16
JAN
JAN
0
Environmental Threats
December 20, 2019
A new report details the effects of a changing climate on Puget Sound in 2018, and describes how these changes trickled down through the ecosystem to affect marine life and seafood consumers.
Scientists observed unusually warm water temperatures, though not as hot as during the years of “the Blob,” the marine heatwave of 2014-2016. Salinity went up everywhere in the Puget ...
Read More
20
DEC
DEC
August 20, 2019
While you’re washing away the lingering sunscreen from the last beach day of summer, you’re probably reminiscing about carefree time with family and friends, and daydreaming about the sights and smells at the water’s edge. But have you ever thought about your sunscreen’s impact on water quality?
Summer brings a whole host of human-made threats to water quality. Sewage, oil and debris get most of the press, but the products we use on our skin, ...
Read More
20
AUG
AUG
August 8, 2019
Last month WSG’s Meg Chadsey spoke to the Van Alen Climate Council — a group of built environment designers — about ocean acidification’s impacts to local seafood
With bustling waterfronts, famous seafood markets, a robust culinary scene, and an estuary rich with marine life, the Puget Sound region seems to be the picture of seafood security. But look closer at the web of people, the sea, and the climate, and the fragility and vulnerability of ...
Read More
8
AUG
AUG
August 1, 2019
Facility funded by State Parks’ Clean Vessel Act program
OLYMPIA – A new sewage pumpout for recreational boaters is now open at the Shaw Island General Store in the San Juan Islands. The facility is expected to serve hundreds of boaters this summer.
The idea to install a pumpout facility came from Terri and Steve Mason, longtime island residents and owners of the Shaw General Store.
“I grew up on Orcas ...
1
AUG
AUG
May 8, 2019
The joint team from Washington Sea Grant (WSG), Climate Impacts Group (CIG) and Earth and Space Sciences (ESS) that released a report containing the best sea level rise projections yet for Washington’s coasts last summer received the UW College of the Environment Award for Outstanding Community Impact. The report is part of the Washington Coastal Resilience Project, a three-year effort funded in 2016 by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
“The team has been instrumental in helping ...
Read More
8
MAY
MAY
March 26, 2019
Washington Sea Grant held viewing parties in Oak Harbor and Raymond in January to help local residents understand the effects of sea level rise
Sea level rise has major implications for coastal Washington. The recent projections released by Washington Sea Grant, WA Department of Ecology, UW Climate Impacts Group, The Nature Conservancy, and other partners predict approximately one foot of sea level rise by 2050, and up to two feet by 2100.
Bridget Trosin, Coastal Policy Specialist at ...
Read More
26
MAR
MAR
In the 1990s, the endangered status of the short-tailed albatross catalyzed efforts to reduce the number of birds accidentally killed as bycatch in Alaska, home to the country’s biggest fisheries. Marine fisheries scientist Ed Melvin, at Washington Sea Grant at the University of Washington, and research associate Kim Dietrich, an independent contractor, were at the forefront of a collaborative research effort that led to Alaska’s longline fisheries adopting streamer lines in 2002, a technology that is towed behind vessels ...
Read More
20
FEB
FEB
December 18, 2018
The ability to smell is critical for salmon. They depend on scent to avoid predators, sniff out prey and find their way home at the end of their lives when they return to the streams where they hatched to spawn and die.
New research from the University of Washington and NOAA Fisheries’ Northwest Fisheries Science Center shows this powerful sense of smell might be in trouble as carbon emissions continue to be absorbed by our ocean. Ocean ...
Read More
18
DEC
DEC
King5 News covered the spread of invasive European green crab in a recent article.
“Since the first spotting in 2016, green crab have now been located at seven different sites. McDonald and others are worried that the crabs will get more challenging to remove if they’re able to make it to the south Sound, because the offspring in the area would likely stay in the area.”
Read more in the article.
Read More
13
NOV
NOV
October 3, 2018
A new story in the Sequim Gazette featuring WSG aquatic invasive species specialist Emily Grason details how far invasive European green crab have spread on the Olympic Peninsula.
Read the story here: http://www.sequimgazette.com/news/european-green-crabs-reach-stretches-across-north-olympic-peninsula/
Read More
8
OCT
OCT
September 5, 2018
Collaborative effort produces a new marine debris action plan for Washington
Trash on our shorelines and in the ocean, also known as marine debris, is a persistent and growing global environmental issue. A lot is at stake particularly in Washington State, where outdoor recreation, shellfish harvests and aquaculture, and commercial, tribal and recreational fisheries are all ...
Read More
5
SEP
SEP
August 27, 2018
The Washington State Invasive Species Council, part of the Recreation and Conservation Office, was created by the state legislature in 2006 to provide policy-level direction, planning and coordination to comabat harmful invasive species throughout the state. The council recently hosted WSG marine ecologist Emily Grason as part of their Washington Pest Watch training webinars to talk about the WSG Crab Team. It covers the history of the species and why we care about it, how do identify ...
Read More
27
AUG
AUG
March 1, 2018
The Sea Grant programs in Alaska and Washington are releasing a new, updated edition of the popular Fishermen’s Direct Marketing Manual. As the business climate of the seafood industry evolves, many fishermen are choosing to directly market their catch in hopes of capturing more of its value so the publication’s release is timely.
Hard copies of the 5th edition of the manual, edited by Terry Johnson, are now available through Alaska Sea Grant’s online bookstore. The ...
Read More
19
APR
APR