The Observer, May 2004
Auke Bay lab: The council's research partner
Dr. Adam Moles of the Auke Bay laboratory shows a sampling device for detecting oil pollution to Lisa Ka'aihue, a project manager for the citizens' council.
The council has worked with researchers from Auke Bay Laboratory in Juneau for several years. Auke Bay is one of four divisions of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Alaska Fisheries Science Center. It has been active in fisheries research in Alaska since 1960. The facility is situated between Auke Bay and Auke Lake, a location that provides access to both freshwater and marine organisms for research.
Auke Bay Lab researchers have helped the council evaluate oil pollution from the Valdez Marine Terminal and the associated tanker trade. Currently, the researchers are studying copepods for the council. Copepods — tiny shrimp-like animals — are the biggest source of protein in the oceans, including the waters of Prince William Sound. The purpose of this study is to check for oil pollution in the copepods and relate the results to the associated food chain. In April, the researchers harvested copepods in Port Valdez and off Lone Island in Prince William Sound.
Research programs have included investigating the effects of the Exxon Valdez oil spill on salmon, herring, mussels, and intertidal habitats. The lab has monitored the persistence of oil in the environment from the oil spill and confirmed that over 121,000 gallons of subsurface oil remains in the spill area. This may be a factor in the lack of recovery of some species of seabirds in the Sound.
In recent years, Auke Bay Laboratory, through its oil pollution research, has shown that very small amounts of oil in the environment can be much more harmful to certain species, especially larvae, than previously accepted by the scientific community. This was a very significant finding, causing scientists to re-think previously held notions about the effects of oil pollution.
Habitat studies also include fish nutrition, nearshore habitat mapping, Steller sea lion prey studies, Alaska coral, bottom fish and effects of fishing. Research on marine salmon interactions research has included such subjects as juvenile marine ecology, aquaculture stock enhancement, identification of stocks using genetics and radiotelemetry, and developing models of juvenile growth and migration.
Auke Bay lab, with an annual budget of nearly $10 million, has 70 permanent employees and 15-25 contractors. It contains a large aquarium with numerous species, and several tanks with separate study species such as salmon fry and shellfish. Recent published reports include “The Exxon Valdez Oil Spill: How Much Oil Remains?” and “Long-Term Ecosystem Response to the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill.”
One of the lab's residents is this wolf-eel, perhaps the most voracious fish in Alaska waters.
For more information, visit www.afsc.noaa.gov/abl