Posted on January 12, 2021
The coastal setting around Sequim Bay has always been a special place with distinctive people.
People who have valued its beauty and its resources. People who have sought to understand the behavior of the natural world around it, through observation and investigation. One might say it’s always been a place of science.
Today, approximately 100 acres at the mouth of Sequim Bay and more than 80 researchers are fully dedicated to scientific exploration. The Marine and Coastal Research Laboratory (MCRL) is an arm of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). PNNL is a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) national laboratory whose main campus is located about 250 miles across the state in the arid lands of eastern Washington. PNNL-Sequim houses MCRL-DOE’s only coastal and marine sciences laboratory.
MCRL is uniquely positioned and equipped to study and advance sustainable energy, environmental protection, and maritime security. This cutting-edge research center began its life as the Marine Research Laboratory in 1966 when Battelle, which operates PNNL, purchased the site to build the laboratory. But the area has been continuously occupied by the S’Klallam Tribe and their ancestors for at least 13,800 years, according to archaeologists.
Source: coastalnewstoday
