PORT TOWNSEND — A marine resources consultant plans to start a research cruise program in conjunction with the Port Townsend Marine Science Center that will offer children and others a chance to have fun and learn.
Dr. Jim Norris, the owner of Marine Resources Consultants in Port Townsend, plans to start a daily research cruise service that will run twice a day out of Port Townsend starting June 1.
The Menzies Project — named after Archibald Menzies, the biologist on board the 1792 Vancouver expedition to the Pacific Northwest coast — will put people to work as scientists while they are on board the 43-foot-long RV Mary Beth.
Norris said the program will work in collaboration with government agencies — mainly the state Department of Fisheries — to monitor area water quality, eelgrass growth, crab migration, sea pen populations and other marine phenomena.
“People are ready for more than a passive whale-watching experience,” Norris said. “We’re hoping that it will mean a more informed public about marine environment issues.”
“We’re not aware of any other place in Port Townsend doing what we’re doing.”
—————————-
The rest of this story appears in the Thursday Peninsula Daily News Jefferson County edition. Click on “Subscribe” to get the PDN delivered to your home or office.
