Community Engagement
WSG staff have a long history of working with the fishing and seafood industry, providing training and assistance to the fisherman who catch the fish and the retailers who sell it.
- Fishing vessel safety, emergency procedures, and first aid workshops are offered year-round by WSG field expers Marine Operations Specialist Sarah Fisken, who provides technical assistance and training for people connected with the fishing and seafood industries.
- Every year WSG presents an annual conference for shellfish growers in South Puget Sound, coordinated by Marine Water Quality Specialist Teri King. The conference features scientists and other experts sharing the latest research and information on shellfish and the environment.
- Marine Fisheries Scientist Ed Melvin has been working with commercial fisheries and resource managers to address the problem of seabird bycatch, which includes several endangered albatross species. His research has helped Alaska’s longliners reduce incidental catch of seabirds by nearly 80 percent, circumventing potential lawsuits that might have closed a multimillion-dollar fishery.
- For nearly a decade, WSG staff have teamed with Philips Publishing Group to present the Wild Seafood Exchange, an annual event in Bellingham, Washington, providing opportunities for Pacific Northwest and Alaska fishermen to discuss ways to begin new or enhance existing direct marketing operations with seafood buyers, restaurant operators, retail food dealers, and financial, business, and marketing experts.
- For the past several years, WSG staff have conducted a 12-hour retail seafood training program for apprentice meat cutters. The program is offered in conjunction with Meatcutters Apprenticeship programs at South Seattle Community College and the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union.
Online Library
- Fishermen’s direct marketing manual
Commercial fishermen can learn about issues involved in selling their product to customers other than the local processor. - Crabber/towboat lane agreements
Download charts showing navigable towboat and barge lanes through the crabbing grounds between Cape Flattery and San Francisco. - Preventing seabird bycatch in North Pacific groundfish longline fisheries
Read about the tactics fishermen can use to reduce seabird bycatch. - Trends in seabird bycatch in Alaska longline fisheries 1993-2015
This analysis was conducted to evaluate progress toward reducing albatross bycatch in the Alaska longline fisheries. - Why avoiding albatross bycatch is important
A primer on the vulnerabiliyt of the world’s most threatened seabird to fisheries bycatch. - Albatross protection and West Coast groundfish fisheries: what fishermen should know
Read about new requirements for non-tribal longline vessels 55 or longer to keep seabirds away from bait lines. - Bycatch mitigation fact sheet
Learn how streamer lines have helped prevent seabird deaths in longline ocean fishing operations. - Geoduck Aquaculture Program: final report to the Washington State legislature
Read the report on the environmental effects of geoduck aquaculture activities in Puget Sound.
Visit our online library to learn more.
Research Projects
Through scientific research and hands-on work with communities, organizations, and individuals, WSG helps make fisheries and aquaculture operations safe, sustainable, responsibly managed, and economically vibrant; WSG also helps seafood consumers understand the health benefits, safety, and sustainability of their seafood choices. We continue to address important issues, including:
- Salmon habitat restoration
- Salmon recovery after Elwha dam removal
- Evolution in salmon hatcheries
- Carrying capacity and mortality of Chinook
- Climate change impacts on Dungeness Crab
- Modeling for data-limited fisheries
- Groundfish management improvement
- Health effects of pollutants in Pacific salmon
- Low survival in young Puget Sound Chinook
- Key fish species trends in Puget Sound
- Spatial structure in Pacific sardine stocks
- Pacific cod adaptation in Puget Sound
- Puget Sound herring stocks
- Salmon around Seattle’s seawall
- Using indices to improve rockfish studies
- Seabird bycatch prevention in fisheries
- Puget Sound ecosystem model for geoduck
- Fishery impacts of Pacific groundfish ITQs
- Maritime Discovery Schools Initiative
In the News
- ‘Sushi parasites’ have increased 283-fold in past 40 years
UW News, March 19, 2020 - Fisheries management is actually working, global analysis shows
UW News, January 13, 2020 - Fishing for the triple bottom line: profit, planet–and people
UW News, October 14, 2019 - New climate report paints grim picture for Pacific Northwest fishing industry
King 5 News, September 26, 2019 - An ancient fish for a revolutionary new fish farm
Washington State Department of Agriculture Ag Briefs, June 25, 2019 - Efforts to better control sea lice, grow steelheads, win 2018 Sea Grant funds
Undercurrent News, October 18, 2018 - Shell-abrating all things seafood at SeaFeast
National Sea Grant College Program, October 1, 2018 - Best geoduck in Washington nominees
USA Today, September 17, 2018 - Washington Sea Grant researchers seek paths forward in local conflicts over geoduck farming
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, August 1, 2017 - ABYC marine systems certification to be offered fall 2017
San Juan Islander, August 2017 - Workshops galore with Washington Sea Grant
Northwest Yachting, March 7, 2017 - Safety at sea training in Washington
The Dipnetter, January 2017 - Workforce development: Safety at sea training in Washington
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, November 16, 2016