A spatial generalized ordered-response model with skew normal kernel error terms with an application to bicycling frequency

Simulation evaluation of emerging estimation techniques for multinomial probit models

Describes the design criteria, interface requirements and design concepts used to guide the planning and design of a series of floating concrete berths for passenger only ferry terminals for the Washington State Ferries division of the Washington State Department of Transportation. The planning of these facilities must consider the full range of passenger access requirements, as well as the important vessel berthing requirements. The facilities must accommodate the geometrics involved with the full 5-meter (15 ft) range of tidal variations typical of Puget Sound in Washington State. Design criteria includes definition of design loads resulting from both normal and extreme vessel berthing, wind and wave effects, and geometric constraints resulting from both vessel configuration and pedestrian access requirements. Draft and trim of the floating facilities must be controlled within close limits. One of the benefits of a floating facility is that the interfacing requirements become more straightforward in areas of high tidal variation and variable site conditions. The paper highlights how the advantages of simplified interfacing are taken advantage of in practice. The design of floating concrete facilities using high-strength prestressed concrete is a discipline that is in its fourth generation of floating facilities in the Puget Sound region. Design procedures and details that provide reliable, durable, and long-lasting facilities are outlined. Floating concrete facilities must be designed with the construction and installation process in mind. Often, large facilities must be designed to be constructed in sections so that they can be assembled in existing dry dock or launch facilities. Installation mooring and installation methods must be tailored to allow quick and efficient installation at busy ferry terminal locations that often must remain in operation throughout the construction activity.

Seabirds have been identified and used as indicators of ecosystem processes such as climate change and human activity in nearshore ecosystems around the globe. Temporal and spatial trends have been documented at large spatial scales, but few studies have examined more localized patterns of spatiotemporal variation, by species or functional group. In this paper, we apply spatial occupancy models to assess the spatial patchiness and interannual trends of 18 seabird species in the Puget Sound region (Washington State, USA). Our dataset, the Puget Sound Seabird Survey of the Seattle Audubon Society, is unique in that it represents a seven-year study, collected with a focus on winter months (October–April). Despite historic declines of seabirds in the region over the last 50 years, results from our study are optimistic, suggesting increases in probabilities of occurrence for 14 of the 18 species included. We found support for declines in occurrence for white-winged scoters, brants, and 2 species of grebes. The decline of Western grebes in particular is troubling, but in agreement with other recent studies that have shown support for a range shift south in recent years, to the southern end of California Current.

The effect of temperature and salinity on growth rate and azaspiracid cell quotas in two strains of Azadinium poporum (Dinophyceae) from Puget Sound, Washington State

The illness of three people in 2011 after their ingestion of mussels collected from Sequim Bay State Park, Washington State, USA, demonstrated the need to monitor diarrhetic shellfish toxins (DSTs) in Washington State for the protection of human health. Following these cases of diarrhetic shellfish poisoning, monitoring for DSTs in Washington State became formalized in 2012, guided by routine monitoring of Dinophysis species by the SoundToxins program in Puget Sound and the Olympic Region Harmful Algal Bloom (ORHAB) partnership on the outer Washington State coast. Here we show that the DSTs at concentrations above the guidance level of 16 μg okadaic acid (OA) + dinophysistoxins (DTXs)/100 g shellfish tissue were widespread in sentinel mussels throughout Puget Sound in summer 2012 and included harvest closures of California mussel, varnish clam, manila clam and Pacific oyster. Concentrations of toxins in Pacific oyster and manila clam were often at least half those measured in blue mussels at the same site. The primary toxin isomer in shellfish and plankton samples was dinophysistoxin-1 (DTX-1) with D. acuminata as the primary Dinophysis species. Other lipophilic toxins in shellfish were pectenotoxin-2 (PTX-2) and yessotoxin (YTX) with azaspiracid-2 (AZA-2) also measured in phytoplankton samples. Okadaic acid, azaspiracid-1 (AZA-1) and azaspiracid-3 (AZA-3) were all below the levels of detection by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). A shellfish closure at Ruby Beach, Washington, was the first ever noted on the Washington State Pacific coast due to DSTs. The greater than average Fraser River flow during the summers of 2011 and 2012 may have provided an environment conducive to dinoflagellates and played a role in the prevalence of toxigenic Dinophysis in Puget Sound.

