Miscellaneous Projects
The PCCRC has also provided funding for marine education, technical training, and equipment. Since 2000 the PCCRC has allocated nearly $500,000 in funds to support the publication of books, travel funds, and hosting special courses, symposia, and workshops. Below is a list of all supported miscellaneous projects. If you have a specific interest you can search through projects using our database search. If interested in how the funds are allocated by discipline, research theme or focal species have a look at our interacting funding graphic.
Instruction in Fisheries Management
Funds made available through the Pollock Conservation Cooperative Research Center enabled the instruction of students and fishery professionals in techniques for decision making. The course was offered as a special topic, stacked 493 and 693 options and cross-listed with Natural Resource Management. The course title was "Decision-Making in Resource Management: Focus on the North Pacific and Bering Sea Fisheries". Seven students completed the course; four were graduate students in the fisheries program at UAF, and three were fisheries professionals with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game interested in continuing education. The course included lectures and hands-on practice with decision-making software in a computer lab. Students researched selected fisheries problems related to the North Pacific and Bering Sea, outlined their individual problem in a hierarchical structure, assigned weights of importance to issues using expert judgment, developed a prioritized list of options to address issues, and conducted a sensitivity analysis on the outcome. Based on student projects and comments, the course fulfilled expectations and may be judged as a success. Interestingly, the lecture topics that received the greatest number of requests for additional time were, "Integrating socioeconomics, politics and science in decision making" and "Group decision-making techniques" --topics not normally covered in traditional fisheries course work.
NOSB Western Alaska Support
PI: Susan Sugai
Award: $13,795
Materials:
The National Ocean Sciences Bowl (NOSB) was established in 1998 by the Consortium for Oceanographic Research and Education with support from the National Marine Educators Association. NOSB is a quiz-bowl in which high school teams from around the United states compete with one another answering questions about oceanography. This project will support high school teams from Western Alaska competing in the NOSB.
Keeping Mooring 2 alive: Continuing long-term biophysical measurements over the southeastern Bering Sea shelf
The M2 mooring is serviced every three to six months depending on February sea ice conditions. The M2 biophysical mooring was deployed from the Miller Freeman (MF02-05) during 28 April- 11 May 2002. The mooring was recovered and redeployed during 6-17 October 2002 from the CCGS Sir Wilfrid Laurier. The biophysical mooring deployed in October will be recovered in either February or April 2003. Data processing of CTD, current meters, fluorescence and nitrate data for early 2002 are in progress. Data from summer 2002 are awaiting post-retrieval conductivity and fluorescence calibrations to complete processing. All prior data from the M2 location are displayed on the NOAA/PMEL website.
Seafood processing and marketing training in western Alaska
The Marine Advisory Program will respond to needs and continue to deliver training in seafood technology and marketing that is directly applicable to communities in Western Alaska (defined as east of Atka and north to Kotzebue.) The long term goal of the project is to increase the value of the seafood industry to residents of Western Alaska through capacity building and vertical integration of seafood processing and marketing.
With low salmon and herring prices and high freight, fuel and power costs, Western Alaska communities are challenged to increase the value of their fishery resources and diversify their economic base through involvement in processing and marketing activities. Numerous small, community-based seafood processing operations are being established in these coastal villages. Establishing and remaining successful as a small, community processing facility requires technical training in seafood handling, processing, packaging, refrigerating, shipping, marketing, personnel management, business planning and management. The Marine Advisory Program has a long history of offering technical training to seafood processing operations. This funding will support the high costs and limited availability of training and technical assistance in this part of the state.
Residents and communities in Western Alaska will see economic benefits from training in seafood processing, business and marketing as more coastal processing operations are successful.
Fishes, catches and science of Alaskan seas and nearby ocean waters
Funds were received for the finishing work on a new book, Fishes, Catches and Science of Alaska Seas. First, the P.I. scanned and digitized relevant drawings from published literature with permission of the copyright holders. A professional artist drew a series of illustrations in a unifying format from the published illustrations. Second, a copy editor familiar with the fisheries literature edited the text to help put the writing in plain and correct English.
A collaborative proposal: Symposium on re-authorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Act and enhancing the role of regional fishery management councils
The goal of managing fisheries to conserve marine ecosystems is widely shared, but there have been sharp disagreements about the best ways to achieve it. In September 2005, following nearly a decade of debate on how to shape national policy, a panel of respected scientists and managers was convened to make recommendations based on their extensive experience in the North Pacific Fishery Management Council process. Recognized internationally as a “gold standard” in ecologically sensitive, science-based management, the North Pacific Council was a natural place to look for lessons from success.
Keeping Mooring 2 Alive- Sinking Particles
The southeastern Bering Sea shelf is an economically and ecologically important system that is subject to substantial natural and human-induced change (National Research Council, 1996). Despite this, long term observations are limited and fragmentary in time and space, which severely restricts our ability to identify the effects on the ecosystem due to climatic variability. During recent years, marked changes in the physical and biological environment of the Bering Sea have occurred. The most comprehensive characterization of the changes in the physical environment has been based upon observations collected from biophysical moorings (Stabeno et aI., 1998~ 1999~ 2001). Since 1995 Stabeno and collaborators have been monitoring site M2, over the Bering Sea middle shelf near 56°N, with funds provided by NOAA's Southeast Bering Sea Carrying Capacity (SEBSCC, Phases I, II, and III) and Fisheries Oceanography Coordinated Investigations (FOCI), measuring temperature, salinity, chlorophyll, current speed, and meteorological conditions. A time-series sediment trap has been deployed near that mooring since 1997. The composition of sinking organic material collected by the trap, along with a parallel time-series of zooplankton stable isotopic composition, has reflected changes in the pelagic food web during that period.
