Distribution of risk to marine vegetation in Puget Sound workshop video

In this recorded workshop, researchers at the Puget Sound Institute and Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife present the first comprehensive risk assessment of threats to eelgrass and canopy kelp in Puget Sound. The project combined expert ratings of individual stressors — including temperature, nutrients, shoreline armor, and vessel traffic — with spatial modeling across 17 threat layers to map where these foundational habitats face the greatest cumulative pressure.

Results reveal striking regional variation: kelp risk is highest in South and Central Puget Sound, while eelgrass risk peaks in Hood Canal and North Puget Sound. The San Juan Islands, though lower-risk overall, harbor significant localized hotspots.

The workshop also includes a live demonstration (57:15) of an interactive web tool that lets users explore cumulative risk and the contribution of individual threats at the local level — a practical resource for conservation, restoration, and monitoring decisions across the sound.