2011 Marine Debris clean-up summary

This is an excerpt from a report sent from Island Trails Network to the Marine Conservation Alliance Foundation on 2011 marine debris clean-up and education programs.


Since 2008 ITN has partnered with the Marine Conservation Alliance Foundation to conduct 14 marine debris community clean-ups around the Kodiak Archipelago removing 21 tons of marine debris from the marine environment while educating dozens of volunteers about the impacts of the marine debris phenomenon.  The funding was through National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) grant NA 08NOS460356.  This narrative is intended to provide a brief overview of clean-ups that occurred in 2011 from early stages of debris collection to the sorting, reporting, repurposing and recycling that occurred late in the year.

Sweeping Landscapes of Halibut Bay, Kodiak NWR.  Wendi
Castellon Photo.

We conducted three clean-upsthis year including two volunteer-driven efforts at Halibut Bay and Long Island and the Set Net Pilot Project on the west side of Kodiak island.  All three of these areas provide important wildlife habitat in the form of a sanctuary for marine mammals, anadromous fishes and migrating birds, including several endangered species. The accumulated marine debris and plastic pollution threatens wildlife primarily through ingestion and entanglement. Tiny plastic particles can also accumulate toxic chemicals reducing the quality of Alaska seafood products harvested from the largest commercial fishing fleet that form the backbone of Kodiak's economy.

Long Island:  On May 7, 2011 Boy Scout troop 626 comprised of 6 scouts, three adults and one ITN crew leader conducted a one-day marine debris cleanup on Long Island, about 5 miles from Kodiak city.  The uninhabited 3-mile-long island serves as a barrier to Kodiak harbor, knocking down easterly swells and capturing much of the debris that would otherwise land at Kodiak.   This was the fourth consecutive year these beaches have been surveyed and cleaned by the scout troop, serving as a valuable monitoring site for marine debris accumulation over time.  All of the 850 lbs of marine debris removed from Cook Lagoon and Deer Point beaches had been deposited there in the last twelve months, indicating a moderate rate of accumulation compared to previous years  (by comparison 1555 lbs were removed the previous year). Removal of the marine debris occurred the same weekend as the clean-up using the same donated skiffs that transported the crews.  MCA Foundation provided fuel reimbursement to these vessels. This is a cost-effective, productive clean-up that the local scouts have come to look forward to each year, as well as a useful monitoring site.  We hope to continue work here in 2012 and extend our long-running data on this marine debris site.

YCCs sort marine debris at Halibut Bay.  Wendi Castellon photo.

Halibut Bay:  A two-week clean-up of Halibut Bay on the west side of Kodiak was crewed by students from the Columbia Preparatory & Grammar School (CGPS) and local students serving the Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge (KNWR) in an internship through the Youth Conservation Corps.  The trip was highlighted by bear sightings, sweeping views of endless green landscapes, and thrilling floatplane rides to and from the site.  During week one, the crew consisted of two crew leaders, one school chaperone and four CGPS students.  This group enjoyed good weather and high productivity.  During week two, the crew consisted of the same crew leaders who provided a continuous presence at the camp, four students from Kodiak High School and KNWR Education Specialist, Shelly Lawson.  This group endured a 48 hour delay in getting to the site due to reduced visibility for flying, but were still productive during their abbreviated clean-up.  For the entirety of the two week clean-up, crews lived in small tents and cooked meals on a grassy bluff inside a secure bear fence perimeter.  Fresh water was accessed by a small inflatable boat, and the boat doubled as a ferry for shuttling marine debris down the lagoon side of the spit.


Because it is located at the extreme opposite end of Kodiak island from Kodiak city with neighboring villages on either side of it accessed from the other direction, Halibut Bay is rarely accessed by commercial craft.  Thus the marine debris is still on the beach awaiting an opportunistic removal, leaving us only to estimate the total weight and of the haul at about 3,000 lbs.  Since ATV use on refuge lands is prohibited we had to hand-carry debris bags down the beach rather than simply to the beach.  This lack of mechanical advantage affects productivity, but the high habitat value of the refuge lands makes the additional work worthwhile.


Though this project was wholly funded by Island Trails Network with in-kind donations of logistical air support from the Kodiak NWR, the MCA Foundation has offered to assist with marine debris removal this spring.

A set netter's haul at Six-mile beach.  Jason Wiley photo.  

Setnet Pilot Project:  In 2009, ITN launched the innovative Set Net Pilot program in response to significant accumulations of marine debris near commercial salmon fishing set-net sites along the western and southern shores of Kodiak Island. These clean-ups were made possible through partnerships with individual salmon fisherman in the set net (a fixed salmon gillnet) fishery of Kodiak.  Six participating fish sites conducted clean-ups during fishing closures and delivered marine debris to a participating tender vessel in conjunction with their regular salmon offloads.  Fisherman received compensation of $0.50 per pound of marine debris collected and transported. In its first year, a total of 3,700 lbs of marine debris was collected and removed.


