Spring 2025 WSG Director update: Continuing to provide value to Washington state

March 13, 2025

Dear Partners and Friends of Washington Sea Grant:

For more than 50 years, Washington Sea Grant has served the State of Washington, the Pacific Northwest, and the nation by funding marine research, providing technical assistance, and working with communities, managers, businesses, educators, and the public to advance regional understanding and sustainable use of ocean and coastal resources. WSG’s work in 2018-2023 brought more than $190 million in services and economic benefits to the state. As a non-partisan state-federal partnership, ...

13
MAR

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WSG News Blog

The Benefits of Frozen Seafood: Freshness, Sustainability, and Convenience

When purchasing seafood for dinner, frozen is fresh!

Many people are unsure about the quality of frozen fish or shellfish at the market. The good news is, freezing technology has vastly improved over the last few decades. When it comes to seafood, frozen is a great option.

The Science of Flash Freezing

“Flash freezing” is the process of quickly lowering the temperature of freshly harvested seafood.

Old technologies froze fish slowly. This caused cells inside the flesh to ...

11
MAR

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Fisheries, Safe, Sustainable Seafood, WSG News Blog

Steller sea lion scat and science communications

March 10, 2025

Reflecting on my Washington Sea Grant-supported research opportunity

By Maddie Gard, WSG Science Communications Fellow

Washington Sea Grant prioritizes three core functions: research, outreach, and education. By some quirk of fate, I’ve matched with opportunities in each of these focus areas as a student in Washington state universities. When I was an undergraduate, a formative research experience in marine mammal ecology strengthened my passion for science-informed conservation efforts and catalyzed my career direction.

At Western ...

10
MAR

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WSG News Blog

Eyes on the Elwha: A Conversation with WSG Coastal Hazards Specialist, Ian Miller

March 3, 2025

By Maddie Gard, WSG Science Communications Fellow

When the Elwha River dams were breached in 2011, a century’s worth of accumulated sediment was released and transported downstream to the coastal zone. An estimated 19 million metric tons of mud, sand and gravel that had been trapped in the dam reservoirs transformed twists and turns of the Elwha River, eventually flushing out to the coast and reshaping the river delta near Port Angeles. Since then, Washington ...

3
MAR

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Hazard Resilience, Marine and Coastal Planning, WSG News Blog

Meet Luciana Calle, 2025 WSG Undergraduate Science Communications Fellow

February 25, 2025

Luciana Calle was born and raised in the Midwest yet has been living in Washington for 8 years. Her awe for the Pacific Northwest and her fascination with the environment led her to pursue environmental science and resource management, which she currently studies as an undergraduate at the University of Washington. She also took an interest in climate change early ...

25
FEB

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WSG News Blog

Thirty-fourth Shellfish Growers Conference offers connection and community

February 25, 2025

On February 10 and 11, Washington Sea Grant (WSG) hosted its annual Shellfish Growers Conference, another successful gathering of the event that has brought together shellfish growers, researchers, Tribal members and representatives and state and federal agency representatives for more than 30 years.

The theme of this year’s conference was community. At the Alderbrook Resort in Union, WA, where the conference is held each year, attendees put that theme on full display, from happy reunions in the hallway and ...

25
FEB

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WSG News Blog

From boat to plate

The newly revised Seafood Direct Marketing Manual helps seafood harvesters dive into direct-to-consumer sales

From the Summer 2025 Sea Star

By Alison Lorenz, WSG Communications Project Coordinator

Starting a business is no easy feat — especially when you throw in the unpredictable nature of boat maintenance, weather, catches and wholesale prices. For many fishermen, selling their product directly to seafood consumers can be a way to regain some control in a notoriously volatile industry. But where does a fisherman who is interested ...

18
FEB

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WSG News Blog

New course teaches Skills and Drills that can help land a commercial fishing job

February 13, 2025

The Skills and Drills Course will be held March 27-28 in South Bend, Washington

Washington Sea Grant is launching a new two-day program — the Skills and Drills Course — for people who want to gain hands-on experience performing tasks that may be required onboard a West Coast commercial fishing vessel. Read More

13
FEB

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WSG News Blog

Public comments sought for Washington Sea Grant Review

February 13, 2025

Deadline is March 12, 2025.

Washington Sea Grant (WSG) will be reviewed on March 18 – 20 by a team convened by the National Sea Grant College Program. The review will be conducted at the University of Washington’s Seattle campus and will consider all aspects of WSG’s program including management and organization, performance, engagement, and collaborative activities, including those with various offices of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

This notice invites you to ...

13
FEB

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WSG News Blog

Meet Erick Dowell, 2025 WSG Keystone Fellow

February 3, 2025

Washington Sea Grant (WSG) is excited to announce that Erick Dowell, a recent graduate of the University of Washington’s School of Marine and Environmental Affairs, has been selected as the 2025 WSG Keystone Fellow. Erick will be working with host Puget Sound Restoration Fund.

The WSG Keystone Fellowship seeks to build pathways into marine science, policy and related industry careers for individuals from ...

3
FEB

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WSG News Blog

Remembering Eric Scigliano

January 30, 2025

We are sad to share the news of the passing of former Washington Sea Grant (WSG) science writer Eric Scigliano, who died in a diving accident in the Galápagos Islands last week. He was 71.

In addition to serving on the WSG communications team from 2013–2017, Scigliano wrote on wide-ranging topics from the environment, art ...

30
JAN

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WSG News Blog

MaryAnn Wagner, WSG assistant director of communications, retires

January 28, 2025

Having led Washington Sea Grant communications since 2014, Wagner shares about her 40-year career

If you heard news from or learned more about Washington Sea Grant (WSG) over the last ten years, chances are good that MaryAnn Wagner, assistant director for communications, had something to do with it. Communications plays a key role in the overall Sea Grant mission, keeping our audiences informed on current projects, research and coastal and marine issues. Wagner has led ...

28
JAN

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WSG News Blog

Grassroots community engagement and Kevin Decker’s economic report changed the tide for North Cove

Once facing rapid erosion, North Cove beach was recently deemed one of the nation’s ‘best restored beaches’

January 23, 2025

By Maddie Gard, WSG Science Communications Fellow

A decade ago, the northern shore of Willapa Bay was washing away — along with the homes and businesses of the North Cove community. Rapid coastal erosion along North Cove beach in Pacific County, Washington was causing over 100 feet of beach to disappear annually into the ocean on average. ...

23
JAN

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WSG News Blog

The 2025 Washington Sea Grant calendar presents the artwork of Alfredo Arreguín

December 19, 2024

Washington Sea Grant (WSG) is honored to present the artwork of Alfredo Arreguín in our 2025 calendar.

The bright colors, detailed patterns and natural imagery of Alfredo Arreguín’s paintings made him one of the preeminent artists of our time. Born in Morelia, Michoacán, Mexico, Arreguín emigrated to Seattle in 1956 and ...

19
DEC

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WSG News Blog

King tides return to Washington shores

December 12, 2024

The highest tides of the year return to Washington state this weekend, with areas like Shelton and Olympia expecting high tides over 16 feet.

King tides, extreme-high tides that occur when Earth experiences increased gravitational pull from the moon and sun, are an annual yet dramatic feature of Washington winters. Alone, they can cause flooding conditions in low-lying areas. Combined with other factors–like high winds and wave action, especially during coastal storms–flooding can become more ...

12
DEC

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WSG News Blog