WSU Skagit Beach Watcher Training
Love Puget Sound?
Want to learn a ton?
Then join WSU Beach Watchers!
Next Training: Spring 2010
Contact the WSU Beach Watchers Coordinator to get on the early notification list!
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"It’s a great way to get yourself outdoors, learn about our incredible environment here on the edge, and lend a hand in helping to preserve and restore the health of Puget Sound." - Jan Hersey, Class of 2008
Many people become WSU Beach Watchers because they’re curious about the shore, about Puget Sound, about what lives in or near the water and the natural processes at work. They’re curious too about how our actions affect the Sound and its life and how we can make a positive difference.
Becoming a Beach Watcher begins with a 100-hours of university-level training. This training program includes expert presentations, field trips and hands-on practice. In return, Beach Watchers continue learning while volunteering at least 100 hours over two years as citizen scientists, educators, restorationists and project planners.
As the program’s name implies, Beach Watcher training includes an introduction to the things that live on the beach and near shore and the processes at work there. Topics include:
- coastal processes,
- marine organism identification,
- water quality conditions,
- public education tips,
- climate change,
- planned restoration efforts
But it includes so much more: how the Skagit watershed relates to the Sound, the threats posed by introduced plants and animals, oil spill response and its organization, why maintaining septic systems is so important, etc. The 2009 training agenda gives you a sense of what to expect in 2010, although topics and speakers may change.
Many join WSU Beach Watchers hoping to satisfy their curiosity about this place where we live, and they end up learning about things they had never anticipated. The topics of the initial Beach Watcher training are varied enough to address each volunteer’s interests and then to expand them in new directions.
If you’ve ever wondered: How do tides work? What’s the status of killer whales in Puget Sound? Do shoreline bulkheads have any environmental effect? What are all those strange and interesting things I see on the beach at low tide? What are forage fish and why do they matter? Why this big concern about storm water runoff? How can I (one person!) make a difference in protecting the environmental quality of Puget Sound? Then sign up for WSU Beach Watcher training!
Class size is limited so there is an application process - all applications are due on February 15, 2010. There is also a $30 materials fee (scholarships are available). Applications will be available in December 2009. To request an application via mail or to register for future training notifications, just contact the Skagit County WSU Beach Watcher Coordinator at christineb@co.skagit.wa.us or (360) 428-4270, ext. 223.