Northwest Straits Foundation Projects
The Foundation provides funding for projects and programs that move the Northwest Straits closer to a healthy ecosystem. Currently, the Foundation provides funding for the following projects and programs:
- Port Susan Bay Targeted Interviews. The Foundation is supporting targeted interviews of key stakeholders in Port Susan Bay to help inform the development of ecosystem-based management of the Bay. Stakeholders will be asked to share what makes life on the shores of Port Susan unique, what is special about the place, and what has changed over the years. The answers will help set the stage for establishing protection and restoration goals for the Bay. The Foundation is working in partnership with the Island and Snohomish Marine Resources Committees, the Tulalip and Stillaguamish Tribes, and a host of other partners. The project is an initial foray into a larger process to protect and restore Port Susan Bay using ecosystem-based management. This management approach looks at all the links among living and nonliving resources, rather than considering single issues or species in isolation. Funding for the targeted interviews comes from the Harder Foundation.
- Derelict fishing gear priority ranking project. The Foundation recently completed a project to identify and rank priority areas for derelict gear removal throughout Puget Sound and to estimate the cost of removing most of that gear from high priority areas. High priority areas were identified in North Puget Sound and the San Juan archipelago. In those high priority areas, an estimated 2,855 derelict fishing nets remain to be removed. Of the known fishing grounds in these areas, 11% have been surveyed in the San Juan Islands and 18% have been surveyed in north Puget Sound. Further surveys would serve to refine the estimate of remaining derelict nets. There are an estimated 1,038 derelict nets remaining in the lower priority areas of central and south Puget Sound and Hood Canal. Removal of the higher priority derelict nets would require an estimated 816 operation days (163 days per year over five years) and cost approximately $3.3 million. Removal of the lower priority derelict nets would require an estimated 297 additional operation days and cost approximately $1.2 million. Support for this project was provided by the Russell Family Foundation, the Puget Sound Action Team, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Coastal Program.
- Derelict fishing gear research. The Foundation is implementing two research projects to determine the long-term impact of derelict nets and derelict crab pots on priority marine species in Puget Sound. The net research project involves SCUBA divers monitoring four derelict nets over approximately a month to determine the rate at which captured animals recycle through the nets. All carcasses and animals are tagged on each dive and left in place. On subsequent dives, tags are checked to see whether the animal or carcass is still evident and newly captured animals are documented. Preliminary results indicate that one net left derelict for 12 years may have killed 5,000 animals, including 1,000 birds. The derelict crab pot assessment project will commence in May of 2008 and will involve deployment of 20 baited crab pots in Dungeness Bay. These pots will be left in place for a year and monitoring by SCUBA divers monthly to document catch rate for Dungeness crab. These research projects are being funded by grants from the National Fish and Wildlife and NOAA Marine Debris Prevention and Removal grant partnership.
- Derelict fishing gear prevention and outreach. The Northwest Straits Foundation is partnering with WSU Beach Watchers to implement an education and outreach project focused on recreational crabbers. In the summer of 2008, Beach Watchers will provide crabbers with information about the need to use biodegradable escape cord in their crab pots. This ‘escape’ cord disintegrates over time in salt water and eventually disables a crab pot that is lost. Beach Watchers will also provide crabbers with lengths of escape cord sufficient to retrofit their pots. Outreach will occur at popular boat launches throughout the Northwest Straits. This project is funded in part by the National Fish and Wildlife and NOAA Marine Debris Prevention and Removal grant partnership.
- Regional Creosote Debris Inventory and Removal Project. This project addresses the problem of creosote-contaminated beach debris throughout the Northwest Straits. Creosote, a known carcinogen, is used to treat wood that is used for many purposes, including pilings for docks and other structures in Puget Sound. When creosote-treated wood washes up on our shores, it leaches out creosote, polluting our beaches and shorelines and posing a health hazard to humans and wildlife. The Foundation is coordinating with the Northwest Straits Commission the Washington Department of Natural Resources on this project. This project aims to inventory over 200 miles of shoreline and remove over 300 tons of creosote and other treated wood debris from Puget Sound beaches. Successful operations have been completed on Dungeness Spit, Lake Hancock, West Beach, Ebey’s Landing, American Camp, and Jackson Beach. More than 300 tons of contaminated debris have been removed so far and more removals are planned. This project is funded by the NOAA Marine Debris Prevention and Removal Program. Click here to watch some of creosote removals.
- Certified Shore Stewards Program. Certified Shore Stewards is a voluntary program involving shoreline property owners in the preservation and management of Puget Sound shoreline and nearshore areas. Shore Stewards coordinators from WSU Beach Watcher programs provide property owners with a “Guide to Shoreline Living” handbook, volunteer support, website content, monthly newsletters and ongoing education and training opportunities. Training topics range from using water wisely to protecting eelgrass beds and forage fish spawning habitats. Property owners are recognized as ‘Certified Shore Stewards’ after committing to adopt a number of best management practices on their property. The Foundation is providing support for the continued implementation of the Certified Shore Stewards program into Clallam, Whatcom, Snohomish and Skagit, Jefferson, Kitsap, Island, San Juan, and Mason Counties with funds from the Department of Ecology’s Public Participation grant program.