Results will Aid Researchers to Monitor Changes over Time

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) today announced the release of a comprehensive baseline study of fish populations in the western Beaufort Sea. The results of the study will provide future researchers and decision makers with an important baseline – a way to help measure changes over time caused by factors such as industry activity and climate change. 

“Our comprehensive offshore energy strategy calls for increased environmental studies off the coast of Alaska,” said BOEMRE Director Michael R. Bromwich. “The results of this study will contribute greatly to our knowledge of the fish populations in the Beaufort Sea. When combined with the other scientific work we are conducting in the region, this study will enable us to make better decisions regarding responsible offshore energy development in Alaska.” 

The new study, “Beaufort Sea Marine Fish Monitoring 2008: Pilot Survey and Test of Hypotheses (BOEMRE OCS Report 2010-048),” was conducted in an area located over the western Beaufort Sea. Researchers measured depth, water temperature, and salinity across the area and collected samples of the various fish and invertebrate populations in that area.   

The survey was carried out through an interagency agreement with National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and is the first such survey in what is anticipated to be a series of interagency studies to better understand the diversity and distribution of fish populations in the Beaufort Sea. In the summer of 2011, the survey will be replicated in the central Beaufort Sea through an agreement with the University of Alaska Fairbanks’ School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences. 

The study is available online at: http://www.alaska.boemre.gov/reports/2010rpts/2010_048.pdf.