“The most important thing is that people feel like they can do something, that they are not absolutely helpless, because then they are hopeless. And being hopeless doesn’t really get us anywhere.””

Casey McLean

By Cameron Sires

As warnings of waning federal funding for marine programs circulate across the country, the consequences are beginning to show along Washington’s coast. In Port Townsend and across the state, organizations that study and protect marine life are feeling the financial squeeze, as their ability to collect and understand changes in underwater ecosystems and their effects on local communities diminishes.

Currently, the proposed 2026 federal budget suggests cuts of over $1.5 billion to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), following a budget of around $6 billion in 2025, according to the NOAA budget estimates.

Although the budget is only a proposal, cuts and restrictions are already taking effect.

Regionally and locally, funding cuts have strained staff in NOAA’s West Coast Marine Mammal Stranding Network, including coordinator Kristin Wilkinson, who oversees responses, manages data, investigates unusual mortality events and often works directly with the Port Townsend Marine Science Center (PTMSC), said Betsy Carlson, the citizen science coordinator at PTMSC. 

“She can’t go out into the field anymore unless it’s an extreme emergency, so she can’t come and meet with us in person. She can’t go and check on a facility. She’s basically been grounded, and she’s just one example,” Carlson said.

Alongside Carlson, Diane Quinn, executive director of PTMSC, noted a reduction in disease testing on stranded marine mammals after their deaths. 

These tests help researchers detect conditions or disease outbreaks, such as avian flu, which spreads through flocks of chickens and has been found in harbor seals off Port Townsend, Carlson said. 

The tests not only shed light on marine mammal health and future threats, but also on potential risks to human populations.

“It really is those little things that could put a community more at risk, but they might not know it,” Quinn said. “If there’s mortality in birds, but nobody’s testing, then how is anybody supposed to respond?” 

Organizations across the region feel the pinch 

The Des Moines-based marine wildlife hospital, Sealife Response, Rehabilitation, and Research (SR3), which partners with PTMSC and other organizations in the area to help rehabilitate and care for marine mammals, has grappled with the loss of critical grants funded at the federal level. 

Recently, the nonprofit lost a National Fish and Wildlife Foundation grant, which varied from $150,000 to $170,000 annually and supported ongoing research on southern resident orcas — a familiar presence in the coastal waters of Jefferson County.

In an effort to adapt and close funding gaps, SR3 hosted a fundraiser on Aug. 20 in Jefferson County to raise awareness and support for this endangered species, whose population has fallen to fewer than 80 individuals.

“While this [grant] is a loss, it also highlights the importance of diversifying our funding base so that essential recovery work is not as vulnerable to shifts in one funding source,” McLean wrote. 

The nonprofit’s financial structure relies heavily on community support and private philanthropy, with 1% to 7% coming from government-backed grants within the last few years. However, that small portion still plays a vital role.

“That [government funding] still can be a large chunk when you’re talking about making up $100,000 to $300,000 of income loss,” McLean said. 

These grants often support what private philanthropy doesn’t find “sexy”, McLean said; the incremental research can take years to form a full picture. 

When an oil spill, outbreak of disease or surge in unusual mortality occurs, slow-brewed data can prove critical in understanding how these events impact affected populations.

“If you don’t have that baseline data, when that crisis hits, the government kind of throws their hands up and says, ‘Well, we don’t know how bad this is,’ McLean said. 

Using southern resident orcas as an example, McLean said these mammals often respond slowly to environmental changes, and without long-term monitoring, these effects can go unnoticed. 

Decades of data have revealed the accumulation of man-made toxins in orcas’ body fat, as well as population declines linked to food scarcity, particularly from their primary food source: Chinook salmon.

“We are really trying to make sure that we’ve got the information we need so that officials who make conservation policies can be proactive and not just wait until it’s a crisis moment and then react,” she said. 

The organization has also worked to fill funding gaps in its hospital sector.

In the past, the organization has secured support through the Prescott Grant Program, managed by NOAA, which has helped fund food, medication and staff time.

While the program remains active, McLean noted its significant fluctuations in available funding over the years.

“In the most recent funding cycle, no marine mammal rehabilitation facilities on the West Coast were awarded, and the program currently has no allocated funding in the proposed federal budget,” she said. 

Although these large-scale funding cuts can feel distant and understanding local action may seem daunting, McLean said the best thing people can do is stay informed and rally their communities to contact their legislators in groups to make their voices heard.

“The most important thing is that people feel like they can do something, that they are not absolutely helpless, because then they are hopeless,” McLean said. “And being hopeless doesn’t really get us anywhere.”