"> What do people really mean when they talk about the environment? A new podcast from the University of Washington Tacoma asks regular citizens a simple, but charged question: “What are the environmental challenges that are most important to you?” The answers to that question drive this engaging podcast in sometimes unexpected directions, from the environmental […]
April 17, 2020
"> Research in the time of the coronavirus
As the state’s stay-at-home order drags on, much of the work to recover Puget Sound has shifted online. Funding schedules for the state and federal Strategic Initiatives remain on track and events like the Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference are going virtual next week with presentations by video conference. But researchers face an entirely different situation […]
April 14, 2020
"> The coronavirus has been found in Tacoma sewage. It could help scientists track the pandemic
Researchers at a non-profit biotech startup in Tacoma have found traces of the novel coronavirus in the city’s sewage, opening up new possibilities for tracking and monitoring the COVID-19 pandemic. The testing is being led by Center for Urban Waters collaborator David Hirschberg who directs the RAIN biotech incubator in Tacoma, along with RAIN’s principal […]
April 7, 2020
"> ‘Water 100 Project’ seeks to enlist region’s tech industry
Few cities in the world can rival Seattle’s combination of money and brain power. It’s a town where the world’s two richest men live within walking distance. Amazon and Microsoft and hundreds of other leading tech companies call this region home, driving the economy and influencing the way we live. Could this same corporate culture […]
March 23, 2020
"> Social scientists analyze public reactions to orca crisis
Social scientists at Oregon State University have been analyzing a trove of more than 17,000 public comments sent to the Washington state governor’s southern resident orca recovery task force. The researchers have added the comments to a keyword database to look at public emotions and perceptions around the issue of orca declines. The orca task […]
March 5, 2020
"> Warming ocean conditions fuel viruses among species in the Salish Sea
As officials struggle to track and contain the outbreak of the novel coronavirus known as COVID-19, ecologists say widespread impacts from viruses and other pathogens are also a growing threat to the species of the Salish Sea ecosystem. “We’re all especially impressed with how rapidly [COVID-19] emerged, the pace of its spread and how massively […]
January 7, 2020
"> PSI launches “Our Water Ways” blog
We are pleased to announce that we are launching a new blog from veteran environmental journalist Christopher Dunagan. Chris has been a senior writer at the Puget Sound Institute since 2015 and has written dozens of in-depth stories for our science magazine Salish Sea Currents. That signature reporting will continue, but now Chris will be […]
December 18, 2019
"> Remembering Bill Ruckelshaus
It was a turning point in the history of environmental policy. In 1972, the first head of the EPA, William Ruckelshaus, faced “a preponderance of the evidence” showing the effects of the pesticide DDT on birds and other wildlife. By then, Rachel Carson’s book Silent Spring had become a classic, clearly laying out the adverse […]
December 3, 2019
"> Puget Sound Partnership issues biennial State of the Sound Report
The Puget Sound Partnership has released its biennial report on the most recent status and trends for Puget Sound recovery. The following is a reprint of a news release from the Partnership about its 2019 State of the Sound Report. News release October 2, 2019 Puget Sound Partnership MEDIA CONTACT: Jon Bridgman, 206.276.5309, jon.bridgman@psp.wa.gov 2019 […]
November 26, 2019
"> Kelp crisis? Decline of underwater forests raises alarms
At first, the decline of kelp in Puget Sound seemed unlikely. This signature, leafy algae was thought to be especially hearty and resistant to some of the stressors that have affected other shoreline species like eelgrass. It was hard to go to a beach in Puget Sound and not find long strands of bull kelp […]