We examined the prevalence and shell use of two species of hermit crabs (Pagurus granosimanus and Pagurus beringanus) in exposed and protected microhabitats at five sites in the rocky temperate intertidal on San Juan Island, Washington, to compare present habitat partitioning and potential interspecific competition to that reported nearly 50 years ago. We found that, in contrast to previous findings, the two species of hermit crabs overlapped extensively at some sites, typically those with less wave action. While the hermit crabs typically inhabited certain types of shells significantly more than others, and that use was congruent across microhabitats and species of hermit crabs at the same site, the dominant domicile differed substantially across sites. We provide a more complete ranking of shell use than previous authors and note site-specific dominant shell use. We conclude that previous habitat partitioning by depth may have weakened at protected sites. We hypothesize that increasing temperatures have caused P. granosimanus to expand its range deeper into the intertidal, which may increase the degree of interspecific competition for shells at the edge of the species’ tidal height range, where they overlap. Whether the habitat shift by this hermit crab is due to recent alterations in climate (particularly elevated temperatures, ocean acidification and lower local open ocean salinity) is unknown, but warrants further study.

The use of bio-based fertilizers derived from dairy manure can provide a valuable source of fertility, improve soil health and provide an outlet for manure from dairy operations. We conducted a small-scale discrete choice survey of crop farmers and crop consultants in Washington State to determine the attributes that were important to them in the potential use of a bio-based fertilizer product derived from dairy manure. Of the attributes examined, distribution channel was not statistically significant. Respondents preferred air-dried or pelletized forms to wet forms, though there was no statistically significant difference between air-dried and pelletized forms. As expected, uptake increased as price decreased. Our results imply that respondents would be willing to pay 23 and 39% more for an air-dried or pelletized product, respectively, than for a ‘semi-wet’ product. Our results indicate that there are other important attributes beyond the ones in the survey that led respondents to stay with their current fertilizer regime. Qualitative responses in the survey pointed to the need for field trial results and data on nitrogen release from the bio-based fertilizer. Greater understanding of willingness-to-pay and attributes important to potential end users is important for the development of markets for bio-based fertilizers.

In agricultural regions, like Whatcom County, Washington, crop and dairy production co-exist, but increased agricultural specialization and intensification have divorced what was, historically, an integrated approach to production. This agricultural segregation contributes to farm, regional and watershed-scale nutrient imbalances, and several different management approaches have been devised to improve, correct and close these nutrient cycling disparities. In high-density production regions, utilizing locally produced bio-based fertilizers may provide one avenue toward closing regional nutrient loops. Technologies such as dairy-operated nutrient recovery systems may help improve the flow of nutrients between dairy and cropping systems by extracting nutrients from raw manure and producing materials that are more easily used on farms than raw manure. To evaluate the potential impact of a nutrient recovery system and its related product, we estimated nitrogen balances between cropland use and manure production within Whatcom County, Washington and examined a theoretical scenario in which a specific nutrient recovery product was utilized across the region. We considered one economic barrier, transportation cost, and calculated a hypothetical comparison for transporting nitrogen in two forms, a downstream nutrient recovery product and raw manure. The scenarios presented here demonstrate a potential gap between regional nutrient supply and demand, illustrate the tradeoffs with a technological approach, and make clear that both technological tools and practical management strategies are needed to address the challenges of redistributing nutrients in high-density production areas.

For historic property types such as archaeological sites and historic buildings, data recovery is often the main part of mitigation plans offered by federal agencies with undertakings that will destroy part or all of a cultural resource. In theory, by extracting important information before destruction, we recover some part of a historic resource's cultural value. In some situations, however, data recovery is impossible or otherwise undesirable, and “creative” or off-site mitigation measures are necessary to mitigate adverse effects. In such circumstances, the Washington State Department of Archaeology and Historic Preservation has accepted funding from federal agencies to create, implement, and enhance an online digital information system for cultural resources. This article describes the Washington Information System for Architectural and Archaeological Records Data (WISAARD) and provides an example of a federal agency funding WISAARD development as creative mitigation for the transfer of archaeological sites out of federal ownership. We discuss the benefits of such systems and address how their development meets preservation goals established by the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation.

Disaster in Washington State (USA) is inevitable. It is incumbent on health care providers to understand the practice environment as it will be affected by disasters. This means understanding the basic concepts of emergency management, local to national emergency response structure, and the risks and vulnerabilities of the region where one works. This understanding will help health care providers anticipate and prepare for disaster response and recovery. Washington State has many unique features with regard to climate and geography, population, public health, and general infrastructure that create significant vulnerabilities to disaster and strengths with regard to potential response and recovery. This report attempts to define and contextualize emergency management and to condense the extensive research and planning that has been conducted in Washington State surrounding disaster assessment, planning, mitigation, and response from a health care providerʼs prospective. The aim is to increase awareness of and preparation for disaster-related topics among health care providers by creating informed responders.

