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They are how we protect our special coastal places

03 • 01 • 2008

WA Legislature supports coastal Marine Resources Committees

The Washington State Legislature passed a bill to support the establishment of Marine Resources Committees on Washington’s outer coast. Marine Resources Committees are citizen advisory groups that address issues concerning coastal ecosystems, including the health of our beaches and rocky shorelines. Similar committees have been working successfully in Puget Sound for over a decade. Now, local governments will be establishing Marine Resources Committees on the state’s outer coast, offering an exciting opportunity for citizens to get engaged in determining the future health of their ocean and beaches. These committees bring together diverse marine interests, including the scientific, economic, recreational and conservation communities and tribes to address some of the toughest environmental threats facing our coastal ecosystems, such as pollution, invasive species and loss of habitat. Surfrider activists in Grays Harbor County and the Olympic Peninsula Chapter helped generate support for this initiative from coastal legislators and county commissioners. This support convinced the legislature to pass this legislation and provide $250,000 to establish coastal Marine Resources Committees.