The modern distribution of the western pond turtle (Actinemys marmorata) is discontinuous, with a historic but extirpated population in the Puget Sound region that was isolated from populations south along the Columbia River. To better understand this distribution, a review of the archaeological literature for the Puget Sound region was conducted to determine the prehistoric biogeography of the species in the Puget Sound area. Western pond turtles are nearly absent from the regional archaeological record, represented at best by four tentative specimens. This may be explained by extremely low population levels throughout the Holocene at the northernmost extent of its range.

Morphological characters and 14 enzyme loci were examined for 1 040 sea stars, currently recognized as forms ofLeptasterias hexactis, from Lynn Canal, Alaska, and Puget Sound, Washington, USA, between March 1988 and April 1989. Three morphologically and two genetically distinctLeptasterias forms were identified. The most common form found at both localities wasL. epichlora (Brandt)sensu Verrill.L. hexactis (Stimpson)sensu Verrill co-occurred withL. epichlora at all study sites and apparently hybridizes extensively withL. epichlora in the Puget Sound region, but rarely, if at all, in Alaska. The presumptive product of this hybridization morphologically resembledL. aequalis (Stimpson)sensu Fisher, and was conspicuously absent from Alaskan samples. Considerable genetic distance existed betweenL. epichlora andL. hexactis (Nei'sD=0.19±0.01) and moderate genetic differentiation occurred between populations of each species from Alaska and Washington (Weir and Cockerham'sF RT =0.29±0.04 forL. epichlora and 0.21±0.15 forL. hexactis). A significant (p<0.05) deficiency in the proportion of heterozygous individuals was found compared to Hardy-Weinberg expectations (Wright's fixation index,F ID=0.12±0.04 and 0.31±0.08 forL. epichlora andL. hexactis, respectively). However, mean observed heterozygosity for each species (0.09±0.03, 0.14±0.04 and 0.14±0.04 forL. epichlora, L. hexactis andL. aequalis, respectively) fell within the range of reported values for other asteroid species (ca. 0.04 to 0.37). The results of this study indicate that considerable genetic integrity is maintained betweenL. epichlora andL. hexactis, which warrants their recognition as distinct species despite their apparent hybridization in the Puget Sound region.

With the projected increase of urban development in the Puget Sound region, a corresponding decrease in natural drainage will occur, leading to greater amounts of stormwater flowing into vital receiving waters. As a result, the Washington State Pollution Control Hearing Board (PCHB) has recently directed the Washington State Department of Ecology (DOE) to implement low impact development (LID) in its national pollution discharge elimination system (NPDES) permit requirements. This directive has created an opportunity for new policies and mitigation strategies to be developed within local jurisdictions. In order to identify potentially useful stormwater management strategies, this study examines mitigation plans being developed in four Washington State jurisdictions: Bellevue, King County, Renton, and Seattle. These four cases are presented to highlight the complicated issues behind developing and implementing stormwater strategies by exploring the relationships between the PCHB and the DOE and their influences on jurisdiction regulations. The PCHB ruling directs DOE to develop new requirements that call for Phase I jurisdictions to direct money and time into researching LID strategies and the corresponding adjustments that must be made in their building ordinances to adhere to permit requirements. These cases from King County, Washington highlight differences in expectations between jurisdictions, economic gaps, and general uncertainty involved in implementing new strategies with few experienced LID practitioners.

Since 2001, the Puget Sound Partnership (Partnership), and its predecessor, the Puget Sound Action Team have provided technical assistance on low impact development (LID) to numerous audiences in the Puget Sound region. The intent of the assistance is to help transition the region to the LID approach as the preferred method for developing land and managing stormwater. During 2001–2009, the Partnership, with numerous regional partners, convened the first national conference on LID; held regional workshops; developed educational and technical publications; co-produced the region’s technical guidance manual; and provided technical assistance to help 36 local governments in the region integrate LID into their codes and standards. This paper provides a brief overview of the technical assistance provided to the region both during this time period (2001–2009) and immediately afterwards (during the 2009–2011 state biennium). Assistance evolved significantly during this latter time frame due to dramatic changes at the state level regarding LID: LID was rapidly transitioning from a voluntary to a required approach. This paper will briefly describe these changes, and describe how the products and services evolved to meet these changing needs.