After a hiatus in 2010 the program was reintroduced and expanded in 2011 with greater outreach among the community, more processors and fishers involved and a better-organized reporting program. Participants were broadly scattered throughout the portion of western Kodiak fished by set netters.  This project operates on good will and requires the support of the dock tender crews, dock foreman, expediters and managerial staff at Pacific Seafoods, Ocean Beauty and Icicle Seafoods.  We are also grateful for the hardworking clean-up crews at 7 Mile, Livin’ Large, Eider Narrows, Horseshoe Bay, Rhodes’ Fishing Frenzy, Broken Point, Daylight Harbor, Trap 6, Bern Pile, Surf City and Fireweed Heights.  These 13 participants delivered 5,259 lb of marine debris to Kodiak at a comparatively small cost.


With 62% of the accumulated marine debris consisting of derelict fishing gear, in Kodiak we have the unique opportunity to go directly to the source and work with the commercial fishing industry, recreational and subsistence users to simultaneously clean up existing deposits of marine debris and through education reduce the likelihood of future waste deposited at sea. We hope to continue this program in future years.

Set net pilot project marine debris composition by weight, 2011.

Sorting, Recycling & Repurposing

Bonnie Dillard art and photo.

In past years ITN’s total haul has been containerized in the fall and shipped to recycling facilities in Seattle.  This year, the entire haul has been sorted into like materials and kept in the NMFS/NOAA storage lot on Gibson Cove to serve as an artistic medium for the forthcoming Kodiak Marine Debris Art Project.  What marine debris is not used by this project will be shipped for recycling as in past years.


The Kodiak Island Marine Debris Art Project provides a creative opportunity for students and the community to generate awareness about marine debris and plastic pollution through art. This project is a partnership with the Kodiak Arts Council and Kodiak High School and is modeled after the successful Washed Ashore Project of the Artula Institute  in Bandon, Oregon. Five Kodiak artists will participate in a resident marine debris sculpture workshop, work together to develop a Kodiak-specific program, and work with students using marine debris as a material in creating a variety of art.


Upon completion of the pieces, grants will be sought for interpretive signs to accompany the exhibits, presentations will be made to the community and high-visibility venues will be sought to host the exhibit.  These public art displays serve as creative reminder of how much plastic pollution is in our oceans.


Cleanup Results


Once again we enjoyed four productive clean-ups that yielded significant tonnage of marine debris while educating dozens of volunteers about the impacts of the marine debris phenomenon.  Our total haul for 2011 clean-ups funded by the MCA Foundation is 6109 lbs. This efficiency rides on the success of a small but cost-effective set net pilot program that promises steady growth and continued cooperation from the fishing industry in future years.  Including the ITN-funded Halibut Bay project in the year's total haul brings it to about 9100 lbs.  We hope to continue making efficiency gains in the future, but to grow our marine debris program to return to levels of 15,000 to 20,000 lbs hauls obtained in previous years.

ITN Clean-up locations and weights, 2011

Like the year before it, 2011 will see some overwintering of collected marine debris on the beach (Halibut Bay).  This has become commonplace both because ITN field crews work late into the fall, and because we can get the best shipping rates for debris removal if we wait until the chartered vessel is nearby with good weather--conditions that can take months or even a year to occur.   As of the close of 2011, we have approximately 3000 lbs of marine debris at Halibut Bay ready to be picked up or supplemented by a 2012 clean-up in the same area.


Marine Debris sorting, shipping and recycling:  Each of this year's deliveries were stored on the back lot of the NOAA/NMFS Office of Enforcement at Gibson Cove, as in previous years.  Here, all the sorting, sampling, and containerizing occurs each fall.


With the excitement generated by the Kodiak Marine Debris Art Project, we were able to attract 23 volunteers for sorting and re-bagging by like materials (plastic, foam, metals, glass, line, buoys).


When it is time to ship the debris we will once again be able to secure reduced shipping rates through a partnership with Threshold Recycling of Kodiak, who has an agreement with Horizon Lines.  We enjoy a reduced shipping rate in exchange for allowing Threshold to take their pick of reusable and saleable items for local recycling.  

Island Trails Network would like to thank the MCA Foundation, Boy Scout Troop 626, Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge, Icicle Seafoods, Pacific Seafoods, Ocean Beauty, Alaska Pacific Seafoods, the City of Kodiak,  ALPAR,Threshold Recycling and NOAA Fisheries Enforcement office in Kodiak.