Sanctuaries expand soundscape and real‑time ocean monitoring to help managers and fishermen

Kevin Grant described a growing West Coast network of passive acoustic listening stations and the Sanctuary Watch effort to bring those data into an accessible portal. He noted a new Humboldt soundscape station established in 2025 and the public launch of soundscapemonitoring.us as a standardized reporting tool.

Grant also outlined oceanographic monitoring upgrades in the Olympic Coast: in May 2026, ONMS deployed two real-time oceanographic landers (satellite-linked telebuoys) at Makah Bay and Elizabeth to transmit continuous bottom oxygen concentration, temperature and current data during the May–October field season. “The live bottom oxygen concentration tracking is critical to providing early warning data, enabling fishermen and managers to plan ahead and make informed decisions about where they want to put their gear,” Grant said.

Council members welcomed the operational benefits of real-time data for avoiding hypoxic conditions and stressed continuing collaboration between sanctuaries, tribes and fisheries science centers to integrate telemetry and acoustic data into fisheries management.