounding waters from the top of the tower and walked around the island. Guy took them around the reserve in the boat on the way back to get a better view of the pelagic zone.  Apparently the Snow Bunting they saw here was one of the highlights of the Sooke count this year.

12 Canada Goose
10 Harlequin Duck
4 Surf Scoter
3 White-winged Scoter
2 Red-breasted Merganser
24 Black Oystercatcher
38 Black Turnstone
3500 Common Murre
90 Ancient Murrelet
4 Rhinoceros Auklet
800 Mew Gull
150 Iceland Gull (Thayer’s)
250 Glaucous-winged Gull
1 Western x Glaucous-winged Gull (hybrid) — 95% Western
1 Red-throated Loon
40 Pacific Loon
1 Common Loon
50 Brandt’s Cormorant
75 Pelagic Cormorant
20 Double-crested Cormorant
10 Bald Eagle
2 Common Raven
1 Snow Bunting — Photos taken
1 Song Sparrow

Number of Taxa: 24

See this index of past years Bird Counts. https://www.racerocks.ca/race-rocks-animals-plants/bird-observations-at-race-rocks-3/christmas-bird-counts-starting-in-1997/

-4 tankers passed by today: The STI Battery, and oil/chemical tanker on its way to Quintero, Chile; The Florida, an oil/chemical tanker heading to Anacortes from Nikiski (USA); The Unique Developer, and oil products tanker coming from Topolobampo (Mex) en route to Port Angeles; and the Valrossa, from Cherry Point to Manzanillo (Mex)

Vessels:

-Second Nature

-one private/sports fishing

-3 tour boats

-1 little red zodiac going over the requested speed limit.

Maintenance:

-fixed firewood cutting jig

-sharpened chainsaw

-cut firewood

-Tidying in tank room

The effects of Vessel Underwater Noise on whales

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Currently Mike Fenger and I are representing the Board of the Friends of Ecological Reserves as Intervenors in the New round of Reconsideration Hearings  of the National Energy Board on the Trans Mountain Pipeline Proposal . You can follow this process with its daily updates from participants at https://apps.neb-one.gc.ca/REGDOCS/Item/View/3614457

Since one of the aspects ordered by the Review Panel is the state of the Southern resident Killer whales one of the most disturbing piece of evidence of their plight comes  I have come across is contained in this audio clip:

This audio clip comes from the following image posted in the NEB records:

A95280-effects-of-uw-noise-and-what-mariners-can-do-A6J6G4

 

CODAR installation for Race Rocks

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Juan de Fuca _CODAR_backgrounder

Today Guy drove me out to Race Rocks with Kevin Bartlett, Marine Equipment, Specialist with Ocean Networks Canada. They had installed equipment earlier in the year but had ro change the frequency of broadcasting before it is operational. Kevin was making repairs, one being fixing the conduit at the base of the tower which had been disturbed by sealions. When this equipment is fully operational it will give acurate current vectors for the eastern entrance of the Strait of Juan de Fuca.

 

 

Sample from a similar station now  in operation:

 see animation here

 

 

 

It was has been noticeable this year that instead of hauling out on the neighbouring islets of the Race Rocks Archipelago, the sealions are hauled out entirely on the main island of Great Race Rock. They have heavily impacted the vegetated areas .

ER Wardens Report, Sept.21

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Today, Guy Ouradou from Pearson College drove me out to Race Rocks Ecological reserve with David Obura, Pearson College alumni from Kenya year 10. The main change since I was there last was the predominance of California sea lions over most of the island. Northern sealions occupied a small portion of rock near the docks and the isthmus below the light tower. Each year the college has to put up an electric fence to prevent the sealions from invading the centre of the island which can result in damage to conduits, and facilities.

Laas adjusts the electric fence on the south side of the house.

A new fence system is being installed this year, which has so far proven to be very effective. Another aspect of the sealions being on the centre part of the island is that they have been damaging the structure of the rocks arranged in the areas of the aboriginal burial cairns. The big change in sealion distribution is that previously they have concentrated on West Race Rocks, North Race Rocks and the south Islands off the tower. This year there are none out on those islands  and they are all on the main island.

 

CODAR antenna and sealions

I also was able to observe the equipment installed by Oceans Network Canada for CODAR. Hopefully we can get a connection to the output of the data obtained from this equipment when we neet with Kevin Bartlett from Ocean Networks Canada next week on Sept 28.

Earlier this year, Lester Pearson College upgraded the solar batteries which have served for the past 11 years. New inverters were also installed.

Leaving the island we have to deal with a dock full of sealions which have returned since our arrival.

Several boating violations and Orcas (far away)!

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Weather

  • Visibility: 10 Miles
  • Wind: 20-25 knts NW
  • Sky: Clear
  • Water: 1-2 meter waves with white caps
  • Slight fog south and west of the island

Boats/Visitors/Sightings

  • A small pleasure craft with 3 occupants was fishing in the north end of the reserve. After several attempts to radio them and using the air horn to get their attention, they remained for 20 mins or so. They left after catching a couple of large fish. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to catch the vessel’s number. Photographed below.
  • A Pedder Bay Marina boat with 4 occupants was fishing in the east end of the reserve. I called the marina immediately but they couldn’t get in touch with the people in the vessel. They left the reserve area when the tide pushed them east about 10 mins later, but they still remained on the boundaries of the reserve. Photographed below.

Marine Mammals

  • The Sea Lions seem to have disappeared today – no sign of them anywhere on the main lighthouse island.
  • Saw some orcas about 2 km south – surprisingly they stayed there for over 2 hours! The orcas out-waited several whale watching boats.