Editor’s note: We at Three Sheets Northwest love to get out on our boat and write about it. So when local marinas got together to create the Passport to Puget Sound program this year,  we were intrigued. The program aims to give boaters another reason to head out for the weekend  and visit local marinas, allowing them [...]

In waters around Washington, there are currently close to 200 derelict and abandoned boats that authorities know about, but the real numbers could be considerably higher. And officials expect to see more boats headed for a watery grave as the effects of the recession drag on. First in a four-part series.

Washington is among only a handful of states with programs in place to address the rundown and abandoned vessels littering the nation’s waterways. Since 2003, the state has cleared about 220 decrepit boats from Washington’s oceans and rivers. Second in a four-part series.

Decaying and sunken boats can be silent killers, leaching chemicals and unleashing other lethal dangers on marine life. As little as a quart of spilled oil, diesel or gasoline can contaminate acres of water and kill marine life. Part three in a four-part series.

There are currently close to 20 boats 75 feet and larger decaying in Washington waters and not enough money to deal with them. State authorities are grappling with how to address these large and potentially hazardous ships rotting in our waterways. Final in a four-part series.