Almost a year has passed since a tragic earthquake and tsunami devastated Japan's coastline, casting 25 million tons of debris into the North Pacific. As the first of this flotsam begins to appear on western coastlines in Washington and Alaska, Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Mark Begich are opening local and national dialogues about the potential effects on Alaska's coastal ecosystems.
Murkowski is holding a roundtable discussion at the University of Alaska Anchorage campus featuring representatives from the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration Marine Debris Program, the State of Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation and the Marine Conservation Alliance Foundation. The event will be webcast on Murkowski's Senate website.
The Marine Conservation Alliance has launched a program to monitor the tsunami's flotsam as it appears along Alaska's shorelines.
Begich has put his support behind a proactive approach to major ocean debris by cosponsoring a bill from Sen. Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii -- the Trash Free Seas Act -- which addresses NOAA's Marine Debris Program.
Sen. Begich said in a release that he strives to bring timely marine issues to light, including response planning to major events, dealing with potentially hazardous debris, Marine Debris Program funding and public outreach.
Read more about the alliance's program here.
This article includes information first published by The Arctic Sounder, which is reprinted here with permission.