Puget Sound Nearshore Environments

Introduction

The nearshore environment covers the most productive waters of Puget Sound. The nearshore encompasses a wide range of habitat types, from marshes and sandflats to kelp and eelgrass beds and upland areas. Ron Thom, a scientist from Battelle Marine Sciences Laboratory, defines the nearshore as "the intertidal portion of the ecosystem that encompasses the tidally influenced portions of rivers and streams. The nearshore extends down to the depth where light can no longer support photosynthetic plants on the bottom."

Documents

Reconnaissance Assessment of the State of the Nearshore Report Including Vashon and Maury Islands (WRIAs 8 and 9)

Marine Shoreline Monitoring and Compliance Pilot Project

Juvenile Salmonid Composition, Timing, Distribution, and Diet in Marine Nearshore Waters of Central Puget Sound in 2001-2002

Beyond the Beach: Learn more about the Nearshore Environment

Illustrations

Bull Kelp Learn about the integral role nearshore habitats play in our watershed ecosytems, particularly to salmon and other species. These educational graphics help explain nearshore physical and biological workings and stressors to the nearshore system.