This work evaluates how local land use regulations and development patterns support transportation efficiency in urban and suburban areas. An efficient transportation system includes multiple transportation modes and reduces the need to drive alone. The research sheds light on how long-term efforts to devise transportation-efficient land development regulations have shaped new development. Data include surveys of zoning and development regulations in 19 study areas of Puget Sound, Washington, and reviews of 163 projects with a building permit. Analyses focus on the frequency of use of transportation-efficient elements in land use regulations, the frequency of adherence to these elements in projects, and the connections between area regulations and development. Fifty elements classified into six categories of transportation-efficient land use serve to evaluate the characteristics of regulations and permitted projects in each study area. The research shows that local jurisdictions have adopted many transportation-efficient regulations, and many of the projects reviewed follow these regulations. Compact development stands out as a major strategy used successfully in area regulations and permitted projects. Pedestrian-oriented environment and street–sidewalk connectivity are used at the project level but less so in regulations. Parking elements are weakest at the regulatory and project levels. Washington State growth management approaches to land use appear to become integrated into local regulatory frameworks and to be followed through in the implementation and development process. Work is needed regionally to increase the use of transportation-efficient land use strategies, with particular attention to parking regulations.

The more frequent occurrence of marine harmful algal blooms (HABs) and recent problems with newly-described toxins in Puget Sound have increased the risk for illness and have negatively impacted sustainable access to shellfish in Washington State. Marine toxins that affect safe shellfish harvest because of their impact on human health are the saxitoxins that cause paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP), domoic acid that causes amnesic shellfish poisoning (ASP), diarrhetic shellfish toxins that cause diarrhetic shellfish poisoning (DSP) and the recent measurement of azaspiracids, known to cause azaspiracid poisoning (AZP), at low concentrations in Puget Sound shellfish. The flagellate, Heterosigma akashiwo, impacts the health and harvestability of aquacultured and wild salmon in Puget Sound. The more recently described flagellates that cause the illness or death of cultivated and wild shellfish, include Protoceratium reticulatum, known to produce yessotoxins, Akashiwo sanguinea and Phaeocystis globosa. This increased incidence of HABs, especially dinoflagellate HABs that are expected in increase with enhanced stratification linked to climate change, has necessitated the partnership of state regulatory programs with SoundToxins, the research, monitoring and early warning program for HABs in Puget Sound, that allows shellfish growers, Native tribes, environmental learning centers and citizens, to be the “eyes on the coast”. This partnership enables safe harvest of wholesome seafood for consumption in the region and helps to describe unusual events that impact the health of oceans, wildlife and humans.

Washington State’s Puget Sound Region has a shortfall of over 156,000 housing units yielding the nation’s third largest population of people experiencing homelessness. At the same time, the region is investing $56 billion in light rail and bus rapid transit with over seventy stations scheduled to open between now and 2041. This offers an historic opportunity to leverage public transit to build complete, equitable and resilient communities at scale in response to a worsening housing affordability crisis and growing impacts of climate change. However, this will not happen without community intervention. Sound Communities is a volunteer group of civic leaders from the public, private, non-profit, and academic sectors, including architecture and real estate faculty from the University of Washington College of Built Environments (UW CBE) focused on leveraging this transit investment to address the region’s housing and climate crises at scale by building complete, equitable and resilient communities at planned station areas. The group is working with elected leaders, city staff, technical advisors, and community stakeholders from multiple jurisdictions in designing and advocating for an entity, the Housing Benefits District (HBD), that will help to ensure that all the region’s residents prosper from its transit investment and economic growth.

