The Marine Resources Committee (MRC) is an advisory group to the Board of County Commissioners and part of the regional Northwest Straits Marine Conservation Initiative. MRC members are citizen volunteers committed to protecting and restoring marine habitats in our ecologically rich corner of the world.
Please spare a few minutes to share your interests and concerns regarding East Jefferson County marine and nearshore resources. The Jefferson County Marine Resources Committee works with various partners on projects to better understand, restore, and protect our local marine and nearshore environments. Your valuable feedback will help to inform these efforts. Take the survey here. Thank you for taking the time to share your input!
The Jefferson MRC has been collaborating with the Sea Dragons, a Port Townsend-based robotics club, since 2021 to find and remove lost crab pots in East Jefferson County using a remotely operated vehicle (ROV). Last year, we piloted this project in Discovery Bay, with some success and many lessons learned. In 2023, we focused removal efforts in Port Townsend Bay and have continued to learn and adapt. You can read more about this project in our recently published StoryMap: "Recovering Lost Crab Pots of the Salish Sea."
The Jefferson MRC is hiring interns this year to offer valuable experience in the marine conservation field and forward efforts on several local projects. Interns will help conduct outreach to recreational crabbers, grow a community of rain garden stewards, develop a storm surge citizen science monitoring program, and support fieldwork and operations across the MRC.