Puget Sound looks beautiful from the top. But more than 30 scientists just completed research that found water quality problems.
credit:
Creative Commons/Doug Kerr
The EarthFix podcast takes a deep dive into the Northwest’s Water World: recording orcas underwater, gillnet fishing for salmon in the Columbia River and a look at how Puget Sound is doing when it comes to water quality.
A massive new water quality report from more than 30 scientists. They checked out an array of issues in the Puget Sound: from nutrient pollution and low-oxygen zones to pH levels and acidity.
Listen to a full-length interview with oceanographer and the lead editor Stephanie Moore.
The latest plans to attach microphones to orcas. The whales’ numbers are so low that the resident population in Puget Sound is protected under the Endangered Species Act. Vessel traffic and other causes of noise may be preventing whales from successfully hunting and foraging for food.
Commercial gillnet fishing in the Columbia River. A push to ban the commercial use of gillnet fishing on the Oregon side of the Columbia River is heading to Oregon voters. New developments are complicating the campaign for and against Measure 81 on the November ballot. Columbia River tribes came out in opposition, even though they’re exempt from the ban. And three groups that originally backed the measure are now withdrawing their support. They’re in support of a counter proposal to phase out commercial gillnet fishing that Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber is championing.
Share your experiences as part of EarthFix's Public Insight Network.
Oregon/Washington: Is there buzz in your community about coal trains or new export terminals?
Join our Public Insight Network!
EarthFix is a public media project of Oregon Public Broadcasting and Boise State Public Radio, Idaho Public Television, KCTS 9 Seattle, KUOW Puget Sound Public Radio, Northwest Public Radio and Television, Southern Oregon Public Television and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