Analysis of climatic and topographic evidence from the Cascade Range of Washington State indicates that glacial erosion limits the height and controls the morphology of this range. Glacial erosion linked to long-term spatial gradients in the ELA created a tilted, planar zone of 373 cirques across the central part of the range; peaks and ridges now rise ≤600 m above this zone. Hypsometric analysis of the region shows that the proportion of land area above the cirques drops sharply, and mean slopes >30° indicate that the areas above the cirques may be at or near threshold steepness. The mean plus 1σ relief of individual cirque basins (570 m) corresponds to the ∼600-m envelope above which peaks rarely rise. The summit altitudes are set by a combination of higher rates of glacial and paraglacial erosion above the ELA and enhanced hillslope processes due to the creation of steep topography. On the high-precipitation western flank of the Cascades, the dominance of glacial and hillslope erosion at altitudes at and above the ELA may explain the lack of a correspondence between stream-power erosion models and measured exhumation rates from apatite (U-Th/He) thermochronometry.

Objective: We evaluated emergency department (ED) data, emergency medical services (EMS) data, and public utilities data for describing an outbreak of carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning following a windstorm.

Methods: Syndromic ED data were matched against previously collected chart abstraction data. We ran detection algorithms on selected time series derived from all 3 data sources to identify health events associated with the CO poisoning outbreak. We used spatial and spatiotemporal scan statistics to identify geographic areas that were most heavily affected by the CO poisoning event.

Results: Of the 241 CO cases confirmed by chart review, 190 (78.8%) were identified in the syndromic surveillance data as exact matches. Records from the ED and EMS data detected an increase in CO-consistent syndromes after the storm. The ED data identified significant clusters of CO-consistent syndromes, including zip codes that had widespread power outages. Weak temporal gastrointestinal (GI) signals, possibly resulting from ingestion of food spoiled by lack of refrigeration, were detected in the ED data but not in the EMS data. Spatial clustering of GI-based groupings in the ED data was not detected.

Conclusions: Data from this evaluation support the value of ED data for surveillance after natural disasters. Enhanced EMS data may be useful for monitoring a CO poisoning event, if these data are available to the health department promptly.

(Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2011;5:37-45)

The Environmental Protection Agency's phase-out of the pesticide azinphos-methyl (AZM) has encouraged the transition of apple pest management toward more environmentally and socially sustainable practices. This study reports on results of a 2009 survey of conventional apple growers in Washington State. Growers were asked about their approaches and attitudes toward the AZM phase-out and barriers to the adoption of reduced-risk insecticides (AZM-alternatives) as part of their integrated pest management (IPM) programs. Chi-square and analysis of variance (ANOVA) techniques were used to examine relationships between actions and attitudes toward the phase-out and grower characteristics. Results showed that Washington apple growers have begun eliminating AZM and adopting AZM-alternatives. However, larger growers (in terms of acreage and income) and growers more familiar with Washington State University's (WSU's) educational resources were more likely to have already reduced their AZM use. These results suggest that larger farms can play an important role in increasing the sustainability of conventional agriculture, despite a common association of sustainable agriculture with small farms. Results also suggest that agricultural extension services could be well served to extend their outreach to smaller growers and others lagging in the transition to more sustainable apple pest management.

Ship strikes of large whales cause mortalities worldwide, but there is uncertainty regarding the frequency and species involved. We examined 130 records (from 1980–2006) of large whale strandings in Washington State. Nineteen strandings (seven species) had evidence of ship-strikes. Fin whales (Balaenoptera physalus) had the highest incidence of ante-mortem ship strike (five of seven, with the remaining two possibly post-mortem) and all but one occurring since 2002. Six grey whales (Eschrichtius robustus) suffered ‘possible ship strike’ injuries, likely the result of their large numbers in the area, rather than high levels of ship strikes. Only one possible ship-struck humpback whale was recorded, despite concentrations of humpbacks feeding within shipping lanes in this region. This study shows dramatic differences in occurrences of ship-struck large whales by species, which we believe results from a combination of species' vulnerability to ship strikes, and how likely a struck whale is to be caught up on the bow of a ship and brought to waters where it can be examined.

Production of some organic commodities, such as apples, is heavily concentrated in the United States (US), with Washington State being the leading US producer of organic apples. In 2003, there were 4047 ha of certified organic apple orchards in Washington State, an all-time high and a more than tenfold increase since 1989. But this growth has not occurred without difficulties. Washington State's organic apple growers have encountered international supply and demand pressures forcing them to seek new markets, such as the European Union (EU). In this paper, we explore the complexities of the international marketing of organic fruit, using organic apple production in Washington State and market opportunities for this organic fruit in the EU, as a case study. We find that as a result of the expansion of organic apple plantings in Washington State, there has been a decrease in the price premiums, which traditionally offset the greater costs of organic production and which originally motivated many Washington growers to certify their apple orchards. We also find that increased demand for organic fruits in the EU has been outpacing supply, making EU member states the most important export market for Washington's organic apples. However, despite the unification of US standards by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and an overriding EU standard, an entanglement of regulatory bodies from around the world is involved in the certification of organic products. For example, growers and marketers may have to interact with as many as six different regulatory bodies in order to export organic produce from the US to the EU. This study shows that while the EU market remains a promising destination for US organic apples, organic growers and marketers must plan ahead and thoroughly understand the multitude of regulations involved in the international trade of organic fruits.