The
INSIDE Letters
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 2 George and Anne Willis photo
Energy Matters
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 3
Upcoming music
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 8
www.islandsweekly.com 360-468-4242 • 800-654-6142
Islands’ eekly W
VOLUME 37, NUMBER 5 • FEBRUARY 4, 2014
Lopez students raise awareness on storm preparedness By Lopez School’s LEGO Robotics team Special to the Weekly
Imagine Lopez Island hit by a severe windstorm. Power is out, and so is the water pump. How long will you survive? How can you prepare for such a situation? These are research questions the Lego Robotics team members of Lopez Elementary and Middle School sought to find answers to. After some research and talking to local experts, the team created a website and made educational movies to share what they learned
about emergency preparedness. Calling themselves “Stormcrafters,” the team members presented their project at the regional First LEGO League tournament on Jan. 19. In addition to research projects about natural disasters – the theme of the FLL tournament this year—a main area of competition is a robot game: building and programming robots to complete assigned missions. The Lopez “Stormcrafters” came in fifth out of 50 teams on the robot game. They also scored highly in the
HOME Varsity LOBO Basketball: 2/4 vs. Highland Girls @ 4:30 pm 2/5 vs. Grace Girls @ 12:00 pm Boys @ 1:30 ‘The Pack’
Valentine’s Day Special
For $14.90 send a love note to your sweetie Free spot color included
Call Cali to book today! 376-4500
Early Deadlines!
For the February 19th edition, the deadline for ads will be
February 13th at noon. Call Cali Bagby at 376-4500 and book today!
Contributed photo / Ingrid Vliet
Right: The Lopez School “Stormcrafters” Robotics team at the qualifier tournament in Lynnwood. other areas: core values (teamwork and gracious professionalism), robot design, and research project. The team was chosen to compete in the semi-final tournament on Feb. 9 in Mill Creek, and so was the team from Waldron Island. Another team from the San Juans, the Shaw Island team, received an award for project research. Lopez’s FLL Robotics is coached by parent Ingrid Vliet and comprises thirdeighth grade students: Kai Di Bona, Jaden Eaton, Ty Greacen, Canyon Hernandez-Doherty, Indigo
Luckhurst, Brandon Miller, Aaron Vliet and Naomi Vliet. To learn about their project and emergency pre-
paredness, visit their website, stormcrafters.weebly. com. The site features fun brick-film animation movies about how to, and not to,
prepare for a storm, as well as an educational “adventure map” for fans of a popular computer game called Minecraft.
Labeling of genetically modified food back after failure of I-522 characteristics. House Bill 2143 proposes to ensure that consumers will know exactly what kind of fish they are purchasing at the supermarket – whether it’s farm-raised, wildcaught or “genetically engineered.” Before a Jan. 17 hearing on the bill in the House Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee, bill spon-
By Rebecca Gourley
WNPA Olympia News Service
The push to label genetically modified organisms – termed GMOs – is back on the table in Olympia. But the focus is on genetically engineered, or transgenic, fish. A transgenic animal has had one animal’s DNA spliced with another to create an animal with new
in the
2014
This special section of The Journal, The Sounder, & The Weekly will be distributed to over 7500 readers throughout San Juan County and also online in our Green Editions!
Copy & Sales Deadline: Wednesday, February 10, 2014, 2 pm Publication Dates: Week of March 4, 2014 For more information call Cali Bagby at the Islands’ Weekly 376-4500
sor Rep. Cary Condotta, R-East Wenatchee, said he plans to introduce two amendments that would more clearly define several terms in the proposed legislation. Under the amendments, the bill’s definition of genetically engineered would be changed to “transgenic” and it would target only fish raised in natural freshwater, such as lakes and streams, rather than enclosed tanks. The changes would address two concerns raised at the hearing by John Dentler of Troutlodge, the oldest aquaculture company
in Washington. Troutlodge, headquartered in Bonney Lake, Pierce County, produces triploid trout eggs. With three sets of chromosomes instead of two, the fish are sterile. Dentler says the bill is vague in its definitions and it doesn’t address the triploid fish. Dentler also said that the bill’s definition of “state waters” is not defined well enough and may encompass fish research performed by the University of Washington and Washington State University. Prior to the hearing, Condotta recognized these concerns and said they would be addressed in the coming amendments. However, the bill would still prohibit the production of transgenic fish in freshwater net pens. One concern the bill aims to address is the risk of transgenic fish escaping into native-fish habitats. Condotta said he questions SEE GMO, PAGE 5