The Puget Sound Area Electric Reliability Plan Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) identifies the alternatives for solving a power system problem in the Puget Sound area. This Plan is undertaken by Bonneville Power Administration (BPA), Puget Sound Power Light, Seattle City Light, Snohomish Public Utility District No. 1 (PUD), and Tacoma Public Utilities. The Plan consists of potential actions in Puget Sound and other areas in the State of Washington. A specific need exists in the Puget Sound area for balance between east-west transmission capacity and the increasing demand to import power generated east of the Cascades. At certain times of the year, there is more demand for power than the electric system can supply in the Puget Sound area. This high demand, called peak demand, occurs during the winter months when unusually cold weather increases electricity use for heating. The existing power system can supply enough power if no emergencies occur. However, during emergencies, the system will not operate properly. As demand grows, the system becomes more strained. To meet demand, the rate of growth of demand must be reduced or the ability to serve the demand must be increased, or both. The plan to balance Puget Sound's power demand and supply has these purposes: The plan should define a set of actions that would accommodate ten years of load growth (1994--2003). Federal and State environmental quality requirements should be met. The plan should be consistent with the plans of the Northwest Power Planning Council. The plan should serve as a consensus guideline for coordinated utility action. The plan should be flexible to accommodate uncertainties and differing utility needs. The plan should balance environmental impacts and economic costs. The plan should provide electric system reliability consistent with customer expectations. 29 figs., 24 tabs.

Invasions by the spionid polychaete Polydora websteri have resulted in the collapse of oyster aquaculture industries in Australia, New Zealand, and Hawaii. These worms burrow into the shells of bivalves, creating unsightly mud blisters that are unappealing to consumers and, when nicked during shucking, release mud and detritus that can foul oyster meats. Recent sightings of mud blisters on the shells of Pacific oysters (Crassostrea gigas) in Puget Sound, Washington, suggest a new spionid polychaete invasion. To determine the identity of the polychaete causing these mud blisters, we obtained Pacific oysters from two locations in Puget Sound and examined them for blisters and burrows associated with spionid infection. We then extracted polychaetes and sequenced mitochondrial (cytochrome c oxidase I [COI]) and nuclear (18S rRNA) genes to obtain species-level identifications for a subset of these worms. Our data confirm that P. websteri is present in mud blisters of Puget Sound oysters, constituting the first confirmed record of this species in Washington State. The presence of non-native P. websteri could threaten the sustainability of oyster aquaculture in Washington, which currently produces more shellfish than any other US state.

FisheriesVolume 49, Issue 3 p. 141-142 Book Review A Field Guide to Fishes of the Salish Sea: Puget Sound and the Straits of Georgia and Juan de Fuca, Washington State and British Columbia , T. W. Pietsch and J. W. Orr. Illustrated by J. R. Tomelleri. Published by Chatwin Books. 2023. 372 pages. US$36.00 (Paperback) Pete Castillo, Pete Castillo [email protected] School of Environmental Studies, University of Victoria, David Turpin Building, B243, Victoria, BC, V8W 2Y2 CanadaSearch for more papers by this authorBrittnie Spriel, Brittnie Spriel Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, CanadaSearch for more papers by this authorBridget Maher, Bridget Maher Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, CanadaSearch for more papers by this authorNathanael Tabert, Nathanael Tabert Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, CanadaSearch for more papers by this authorTalen Rimmer, Talen Rimmer Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, CanadaSearch for more papers by this authorFrancis Juanes, Francis Juanes Fisheries Book Reviews Editor orcid.org/0000-0001-7397-0014 Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, CanadaSearch for more papers by this author Pete Castillo, Pete Castillo [email protected] School of Environmental Studies, University of Victoria, David Turpin Building, B243, Victoria, BC, V8W 2Y2 CanadaSearch for more papers by this authorBrittnie Spriel, Brittnie Spriel Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, CanadaSearch for more papers by this authorBridget Maher, Bridget Maher Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, CanadaSearch for more papers by this authorNathanael Tabert, Nathanael Tabert Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, CanadaSearch for more papers by this authorTalen Rimmer, Talen Rimmer Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, CanadaSearch for more papers by this authorFrancis Juanes, Francis Juanes Fisheries Book Reviews Editor orcid.org/0000-0001-7397-0014 Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, CanadaSearch for more papers by this author First published: 31 January 2024 https://doi.org/10.1002/fsh.11053Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onEmailFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article. Volume49, Issue3March 2024Pages 141-142 RelatedInformation