UAF-UW Seminar Exchange
PI: Dennis Weisenberg
Award: $16,000
Materials:
The goal of this project is to provide support for University of Washington faculty to come to UAF-SFOS for seminars and to work with students, staff and faculty on fisheries related projects. Dr.Tim Essington from the UW College of the Environment, came to CFOS to present a talk about "The Promise and Limits of Multi-species Fisheries Management Sponsored by the PCCRC".
Increasing experimental learning opportunities for undergraduate students in Fisheries at the University of Alaska Fairbanks
The goal of this proposed project is to enhance and expand the active learning program in the Fisheries Division of the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences (SFOS). Within Alaska’s unique environment, this program will give undergraduate students opportunities to participate in fisheries research and management in occupational and research settings, expand student’s professional development through mentorship, encourage pursuit of graduate studies, and better prepare them for their future careers in fisheries. We propose: (1) to give undergraduate students occupational experience in fisheries management and research settings through cooperation with Alaska agencies, industry, and Alaska Native corporations; (2) to provide research and mentoring opportunities for undergraduate students within UAF SFOS Oceanography and Marine Biology programs; (3) create an undergraduate symposium that will highlight student research and hands-on learning experiences and provide opportunities for students to present their research results in professional settings (society meetings); and (4) facilitate involvement and recruitment of rural Alaskan students in the program through participation in an NSF-sponsored field course for Alaska high school students that applies towards undergraduate credit at UAF (Nunivak Island Science Camp). Recognizing that Alaska’s resources and its fishing and seafood industries are the most vibrant, healthy, and sustainable in the world, it is critical that we provide students with the training to serve the health of these fisheries and meet the challenges of future environmental and institutional changes. The funding we request provides support for education and training of undergraduate students in fisheries, contributing to life-long learning of students whose work will play a vital role in the long term health of Alaska’s precious fisheries resources.
Matt Myers Memorial Graduate Student Travel Fund
This paper is being put forth to PCCRC to honor Matthew (Matt) Myers, a Ph.D. candidate in University of Alaska Fairbanks’ (UAF) School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences (SFOS), who died recently in the process of being trained for scientific diving certification. The proposal is to develop a travel fund in Matt’s name, for graduate student travel. The Matt Myers Memorial Graduate Student Travel Fund would award two $1,000 travel awards annually to students, with a preference towards students in marine biology or fisheries. While it would be nice to create such an award with a legacy, this proposal is to develop the travel fund for an initial five year period.
Workshop on spatial structure and dynamics of walleye pollock in the Bering Sea
We propose to hold a 4-day workshop in summer 2009 to synthesize relevant information and modeling of the spatial structure and dynamics of the walleye pollock population in the Bering Sea. The synthesis is needed to address issues related to ecosystem effects of one of the world’s largest fisheries on a finer temporal and spatial scale than is currently available. The workshop will review information from scientific surveys and commercial fishing vessels about the spatial distribution of pollock and identify relevant factors that influence the distribution seasonally and annually. Advances in spatial modeling of the dynamics of fish populations will be presented to determine if they are relevant to improving the current pollock stock assessment model and management practices (e.g., refined spatial allocations of TAC). Finally, these reviews will be used to determine if a directed field study such as a mark-recapture study is needed to enhance current knowledge of movement patterns and changes in abundance.
Wakefield Symposium Support
Alaska Sea Grant requested funds to provide salary support for the production of the peer reviewed proceedings for the 28th Lowell Wakefield Fisheries Symposium, Responses of Arctic Marine Ecosystems to Climate Change, being held March 26-29, 2013.
The Wakefield Symposium series has become a top-class international venue for circumpolar, fisheries-related issues, typically attracting more than 100 participants from Alaska, the U.S., Canada, and other nations. Symposium are planned to provide timely information on issues important to fisheries managers, and to identify key issues or data gaps that may drive or prioritize
The Alaska Seafood Industry K-12 Curriculum
UAF faculty members Marilyn Sigman and Terry Johnson propose to partner with Elizabeth Trowbridge, Education Director for the proposed sub-awardee the Center for Alaskan Coastal Studies, to develop a K-12 curriculum about the Alaska seafood industry and the harvest of seafood as a renewable, sustainable natural resource for use by the Pollock Conservation Cooperative Research Center. A four year project is proposed with development of a curriculum framework in Year 1, development and piloting of middle school and high school units and a prototype resource kit for each unit in Year 2, and dissemination of the units as new units of Alaska Sea Grant's Alaska Seas and Rivers (AS&R) curriculum online and as kits in Years 3 and 4. The methods used will be those used to revise the AS&R curriculum during 2007-2009 and to successfully disseminate it for use in Alaskan schools.
Fishing for Pollock in a Sea of Change: A Historical Analysis of the Bering Sea Pollock Fishery
Alaska pollock support one of the largest fisheries in the world. It is the biggest fishery where catches are used for human consumption. Because of the American Fisheries Act and other factors, today the pollock fishery is in an unparalleled period of stability, where fishing operations have been given increased flexibility and have responded with increased responsibility. In this book, authors Strong and Criddle relate the history of the Bering Sea pollock fishery and its management from World War II to present. Anecdotes from fishermen and fishery managers, and numerous graphs and color photos, help tell the story of why the pollock fishery is a success and how close it came to being an economic disaster.
