The masts clanged slightly on the handful of boats docked and waiting for deconstruction. It was clear from the moss and lichen covering the windows and cabin that these vessels had not been at sea in a long time.
Bull Kelp in South and Central Puget Sound has declined more than 90% over the last 150 years - and eelgrass meadows severely declined as well, according to a new report just delivered to lawmakers. The Washington Department of Natural Resources new plan aims to reverse the losses. The DNR s Co-lead on the Kelp and Eelgrass Health and Conservation Plan Cynthia Harbison said the goal is to conserve and recover at least 10,000 acres of kelp and eelgrass habitat by 2040. .
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife just announced a marine warden discovered an endangered Pacific leatherback sea turtle dead, drowned by old crab-fishing gear left off the Farralon Islands near San Francisco. Today, the agency s Dungeness Crab Fishing Gear Working Group is meeting to discuss how to respond. Geoff Shester, California campaign director and senior scientist for Oceana, said sea turtles and whales can get trapped in vertical ropes extending from a buoy on the water s surface to the trap on the ocean floor. .