Completed Projects | Alaska Coastal Observations and Research

Collection of Pacific cod eggs

Alisa Abookire — Fri, 10 Jun 2022 12:26:21 +0000

Increasing CO 2 levels in the atmosphere and rising ocean temperatures, caused primarily by human activities are leading to an increase in the dissolved CO 2 concentrations in the oceans and a subsequent decrease in the pH and increase in the temperature of seawater. This decrease in pH, known as ocean acidification is likely to have a substantial effect on marine ecosystems within the next century. ACOR was contracted to collect, fertilize, and ship Pacific cod eggs to the NOAA-NMFS laboratory in Newport, OR where they will investigate the effects of ocean acidification on Pacific cod eggs and larvae.

Westward Region Juvenile Pink Salmon Survey

Alisa Abookire — Thu, 09 Jun 2022 07:18:29 +0000

In the Gulf of Alaska, Pink Salmon demonstrated an adult return failure in 2016, and failed to meet minimum escapement objectives in the Kodiak, Chignik, and South Peninsula areas. This fishery collapse coincided with a marine heatwave (2014-2016). Pink salmon are a short lived (2-year) species whose year-class strength is determined early, and whose marine survival is intimately associated with size and condition. Thus, nearshore observations can be predictive of following year returns.

Relative abundance on a district scale represented by the juvenile cod survey in 2018 to 2020 have showed incredible promise with indexing the entire westward region abundance in the following year adult pink salmon returns. For this reason, continuing this dataset of juvenile fish sampling is of great importance as the juvenile pink salmon data may be used in future regional pink salmon forecasts. The GOA juvenile fish survey during 2022 will be funded for this research, along with additional sites sampled in May of 2022 and 2023 via float plane.

Project is funded by the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission.

Award period: August 15, 2021 – June 30, 2023.

Water Quality – Port of Kodiak

Alisa Abookire — Tue, 07 Jun 2022 07:58:38 +0000

The project was designed to test water quality in 16 – 20 Alaskan coastal communities in low and high cruise ship years. ACOR collects sea water samples for the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation – subcontracted through Aquatic Restoration and Research Institute (ARRI) – on several occasions in June/July. Levels of bacteria such as fecal coliforms and Enterococci are measured by the state DEC Anchorage laboratory and compared with other ports and shipping lanes in Alaska.

This project began contracting ACOR in 2020 and continued in 2021 and 2022.