Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival 2024

Single celled algae, or phytoplankton, are the base of aquatic food webs and are essential to global nutrient cycles. However, some of these organisms produce toxins that can pose a threat to ecosystems and human health. SoundToxins is a phytoplankton monitoring program for Washington's inland waters designed to provide early warning of harmful algal bloom (HAB) events in order to minimize human health risks and economic losses. Partners and volunteers collect water samples at coastal sites across Puget Sound and the Northwest Straits year-round and use light microscopy and taxonomy to identify phytoplankton. In addition to providing sufficient warning of HABs for management decisions to mitigate losses and risk, the monitoring network also helps us keep track of new and emerging threats, track changes in phytoplankton communities over time, and increase our understanding of HABs in response to changing oceanic conditions.