Resurrection Bay is precious. Glaciers spilling out of both the Harding and Sargent Icefields push down to treeline or tideline, unnamed peaks recede along the horizon and in the Bay itself, sea mammals, pelagic birds, and salmon do their thing. Perched on an alluvial fan at the head of the Bay, Seward hosts hundreds of thousands of visitors drawn by the same natural beauty and wildness that keeps locals here throughout the year.
Since the establishment of Kenai Fjords National Park in 1980, Seward's economic base has shifted toward tourism. Tourism relies on an intact ecosystem and all its attributes. That's what we try to protect.
Seen any insults or crimes against our environment that need to be addressed? Call our hotline 224-4621 or 224-7607. Anonymity guaranteed!
Far North Conservation Film Festival, April 20
Far North Conservation Film Festival - Seward Showing
Hosted by Kenai Fjords NP & Res. Bay Conservation Alliance
April 20, 6:00 PM – 10:00 PM @ the NPS Legends Building
It's FREE and will have DOOR PRIZES!
- Bag It (79 min.) a wholesale investigation into plastics.
- Corner Plot (10 min.) explores one man's steadfast authenticity in a changing world.
- Fresh (72) min.) "New thinking about what we're eating".
- Sustainable Northern Shelter (8 min.) an affordable, energy efficient and healthy home prototype in the village of Anaktuvuk Pass.
- The Windmill Farmer (4 min.) a nurturing farmer is in danger of losing his crop of windmills.
- Trees (2 min.) animated short, discuss how to stop man made global warming.
- Truck Farm (48 min.) a whimsical film about urban agriculture.
Plastic Debris As a Source of Contaminants in the Alaska Marine Environment. Free SeminarGuest Speaker: John M. Kennish PhD
When: Friday, April 20, 2012 12-1pm (Brown Bag Lunch)
Where: Alaska SeaLife Center
Free seminar, everyone welcome!
Marine debris accumulated from around the world has been the focus of recent studies because of the threat it poses to the marine environment. The quantity present is recognized to be harmful for marine organisms and wildlife species. Many of the wildlife ingest micro plastics (< 5 mm) mistakenly as food particles which they do not metabolize but are harmful for their health and survival. Plastic has the potential to leach toxic compounds collected in the marine environment or that are present from their manufacture. The uptake and release of these compounds by sorption mechanisms is being studied.
Additionally little work has been done to determine the level of toxic plastic additives in the tissue and organs of marine animals. The initial focus of our research in this area of study has been to determine the levels of phthalates in different species found in the coastal regions of Alaska, a location with one of the largest marine plastic debris accumulations. Tissues from clams. halibut, salmon and marine birds were analyzed and significant levels of two of the most common phthalates (DEHP and DEP) were seen in these samples. These compounds are known to be toxic endocrine disruptors in mammals and have already been banned in most of the European Nations and the United States. The implications of our studies will be discussed and a discussion of future research needs encouraged.
Assessing the Public Health Impacts of Coal Transportation and Export: From Whatcom County, Washington to Seward, AlaskaPlease join us on Wednesday, April 25, 9 am Alaska time for a discussion of the public health impacts of coal development and export with Frank James, M.D. and Denny Larson, executive director of Global Community Monitor. Find out why 160 physicians in Whatcom County, Washington are calling for a comprehensive Health Impact Assessment for the proposed Gateway Pacific coal export terminal and hear about a community air quality monitoring project to answer questions about fugitive coal dust in Seward, Alaska.
To join call: To receive the call instructions, please RSVP to diana@akaction.org or call (907) 222-7714.
As reported in an April 13 article in The Oregonian, the EPA has recently said that Northwest coal export projects could have 'significant' public health impacts. For further background information and resources, visit the webpage (Alaska Community Action on Toxics) for this call.
Citizen Science!
Free Weed Management SeminarsThe Kenai Peninsula Cooperative Weed Management Area meeting will be held in Seward this year at the Rae building from 10-4 on May 4th. Below is the schedule of events. Please stop in for one or all the presentations; the event is free to the public. Thanks for your support.
