John,

Growing up, it was always a treat when my folks would pack the station wagon and take us out to the Washington Coast. My older siblings – Sandy, Bob and Jerry – and I would jump out of the car and race to the beach. Well, after we got our old, heavy canvas six-person tent erected at the campground that is. We'd spend the weekend flying kites, building sand castles, making smores back at the campsite and, if we were brave enough, wading into the surf, all under the watchful eye of our parents.

There are no sea monsters in the waters off Long Beach (I'm pretty sure.). But if you've ever been to a beach in Washington state, you know why it takes guts to play in our ocean: The water is frigid. Which is why I always tell people, "If you can stand the water for the first five minutes, you'll be just fine... your toes will be numb after that!"

(Okay, there was a Sea Monster off the Washington coast, until I caught it! That is a 25+ pound salmon I hooked right off the coast.) 

But have you noticed, our cold ocean waters are a little bit warmer than before?

It's happening around the world, the oceans are heating up and wreaking havoc on local marine ecosystems and on local economies. In Australia and Florida, coral reefs are dying because the sea water is getting too warm and essentially, boiling them alive. Here in Washington, the Puget Sound, lakes and rivers, and along the western coasts, the water is warmer than it should be; last summer, some of Washington's coastal waters were 5-7 degrees above average for that time of year — that's a lot for the ocean.

Climate change is of course the culprit driving the increased water temperatures. Increased CO2 in the atmosphere is trapping heat and altering storm patterns that normally bring cold water to the surface and disrupting the delicate balance that has kept our waters cool.

The warmth has driven non-native species into Washington's coastal waters, exhausting food sources that native marine life — like salmon — rely on. Warmer waters are not only a problem for local ecosystems, but are also the ideal conditions for toxic algae blooms that can kill entire ecosystems.

Fish, birds, shellfish, plankton, and plant life are all affected, but so are people and communities that rely on the sea. Thousands of Washingtonians rely on fisheries, shellfish farms, tourism, and countless other industries for their livelihood, and warmer oceans put those families at risk. That is why we're leading the way in the global effort to rein in climate change today with actions like the Hydrogen Hub and the Climate Commitment Act.

It is our generational responsibility to protect our environment, and ensure that our children and grandchildren have cleaner air, a stable environment, and oceans that are teeming with life. We're taking action to make this a reality today, but I am running for re-election because we still have a lot of work to do. Climate change is real, it's already affecting our state, and it's not too late to fight for our future.

Denny