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[narrator] The Pacific Northwest s 
Puget Sound. Its waters form the

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nation s second-largest estuary and comprise 
the southern half of the greater Salish Sea.

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With more than 4 million people calling it home,

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the Puget Sound region is known for its natural 
wonders both above and below the surface.

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[brian] The real beauty of Puget 
Sound is what lies under the surface.

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[narrator] More than two dozen kelp species 
create an underwater haven for marine mammals,

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hundreds of fish species, and a diverse 
array of invertebrates and other organisms.

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[betsy] Puget Sound is a biodiversity 
hotspot. Kelp forests themselves

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are fueling, powering, supporting the marine 
ecosystem and the fisheries on which we depend.

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[brian] Everything eats kelp. It's in the shrimp 
and the clams and the salmon and the whales.

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Kelp is the reason why 
estuaries are productive places.

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[brooke] They are these giant underwater 
forests that are just totally irreplaceable.

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[narrator] Kelp forests have played 
an essential role in this ecosystem

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for many thousands of years. As early 
peoples migrated into the Americas,

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a lifeway of kelp beds supported them with 
food and safe passage on their journey.

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Their descendants - known as the Coast Salish - 
comprise a loose grouping of indigenous nations

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who still live here. Kelp plays a 
significant role in their shared cultures.

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[leonard] It s also a very big indicator of

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the health of the sea and of 
our ancestral waters here.

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[narrator] In recent years, Tribal 
citizens and Western scientists alike

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have observed that kelp is in 
serious decline in some areas.

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[tom] We've seen significant 
losses. The first maps that we had

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were done in the 1870s and there was kelp 
marked all over South Sound. It's gone.

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People are beginning to realize 
it matters. It makes a difference.

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[casey] Kelp is very important to all marine 
species. It's also important to us as humans.

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We don't want to think about what 
happens if we lose it. If it disappears,

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it's more than just the kelp that will disappear.

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[narrator] Resource managers, scientists, tribal 
citizens, and advocates across Puget Sound are

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working together to solve the mysteries 
of conserving and restoring kelp forests.

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What does this region s 
interconnected history with kelp

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reveal about its current health? And 
how will kelp persist in the future?