This web site has been developed to share with you an ongoing assessment of chemical contamination in Kachemak Bay, Alaska, and the potential impacts of this pollution to marine fauna living in the Bay. The project is being led by scientists from NOAA’s National Status and Trends Program (NS&T); however, a number of collaborating Federal, State and local scientists are also engaged in this work.
Kachemak Bay is a 64-km long arm of Cook Inlet, located on the southwest side of the Kenai Peninsula. The communities of Homer (shown in picture), Halibut Cove, Seldovia and Kachemak are on the bay. The name derives from a Yupik term meaning "large cliff by the water". We hope you enjoy learning about this important work, and invite you to come back each day to read the “daily log” which will summarize the day’s events through the duration of this mission. In addition, we will post results and other relevant materials here as the analysis and interpretation of this work come into focus.
Before we move on to the scientific mission and its findings, we’d like to thank all who are involved in making this work possible, starting the North Pacific Research Board (NPRB) who provided funding for this work. In addition, we would like to thank NOAA’s National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) who also provided funding and logistical support to make this mission possible! We have a great many partners in this endeavor, and the following scientists, managers and community members and are instrumental to this joint work:
Dr. Dave Christie
University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF), Global Underseas Research Unit
Daniel Doolittle and
Steve Baird
Kachemak Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve (NERR)
Dr. Susan Saupe and Tim Robertson
Cook Inlet Regional Citizens Advisory Council (CIRCAC)
Pat Norman
Village Chief - Village of Port Graham
Kris Holderied and Glenn Seaman
NOAA-NCCOS Kasitsna Bay Laboratory
Our primary goal is to assess habitat conditions that influence biodiversity and distribution of soft bottom benthic invertebrate communities in Kachemak Bay. Scientists will characterize benthic community distribution and condition, sediment contaminant concentrations, and toxicity. The Bay will be sub-divided into different regions (see map below) from which samples will be collected. Our team hopes that results of this study will contribute to a broader understanding of the marine ecosystems off Alaska, and will support effective management and sustainable use of marine resources.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Center for Coastal Monitoring and Assessment (CCMA) has maintained the National Status and Trends (NS&T) Program since 1984. This nationwide program of environmental monitoring, assessment and related research is designed to describe the current status of, and detect changes in, the environmental quality of our Nation’s estuarine and coastal waters. NS&T’s Bioeffects Studies are conducted to provide comprehensive assessments of environmental toxicity in selected regional water bodies, ranging from small bays to large sounds.
Project Manager: S. Ian Hartwell, Ph.D.
1305 East West Highway
SSMC-IV, N/SCI-1
Silver Spring, MD 20910
301-713-3028 x171
