OCTOBER 23, 2015--On October 21, 2015, Nancy Wallace, Director of the NOAA Marine Debris Program (MDP), participated on a panel addressing marine debris in Alaska hosted by the Senate Ocean Caucus. The co-chairs Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (RI) and Lisa Murkowski (AK) made opening remarks.

Senator Whitehouse noted in his remarks the importance of the ocean and the threat that marine debris poses to ocean health. Senator Murkowski emphasized that there are significant challenges associated with marine debris in Alaska, she values the work the NOAA MDP is doing in Alaska and on a national scale.

Following the opening remarks, Nancy Wallace provided an overview of the NOAA MDP and highlighted regional coordination, research, prevention, removal, and emergency response activities the program supports in Alaska. Following this presentation, Chris Pallister, the co-founder of Gulf of Alaska Keeper; Tory O’Connell, Sitka Sound Science Center Research Director; Fred Ivanoff, Marine Debris Coordinator for St. Lawrence Island; and Scott Anderson from the Native Village of Port Heiden spoke about removal efforts, challenges they face, and the size and scope of the issue in the state.

The NOAA MDP currently funds, and has funded, removal and prevention activities with Gulf of Alaska Keeper and Sitka Sound Science Center, including work in St. Lawrence Island and the native village of Port Heiden.
More information on these projects is available on the Marine Debris website.

For further information, please contact Rachel.Keylon@noaa.gov.

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