May 1,, 2022
For the past two years, the pandemic has stimulated boat sales by 17.8% and increased boater activity on the waters in Washington State. With an increase in boating activity, Washington State Parks Clean Vessel Act Program ...
April 10, 2022
CONTACTS:
MaryAnn Wagner, Washington Sea Grant, 206-371-7656, maryannb@uw.edu
Catherine Buchalski Smith, CVA Grant Program, Catherine.BuchalskiSmith@parks.wa.gov
Christina Rohila, Pierce County, christina.rohila@piercecountywa.gov
Jeff Barney, Pierce County, jeff.barney@piercecountywa.gov
Paul Henriksen, Port of Lopez, paulh@portoflopez.com
It will now be easier for recreational boaters to safely pump out vessel sewage and keep Washington’s waters clean with an expansion of mobile pumpout services in South Puget Sound and the San Juan Islands. The State Parks Clean ...
Read MoreMarch 31, 2022
On March 26, 2022, 12 teams from across Washington state met in the University of Washington Fisheries Sciences Building to compete in the twenty-fifth rendition of the beloved Orca Bowl competition. These students brought a wealth of marine knowledge in the hopes of making it to the National Ocean Sciences Bowl (NOSB) finals, which will be held virtually this year from May 6 to 15.
The students from Tesla STEM High ...
Read MoreMarch 30, 2022
Washington Sea Grant is thrilled to welcome Michelle Lepori-Bui, marine water quality specialist, to the team.
Michelle partners with Native tribes, aquaculture businesses, natural resource managers, environmental education centers, and other community groups and volunteers to monitor and address marine water quality issues in Washington. She provides technical assistance and support to the SoundToxins program, which focuses ...
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March 30, 2022
This is the third in a series of posts on a Crab Team project to develop environmental DNA (eDNA) for use in early detection and management of European green crab. The first posts provided an introduction to eDNA and the benefits and challenges it offers to invasion managers.
In developing eDNA as a useful way to detect and monitor invasive ...
Read MoreMarch 24, 2022
Floods. Erosion. Sea level rise. Tsunamis. All of these hazards threaten Washington State’s coasts — with potentially dire consequences. Although there have been many efforts and investments to respond to disaster events, geographically isolated communities on the state’s Pacific coast often lack sufficient capacity to undertake comprehensive planning efforts to ...
Read MoreMarch 3, 2022
This is the second in a series of posts sharing new research on the use of environmental DNA (eDNA) in detection of green crabs. For our introduction to eDNA, check out the previous post.
As a detection tool, the process of sampling eDNA is relatively simple, but interpreting results can actually be more complicated than you might expect. While the laboratory process and equipment might tell you – within some window of tolerance – whether green crab DNA ...
Read MoreFebruary 28, 2022
We are thrilled to welcome two new staff to the team: Andrea Chateaubriand and Sam Cheplick.
Andrea joined WSG in December 2021 as the executive assistant. In this role, she collaborates with the WSG director and leadership team and plays an integral role in managing events, projects, and overseeing elements of the overall internal operations. Andrea immigrated to ...
February 24, 2022
Early detection is one of the best ways to thwart an invasive species, but trying to find some of the first individuals to arrive in a new habitat is no easy task. WSG Crab Team built a monitoring network to meet this challenge: by using multiple search methods and finely tuning the search protocols for green crabs, we hope to be able to uncover evidence of green crabs even while they are still extremely rare. Early detection successes ...
Read MoreFebruary 17, 2022
Indigenous People have been stewarding the ocean for thousands of years. This stewardship has appeared in many different forms around the world, all of which represent a reciprocal relationship between humans and the sea rooted in deep place-based knowledge. From octopus houses in Haida Gwaii to fish ponds in Hawaiʻi, an Indigenous mariculture renaissance is making waves as groups across the Pacific seek to ...
Read MoreFebruary 1, 2022
Seattle – Washington Sea Grant (WSG) announced today over $2 million in funding for new marine research projects in 2022 and a new research partnership with the Puget Sound Partnership contributing $432,000. The combined funds totaling over $2.5 million will go toward scientific endeavors that will help lead to healthier and more resilient coastal ecosystems and communities in Washington State. In addition, WSG is pleased ...
Read MoreJanuary 26, 2022
From tribal fishermen exercising their treaty fishing rights to oyster farmers in south Puget Sound, seafood harvesting and aquaculture are vital to Pacific Northwest culture and commerce. However, forces including climate change, ocean acidification and coastal development threaten these sources of sustenance and tradition. Restorative aquaculture — that is, sustainable ocean farming ...
Read MoreJanuary 25, 2022
The Gig Harbor BoatShop and Washington Sea Grant are launching the Purse Seine Vessel Crew Member Training Program, or “Crew School,” designed to provide instruction on the fundamental skills needed to work on a commercial fishing vessel. Led by experienced captains and crew, the hands-on curriculum will be taught in the classroom, aboard commercial fishing vessels ...
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January 20, 2022
Trapping throughout 2021 indicates that the European green crab invasion has grown across Washington’s coastal estuaries, namely Willapa Bay, Grays Harbor, and Makah Bay. This year’s collaborative efforts by many partners to remove crabs and track the invasion also confirmed that green crabs are more abundant and widespread in these locations than they are along inland shorelines, and will likely continue to increase.
2021 marked the second year of intensive and systematic trapping for European green ...
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