'Not much notice on this meeting, folks, but today Thurston County has released an announcement that the Planning Commission will have a meeting regarding draft language changing to county's Critical Areas Ordinance. The meeting is the Wednesday, August 25. Here's the County's press release:

OLYMPIA --The Thurston County Planning Commission will hold a special meeting on August 25th 2010. The primary purpose of the special meeting is to review and amend draft language which will be used to update the Thurston County Critical Areas Ordinance in Chapter 17.15 of the Thurston County Code. No final action is expected at the meeting. The proposed changes are part of the 2009-10 Comprehensive Plan Amendment Official Docket.

For an agenda of the meeting, please go to:
http://www.co.thurston.wa.us/planning/planning_commission/planning_comm_currentwork.html

For more information on the update to the County's Critical Areas Ordinance, please go to:
http://www.co.thurston.wa.us/planning/critical_areas/criticalareas_home.htm

The special meeting will begin at 6:30 pm August 25th at the Thurston County Courthouse Complex, 2000 Lakeridge Dr. SW, Olympia, WA 98502 in Room 280. The room for the meeting has changed from Room 152, which is the regular meeting room. There will be an opportunity for public comment at the beginning of the meeting, and throughout the review process. More information is available in hard copy in the Thurston County Permit Assistance Center.

When: 7:00 pm, Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Where: Batdorf & Bronson Coffee House, 516 Capitol Way S. Olympia, WA, phone (360) 786-6717.
Batdorf & Bronson has three locations in Olympia. Science Café meets in the downtown coffee house on Capitol Way. On-street parking is available on Legion, Capitol Way, Columbia Street, and Water Street. After 6 p.m., there is parking available at Heritage Bank on Columbia Street between 5th and Legion.

Our topic in September is Assessing the Health of Puget Sound Sediments

Many chemicals, from industrial activities as well as those used for personal use, find their way into Washington's groundwater, rivers and streams. Some chemicals bind to soil particles suspended in the water and are ultimately carried to Puget Sound, where they settle to the bottom, accumulate, and can cause harm to bottom-dwelling organisms (benthos) and those higher in the food chain.

The Washington State Department of Ecology has been measuring the level and toxicity of chemicals and the health of the benthos in Puget Sound sediments since 1989 in a series of geographically "nested" study areas. Changes in the baseline sediment quality data over time have been gathered to characterize what is occurring in these study areas.

Maggie Dutch, Senior Marine Biologist at the Washington State Department of Ecology, will present an overview of DOE's Puget Sound sediment monitoring work, what it tells us about the health of Puget Sound, and where the program fits into the network of Puget Sound monitoring activities.

Science Café of Olympia welcomes comments and suggestions on topics, speakers, and how they can improve their meetings. Also, please feel free to pass this notice on to like-minded friends.

Science Café of Olympia provides an informal atmosphere where people both with and without scientific background can meet to gain a better understanding of interesting topics in science and technology. After a brief presentation by an expert in the field, the meeting will be opened to discussions. Science Cafés are found nationwide and are loosely affiliated with the U.K.-based Cafe Scientifique, an international organization promoting public engagement with science. The Sciencecafes.org website is produced by the Science Unit of WGBH in Boston in association with Sigma Xi. Support for Science Café of Olympia is provided in part by the Puget Sound Chapter of The American Chemical Society.

http://www.sciencecafes.org/event_pages/olympia.html
http://www.cafescientifique.org/

Science Café of Olympia thanks Batdorf & Bronson and its staff for welcoming us to their delightful gathering spot.

When: 7:00 pm, Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Where: Batdorf & Bronson Coffee House, 516 Capitol Way S. Olympia, WA, phone (360) 786-6717.

Batdorf & Bronson has three locations in Olympia. Science Café meets in the downtown coffee house on Capitol Way. On-street parking is available on Legion, Capitol Way, Columbia Street, and Water Street. After 6 p.m., there is parking available at Heritage Bank on Columbia Street between 5th and Legion.

Our topic for August is "What Really Goes On In A Crime Lab". (No, It Isn't Really Like CSI!)

People get their idea of what goes on in a Crime Lab from popular television shows such as CSI. These shows take the viewer from the commission of the crime to its resolution in one hour (which includes commercial breaks). In this presentation, Terry McAdam will describe each of the sections in a real modern crime lab and outline the services each section provides. At the conclusion of his presentation, you will have an opportunity to get answers to all those burning questions about forensics that have been occupying your mind.

Terry McAdam began his forensic career with the Northern Ireland Forensic Science Laboratory where he worked for 10 years before moving to the Washington State Patrol Crime Laboratory, where he has worked for over 22 years. He is presently the Manager of its Crime Laboratory in Tacoma. Terry has expertise in most forensic disciplines, but has most experience in trace evidence and crime scene analysis. He was a member of the FBI-sponsored Glass Analysis Subgroup of the Scientific Working Group on Materials Analysis (SWGMAT) for 10 years. He is a Member of the American Academy of Forensic Science and a Member, and Past-President, of the Northwest Association of Forensic Scientists. As an Assessor and Inspector, certified by the American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors - Laboratory Accreditation Board, he has evaluated crime laboratories in the U.S., Canada and New Zealand.

Coming in September: "The Health of Puget Sound: What Can Be Done To Improve It, What We Can Learn From Sediment Monitoring" with Margaret Dutch, Washington Department of Ecology

Click here for more information about the Science Café.