A project to clean up derelict fishnets and crab pots lost in the Strait of Juan de Fuca’s major waterways begins today in Sequim and Dungeness bays and is expected to move to Port Angeles Harbor on Sunday.
Work to detect the lost gear with sonar and retrieve it with professional divers should start today in Sequim Bay, and possibly Dungeness Bay, said Joe Schmitt, Clallam County Marine Resources Committee chairman.
Schmitt, a diver who represents the county on the Northwest Straits Commission, has for years been pushing for the removal of derelict gear.
Schmitt said two boats will be involved in the project, one for sonar scanning and the other for divers and gear retrieval.
“We suspect that there’s pocket of some high densities (of gear) and we will hit some of the common areas,” Schmitt said.
All gear must be retrieved by July 6, the day before tribal crabbing season begins, said Schmitt.
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