SEQUIM — Dungeness Bay and the Strait of Juan de Fuca from the Dungeness Spit east to the Discovery Bay/Jefferson County line is open again to shellfish harvesting.
Sequim Bay remains closed to the harvesting of butter and varnish clams due to biological toxins within the water, Clallam County Health and Human Services said in a press release Friday.
Butter clams are different than other species of clams. Butter clams have the ability to retain toxins for a long time — up to a year or more.
Areas may be closed for the sport harvest of butter clams when all other species are safe and open, the release said.
Discovery Bay and beaches along the Pacific Ocean remain closed to all forms of shellfish harvesting.
The Strait form Low Point/Lyre River east to the Dungeness Spit is open to all forms of shellfish harvesting, the release said.
For more information about the closures, call the Shellfish Safety Hotline at 1-800-562-5632 or visit the Department of Health’s Shellfish Safety Website at www.doh.wa.gov/shellfishsafety.
