WEBVTT 00:07.941 --> 00:15.248 align:left position:85% line:83% size:5% [narrator] The Pacific Northwest s Puget Sound. Its waters form the 00:15.248 --> 00:24.457 align:left position:72.5% line:83% size:17.5% nation s second-largest estuary and comprise the southern half of the greater Salish Sea. 00:24.457 --> 00:28.294 align:left position:65% line:89% size:25% With more than 4 million people calling it home, 00:28.294 --> 00:35.835 align:left position:70% line:83% size:20% the Puget Sound region is known for its natural wonders both above and below the surface. 00:35.835 --> 00:43.710 align:left position:87.5% line:83% size:2.5% [brian] The real beauty of Puget Sound is what lies under the surface. 00:43.710 --> 00:50.617 align:left position:75% line:83% size:15% [narrator] More than two dozen kelp species create an underwater haven for marine mammals, 00:50.617 --> 00:57.857 align:left position:80% line:83% size:10% hundreds of fish species, and a diverse array of invertebrates and other organisms. 00:57.857 --> 01:05.732 align:left position:82.5% line:83% size:7.5% [betsy] Puget Sound is a biodiversity hotspot. Kelp forests themselves 01:05.732 --> 01:14.474 align:left position:72.5% line:83% size:17.5% are fueling, powering, supporting the marine ecosystem and the fisheries on which we depend. 01:14.474 --> 01:23.416 align:left position:67.5% line:83% size:22.5% [brian] Everything eats kelp. It's in the shrimp and the clams and the salmon and the whales. 01:23.416 --> 01:28.288 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% Kelp is the reason why estuaries are productive places. 01:28.288 --> 01:36.096 align:left position:77.5% line:83% size:12.5% [brooke] They are these giant underwater forests that are just totally irreplaceable. 01:36.096 --> 01:41.067 align:left position:85% line:83% size:5% [narrator] Kelp forests have played an essential role in this ecosystem 01:41.067 --> 01:47.073 align:left position:82.5% line:83% size:7.5% for many thousands of years. As early peoples migrated into the Americas, 01:47.073 --> 01:53.079 align:left position:75% line:83% size:15% a lifeway of kelp beds supported them with food and safe passage on their journey. 01:53.079 --> 01:59.953 align:left position:70% line:83% size:20% Their descendants - known as the Coast Salish - comprise a loose grouping of indigenous nations 01:59.953 --> 02:06.493 align:left position:87.5% line:83% size:2.5% who still live here. Kelp plays a significant role in their shared cultures. 02:06.493 --> 02:09.729 align:left position:72.5% line:89% size:17.5% [leonard] It s also a very big indicator of 02:09.729 --> 02:13.366 align:left position:12.5% line:83% size:77.5% the health of the sea and of our ancestral waters here. 02:13.366 --> 02:19.239 align:left position:85% line:83% size:5% [narrator] In recent years, Tribal citizens and Western scientists alike 02:19.239 --> 02:23.776 align:left position:12.5% line:83% size:77.5% have observed that kelp is in serious decline in some areas. 02:23.776 --> 02:28.615 align:left position:12.5% line:83% size:77.5% [tom] We've seen significant losses. The first maps that we had 02:28.615 --> 02:36.589 align:left position:77.5% line:83% size:12.5% were done in the 1870s and there was kelp marked all over South Sound. It's gone. 02:36.589 --> 02:40.560 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% People are beginning to realize it matters. It makes a difference. 02:40.560 --> 02:48.535 align:left position:72.5% line:83% size:17.5% [casey] Kelp is very important to all marine species. It's also important to us as humans. 02:48.535 --> 02:52.205 align:left position:87.5% line:83% size:2.5% We don't want to think about what happens if we lose it. If it disappears, 02:52.205 --> 02:55.441 align:left position:67.5% line:89% size:22.5% it's more than just the kelp that will disappear. 02:55.441 --> 03:03.082 align:left position:67.5% line:83% size:22.5% [narrator] Resource managers, scientists, tribal citizens, and advocates across Puget Sound are 03:03.082 --> 03:09.889 align:left position:80% line:83% size:10% working together to solve the mysteries of conserving and restoring kelp forests. 03:09.889 --> 03:13.493 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% What does this region s interconnected history with kelp 03:13.493 --> 03:17.493 align:left position:82.5% line:83% size:7.5% reveal about its current health? And how will kelp persist in the future?