Committee hears bill to create burrowing‑shrimp research program for Washington shellfish growers

The Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee on Jan. 31 opened a public hearing on House Bill 1309, which would direct the Washington State Department of Agriculture to establish an integrated pest management (IPM) research program aimed at reducing the impacts of burrowing shrimp on bottom‑culture shellfish farming.

The bill would create a governing board, a non‑appropriated account to support grants, and a consensus‑based decision process; the program and account would expire July 1, 2035. Representative Joel McIntyre, the bill’s prime sponsor, told the committee the measure is “a good little bill” and “the start of a solution” for coastal communities affected by the pest.

Why it matters: growers and state staff told the panel that burrowing shrimp change substrate consistency so oysters and clams cannot adhere and survive, costing acreage, jobs and revenue in rural coastal counties. WSDA staff said the agency has administered an IPM grant program under a settlement agreement since 2019 and has already awarded nearly $4,000,000 to roughly 20 research projects testing cultivation changes, mechanical approaches, biochemicals and potential control compounds.

Laura Butler, legislative liaison and aquaculture coordinator at the Washington State Department of Agriculture, described the bill as a transition of the existing IPM working group — created through a growers’ settlement agreement — into a formal program at WSDA for a 10‑year term. “Nearly $4,000,000 have been awarded to grants, and we've been able to fund nearly 20 research projects,” Butler told the committee.

Representative Joel McIntyre, R‑19th Legislative District, said the bill is intended to assemble scientists, growers and regulators to recommend balanced, evidence‑based tools. “The ingenuity of the farmers should not be understated. They've tried everything,” McIntyre said, calling the proposed board a way to bring “the brightest minds” together.

Growers who testified described economic and ecosystem harms. Marilyn Sheldon, treasurer of the Willapa‑Grays Harbor Oyster Growers Association and co‑owner of Northern Oyster Company, said her company farms about 1,500 acres of bottom culture and has lost roughly 500 acres since controls were restricted. “Shellfish farmers have not had a viable tool since 2014,” she said, adding that the industry in Willapa Bay and Grays Harbor produces a large share of U.S. farmed oysters and sustains rural jobs.

Miranda Reese, president of the Pacific Coast Shellfish Growers Association and a fourth‑generation shellfish farmer, urged the committee to back the research program as a way to develop alternatives after the primary chemical control was phased out. “This bill is a significant step to providing shellfish farmers with the research and the tools we need,” Reese said.

Kathleen Nisbett Moncey, CEO of Goose Point Oyster and president of the Willapa‑Grays Harbor Oyster Growers Association, said the IPM working group has moved research to a “50/50 way point” toward multiple tools ready for field testing and warned that halting that momentum would be “devastating.”

Committee members asked about scale and timing; witnesses said a single magic solution is unlikely and that a suite of tools will be needed. Butler said WSDA’s competitive grants focus on research and permitting assistance and that the governing board would include agency representatives, growers and other industry stakeholders, with appointments coordinated with legislators in ocean‑bordering districts.

Public record and next steps: the committee closed public testimony on HB 1309 after receiving pro/con sign‑ins. No committee action or final vote was recorded at the hearing; the measure remains in the committee for next steps.

Votes at the hearing: none (public hearing only).