Uploaded August 2026 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
If you didn’t know, we are in the middle of an El Niño. Scientists say it has the potential to be one of the strongest in recent years.
This is the weather pattern in the Pacific Ocean that periodically pushes warm water toward the West Coast.
El Niños cause all kinds of problems, including worsening Washington droughts.
And they can be a real pain for the region’s fishing industry.
Guests
• Bob Alverson, general manager of the Fishing Vessel Owners' Association
• Anthony Rogers, a fisheries economist at Ocean Conservancy
Related links:
• (seattletimes.com/seattle-news/climate-lab/what-a-very-strong-el-nino-could-mean-for-wa/) The 2026 El Niño Is on Track to Be the Strongest on Record | WIRED (wired.com/story/2026-el-nino-the-strongest-in-150-years/) (seattletimes.com/seattle-news/climate-lab/what-a-very-strong-el-nino-could-mean-for-wa/)
• Record-breaking El Niño could gut California’s crab and salmon fleets | Los Angeles Times (latimes.com/science/story/2026-07-29/record-breaking-el-nino-could-gut-californias-crab-salmon-fleets)
• What a ‘very strong’ El Niño could mean for WA | The Seattle Times (seattletimes.com/seattle-news/climate-lab/what-a-very-strong-el-nino-could-mean-for-wa/)
Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to donate.kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes (donate.kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes)
Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.
See omnystudio.com/listener (omnystudio.com/listener) for privacy information.
If you didn’t know, we are in the middle of an El Niño. Scientists say it has the potential to be one of the strongest in recent years.
This is the weather pattern in the Pacific Ocean that periodically pushes warm water toward the West Coast.
El Niños cause all kinds of problems, including worsening Washington droughts.
And they can be a real pain for the region’s fishing industry.
Guests
• Bob Alverson, general manager of the Fishing Vessel Owners' Association
• Anthony Rogers, a fisheries economist at Ocean Conservancy
Related links:
• (seattletimes.com/seattle-news/climate-lab/what-a-very-strong-el-nino-could-mean-for-wa/) The 2026 El Niño Is on Track to Be the Strongest on Record | WIRED (wired.com/story/2026-el-nino-the-strongest-in-150-years/) (seattletimes.com/seattle-news/climate-lab/what-a-very-strong-el-nino-could-mean-for-wa/)
• Record-breaking El Niño could gut California’s crab and salmon fleets | Los Angeles Times (latimes.com/science/story/2026-07-29/record-breaking-el-nino-could-gut-californias-crab-salmon-fleets)
• What a ‘very strong’ El Niño could mean for WA | The Seattle Times (seattletimes.com/seattle-news/climate-lab/what-a-very-strong-el-nino-could-mean-for-wa/)
Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to donate.kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes (donate.kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes)
Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.
See omnystudio.com/listener (omnystudio.com/listener) for privacy information.