10:00 AM Welcome
10:15
Railroad-Matt K
10:45
Invasive survey cost update-Rebekka
11:00
Control projects
Tara-Homer
John-Refuge
Heather-Kenai
Matt/Jen-Seward
12:15 Lunch
12:45
Elodea discussion & ID-Darcy
(freshwater species)
1:45
Outreach-Janice, 4-H representative
2:00
Labels-understanding various chemicals
2:30 break
2:45
Other IPM practices for gardeners-Ami
3:15
Responsible landscaping-Carol Souza
3:45
Questions-Discussion
There are two ways to volunteer in Seward this summer as well. The National Park Service will host the Exit Glacier weed pull this year on June 21st, and on June 30th there will be a "Weed Smackdown" event at the Middle School. Thanks again for all your help and hope to see you there.
Kenai Fjords National Park and the Resurrection Bay Conservation Alliance receive Coastal America Spirit Award
Tim Johnson of the Resurrection Bay Conservation Alliance and Jim Pfeiffenberger of Kenai Fjords National Park accept a Coastal America Spirit Award at the 2012 Alaska Forum on the Environment, Feb. 9, 2012/NPS Photo
Kenai Fjords National Park and the Resurrection Bay Conservation Alliance (RBCA) were recently honored with a Coastal America Spirit Award for their cooperative work to remove marine debris from beaches around the park. Over the last six years, this partnership has cataloged and removed thousands of pounds of debris from local beaches, reducing hazards to marine life, and improving the visitor experience on these beaches. The project has also gathered valuable data on the composition of marine debris and its rate of accumulation. Much of the work, spearheaded by RBCA Marine Debris Coordinator Tim Johnson, has been accomplished with hundreds of hours of volunteer labor.
Over the years, the effort has grown to include not just nearby, easily-accessible beaches, but also more remote locations such as Thunder Bay and Taroka Arm on the park’s outer coast.
The award was presented at this year’s Alaska Forum on the Environment in Anchorage. An estimated crowd of 300 were on hand for the ceremony, where an eight minute video about the cleanup effort was also screened. The video can be viewed here:
Caring for the Coast: Beach Cleanup in Kenai Fjords from Ocean Alaska Science and Learning on Vimeo.
Coastal America is public-private partnership effort that brings together people and resources from federal agencies, state and local governments, non-governmental organizations, and the private sector to collaboratively address our nation’s coastal environmental challenges. Their Spirit Awards recognize exceptional projects that demonstrate the ‘spirit’ of teamwork for group efforts that are poised to address challenging coastal issues. Kenai Fjords National Park plans to continue working with RBCA in the coming years to address ongoing marine debris issues in and around the park. Please call Tim Johnson at 224.7094 if you are interested in volunteering for the upcoming cleanup series this summer.
1000 jetskis might be headed for Seward and beyond. Its up to the State Department of Natural Resources to deny a land use permit.John Lang of Lang Enterprises, Anchorage has proposed a 2000 mile Jetski race from Whittier to Illiamna in 2013. More info.
Fall newsletter is available!
Download here
RBCA v City of Seward lawsuit frequently asked questions. Click here to go to our activism page.
Status of bear-resistant garbage cans in the Seward communityIn 2009, the Seward Wildlife Community Conservation Program (WCCP) and Resurrection Bay Conservation Alliance (RBCA) provided low cost ($50) bear-resistant garbage cans (BRGC) to the community because of some generous grants (which are no longer available). Since then, there have been discussions on how best to deal with negative bear-human interactions including using BRGCs. As mentioned previously in SCN, BRGCs can currently only be obtained by purchasing them from Costco or Home Depot for $300 to $330.
Another option could be to lease them from Alaska Waste with the costs being folded into monthly City utility bills (see 2011 Seward WCCP recommendations). We estimate that residents who decide to lease a BRGC would have to pay between $5 and $8 per month for their BRGC. We would really like to get public comments on this idea. Please post your comments on SCN or contact RBCA at info@rbca-alaska.org
Make your own!
CEMP annual report now availableAll the data for all the sampled local rivers and creeks is presented in this report on the progress of RBCA's Citizen's Environmental Monitoring Program (CEMP) annual report for 2010. We monitor water quality parameters on streams throughout the watershed including Spring Creek, Scheffler Creek, Salmon Creek and others. Parameters like temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen, turbidity and conductivity all measure the health of our watershed. To find out all that we monitor and why, download the report.
Download here
Be Bear Aware!
Click here
