The council’s board of directors will meet on January 19 and 20, 2017 at the Embassy Suites in Anchorage.
The tentative schedule for the Thursday session is to run from 8:30 a.m. to 4:20 p.m. On Friday, the meeting is scheduled from 8:30 a.m. to 2:15 pm. The meeting is open to the public, except for executive sessions. Public comments are scheduled to be taken Thursday starting at 9:00 a.m.
Firefighters participated in a simulated vessel fire exercise during the 2015 Marine Firefighting Symposium at the Valdez harbor. Photo by Zac Schasteen.
The council will host the ninth Marine Firefighting Symposium for Land-Based Firefighters on May 12-14, 2017 in Homer, Alaska. This three-day conference is an industry recognized effort to provide the best available marine firefighting information and practices to shore-based firefighters, using both classroom and field experiences.
The council is pleased to have its nationally renowned training cadre of John Lewis, John Taylor, Don Ryan and Ron Raschio, led by Jeff Johnson, returning to the Symposium. Several of these instructors provided input and material for the land-based shipboard firefighting manual produced by the International Fire Service Training Association. Firefighters and industry participants consistently provide positive comments on the events. The council is able to offer this training at no cost for participants.
The council held our annual Science Night on Thursday, December 8. Presentations by scientists conducting research into areas of council interest are highlighted. This post has been updated with links to presentations. See below.
“Lingering Oil in Prince William Sound: What we know, past and present”
Presenter: Mandy Lindeberg, NOAA Auke Bay Laboratories
“Mom Knows Best: Family Specific Patterns Among Killer Whales in Prince William Sound”
Presenter: Dan Olsen, North Gulf Oceanic Society
“Regional Weather Forecast Modeling”
Presenter: Peter Olsson, Alaska Experimental Forecast Facility
“Are you a ShoreZone user? A brief introduction to the Alaska ShoreZone Program”
Presenter: Mandy Lindeberg, Auke Bay Laboratories
“Zooplankton: Big Talk about Tiny Critters”
Presenter: Caitlin McKinstry, Prince William Sound Science Center
High school students on an expedition co-funded by this program in 2015 visited Valdez and met with our staff members to learn about the council and improvements in safe oil transportation since 1989.
The council works to educate Exxon Valdez region youth about the environmentally safe operation of the Alyeska terminal and associated tankers. Working with area youth is vital to fight complacency that can arise if new generations of citizens are not continually reminded of the need for ongoing oil spill prevention.
To support this effort, the council is inviting proposals for facilitating learning experiences with Exxon Valdez oil spill region youth.
Update: The deadline for proposals has passed. There are two deadlines each year to submit proposals for funding. Please contact the council’s Outreach Coordinator Lisa Matlock at 907.273.6235 for the next deadline. You may also subscribe to our email list for new Requests for Proposals to receive notifications when new requests for proposals such as the Youth Involvement project are issued by the council.