Last week, Rep. Alex Ramel (D) and congressional staffers participated in a tour of the UW Friday Harbor Laboratories (FHL) on San Juan Island and the surrounding area. The world-renowned laboratories offer faculty, researchers, and students unique opportunities to study the marine world and ecosystems throughout the San Juan Archipelago.
To kick off the tour, Rep. Ramel and the staffers received a Safety at Sea briefing from Jenna Keeton with the Washington Sea Grant (WSG). Jenna is a Fisheries Specialist who trains commercial fishing and charter boat crews in emergency preparedness to reduce risks and fatalities in the fishing industry. She instructed the group in the use of cold-water immersion survival suits and had volunteers participate in a 90-second suit-up drill. Once in their survival suits, they were invited to get into the water to learn firsthand how the suits work and to put their newfound safety and survival knowledge to the test. Additionally, Jenna shared how she uses her expertise in sustainable fisheries, the seafood industry, fish ecology, and fisheries economics to help address the needs of Washington’s fisheries-dependent communities.
Following their adventures in the water and after sunset, the group took flashlights to the FHL dock and submerged them into the water to see the active marine life. They learned about the various species they saw and the overall ecosystem from Jenna and Stephanie Harrington with the UW College of the Environment.
The following day, Rep. Ramel and the staffers jumped into small boats to visit a healthy bull kelp bed located at Turn Island. While there, FHL’s Director, Dr. Megan Dethier, and Graduate Student, Kindall Murray, highlighted the many benefits of bull kelp and shared how its declining in the Puget Sound region due to warming ocean temperatures and other known and unknown factors. They are actively researching the stressors on bull kelp with the ultimate goal of helping to conserve and even restore the kelp beds.
After, the group met with Dr. Deborah Giles with Wild Orca to learn about the endangered Southern Resident Orcas and the threats facing them, including depleted prey, vessel noise and disturbances, and pollutants. Giles discussed Wild Orca’s one-of-a-kind, non-invasive research method, which involves working with a trained orca scat scent detection dog named Eba. Using her powerful nose, Eba can detect orca feces floating in the water from up to one mile away and direct researchers toward it for collection. Once collected, the scat reveals a near real-time window into the Southern Residents health and helps inform the development of conservation efforts. Giles also emphasized how Wild Orca aims to make science actionable and accessible for the public and policymakers.
The group then piled into vans and headed to Wescott Bay Oyster Farm. Once there, Manager Chas Lawson spoke about the history of the farm and the shellfish grown there: Manila Clams, Mediterranean Mussels, and Pacific Oysters. Over lunch, Chas, Dr. Terri King with WSG, and Dr. Melissa Peacock with the Salish Sea Research Center at Northwest Indian College led a discussion on shellfish health and algal blooms, as well as the mechanics behind Washington’s shellfish industry.
A huge thank you to the UW College of the Environment for organizing and hosting this incredible behind-the-scenes tour. In addition, thank you to Rep. Alex Ramel for taking the time to participate and for supporting the UW.
