Collaborative Alaskan Sampling Effort to Support Effective Management and Sustainable Use of Marine Resources
National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science researchers recently completed the field component of a sediment characterization in Kachemak Bay, Alaska and in waters off the Native village of Port Graham to evaluate contamination levels and associated biological effects. The project funded by the North Pacific Research Board, combined partners from the private sector, NGOs, Native organizations, state and Federal agencies, and the University of Alaska. Scientists collected mussels, along with other co-occurring bivalves, to determine the value of NCCOS’s Mussel Watch Program as a sentinel for other species of importance to the Native Alaskan diet. A Mussel Watch Program education session, co-hosted by the NCCOS Kasitsna Bay Laboratory and the Kachemak Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve (NERR), was included in this activity. Data will be made available online starting in October 2007. Visit online: http://ccma.nos.noaa.gov/stressors/pollution/nsandt/kbay_bioeffects/.