Tugidak Island

Mission:  Develop and promote stewardship, restoration and maintenance projects for coastlines.

Project Dates:  October 2009-August 2014

Summary:  Perhaps the largest single deposit of marine debris in the western Gulf of Alaska, Tugidak provides many challenges to our clean-up crews, beginning with the sheer length of the large catcher beach along the eastern shore (11 miles) and wind-battered interior. Two volunteer crews in 2009 and 2010 removed nearly 10,000 lbs of marine debris from Tugidak's shores and interior low-lying wetlands. A two year effort funded by NOAA's community-based marine debris removal program collected over 80,000 lbs from 2013-2014, including marine debris from the 2011 Tohoku tsunami and the grounding of the Kulluk drilling rig in 2012. 

Funding Partners:  NOAA, Alaska Marine Stewardship Foundation, Royal Dutch Shell

In-kind partners: Alaska Pacific Seafoods, Alaska Department of Fish & Game