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EXPERIENCE > YOUTH ACTIVITIES > CONSERVATION PROJECTS
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Sometimes, working in the field as a conservation professional or volunteer can be a less-than-glamorous occupation. This is especially true if you are dealing with marine environments where you can be assured of getting wet, muddy or cold.

Very early on a mid-June day, about a dozen people assembled on the edge of the Yaquina Bay in Newport for a simple but tedious task: pulling up an aquatic plant called Marine Eelgrass and transplanting it to an area near the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration pier further north.

But why? At first glance, moving grass from one spot to another might seem like an insane way to spend your day. But marine eelgrass is no ordinary plant.

Historically, huge beds of marine eelgrass covered the floors of bays, intertidal areas and estuaries throughout the northern hemisphere. Its long ribbon-like leaves can grow up to four feet (1.22 m) in length and provide a sanctuary for numerous fish and shellfish, many of which are economically important to human beings.

“This isn’t just about the grass,” said Jim Burke, Director of Animal Husbandry at the Oregon Coast Aquarium. “The grass helps to create underwater gardens in which all kinds of animals grow and flourish.”

Tragically, marine eelgrass is disappearing in many areas and scientists are not entirely sure why. Along the Atlantic seaboard, for example, eelgrass beds have been reduce by as much as 90%, resulting in a corresponding drop in related fish and shellfish populations. Not only is this producing an environmental crisis, but many fishermen are also suffering financially because fish and shellfish populations are dwindling.

Building An Underwater Garden: Volunteers from all over Newport come together to get muddy as they plant a new eelgrass garden in the Yaquina Bay estuary to aid local fish and invertebrate populations.