Norton Sound Clean Waters Program

Brevig Mission and Wales (Northwest) 2024-2026

Norton Sound Economic Development Corporation is working with the communities of Brevig Mission and Wales to remove marine debris from over 25 miles of shoreline. This project addresses historical areas with large amounts of marine debris and hires residents as crew members, conducting pre-season assessments to target in-season removal. Removing debris helps safeguard subsistence fish and game stocks and supports small-communities economies with few employment opportunities.

Marine Debris Clean Up and Prevention in Kotlik, AK: Ensuring a Healthy Sea for a Healthy Community

Kotlik (West) 2024-2026

Zender Environmental Health and Research Group is working collaboratively with the community of Kotlik and the Kotlik Tribal Environmental Health Coordinator in support of a community-led marine debris removal effort. The project is cleaning up marine debris in three high-traffic sites in the community, improving waste management infrastructure, and raising community awareness about the need for proper waste management. Partners are also working with local high school students to create a short documentary that will bring regional and national awareness about waste management and marine debris challenges and efforts in rural Alaska.

Chevak Typhoon Merbok Marine Debris Removal Project

Chevak (West) 2024-2026

The City of Chevak is removing marine debris in Chevak that was washed ashore by Typhoon Merbok in September 2022. The storm caused massive damage to subsistence gear and fish camps, exacerbated riverbank erosion, and scattered boats, motors, fishing gear, and driftwood across the tundra. This project will ensure the safety of Chevak residents and protect the local environment that they rely on by hiring local workers to collect and remove this marine debris.

Marine Debris Cleanup and Prevention in Nightmute, Alaska: Ensuring a Healthy Sea for a Healthy Community

Nightmute (West) 2025-2027

Led by Zender Environmental Health and Research Group in partnership with the Nightmute Traditional Council, this project will address marine debris by cleaning up trash around the community landfill and surrounding streams, improving waste management infrastructure, and engaging residents through education and outreach. Project activities include hiring community members for debris removal, installing trash and recycling receptacles, and implementing a “Fishing for trash” program that compensates  fishermen for removing debris during subsistence harvests.

Marine Debris Remediation Project of Goodnews Bay

Goodnews Bay (Southwest) 2024-2026

Native Village of Goodnews Bay is removing marine debris from the beaches and shorelines of Goodnews Bay with a focus on education and spreading awareness about marine debris and its impacts on the local environment that residents rely upon for subsistence. Twice a month during summer months, groups remove debris from both the eastern and western sides of the bay. Community members organize cleanups and conduct community education efforts to prevent future debris.

Lines of Defense: Fishermen Partnering to Safeguard Against Current and Future Marine Debris

Kodiak Island (Southwest) 2025-2027

Led by Mikado Fisheries, this project aims to remove hard-to-reach marine debris from remote locations along Kodiak’s coast, focusing on derelict fishing gear and batteries. The project will leverage the fishing season schedule and industry partnerships to streamline removal and ensure that collected debris has a destination outside of the local landfill. Outcomes include removing, reusing, and recycling debris through community-driven cleanups and educational initiatives, while also gathering data and documenting lessons to inform future marine debris removal.

Cordova's Commercial Fishermen-Led Marine Debris Cleanup

Prince William Sound (Southcentral) 2025-2027

Led by Drifters Fish, this project aims to clean up marine debris from remote shorelines in the southcentral Gulf of Alaska, particularly the exposed outer beach of Boswell Bay. The effort will involve commercial fishermen and local volunteers, with a focus on removing debris such as plastic foam, plastic bottles, and derelict fishing gear. The project will also partner with Prince William Sounds Science Center to engage local artists to document the cleanup through illustrative artwork and youth education initiatives.

Odiak Slough Marine Debris Removal

Cordova (Southcentral) 2024-2026

Ridgeline Aviation conducted a cleanup of derelict, abandoned docks located on sensitive tidal mudflats that host millions of migrating shorebirds every year. The foam floats on the docks were actively degrading into the environment, prompting Ridgeline Aviation to contract a marine salvage company to assist in the removal of the decomposing docks. All docks were successfully removed, along with other debris on the tidal flats.

Stewardship, Subsistence, and Science through Marine Debris Removal

Prince William Sound (Southcentral) 2024-2027

This project is a collaborative marine debris education and cleanup initiative grounded in the culture and ecology of Prince William Sound. Led by the Prince William Sound Science Center, in partnership with the Native Village of Eyak, Drifters Fish, and the Cordova School District, this project will address critical marine debris challenges through a combination of classroom learning, harbor cleanups, youth engagement and long-term stewardship. Cleanup efforts will focus on Egg Island and the Cordova Small Boat Harbor for cleanup.

Copper River Barrier Islands Cleanup Project

Cordova (Southcentral) 2024-2026

Drifters Fish removed marine debris from the Copper River Delta Barrier Islands through a community effort led by members of Cordova’s coastal fishing fleet. This region is a complex ecosystem that supports a diverse food chain including sockeye, Chinook, coho, and eulachon that provide economic and cultural significance to the commercial and subsistence users of Cordova and upper Copper River Delta communities. Drifters Fish also conducted an aerial survey of the island chain to identify sites for future cleanup and worked with local and regional partners to raise awareness about marine debris in the region.

Marine Debris Education, Prevention, and Removal in the Upper Lynn Canal

Haines (Southeast) 2025-2027

The Takshanuk Watershed Council will address marine debris in Upper Lynn Canal through education, prevention and removal. Key objectives include mapping and removing derelict crab and shrimp pots using side-scan sonar, a remotely operated vehicle, and grappling hooks. The project also aims to access remote beaches for cleanup and to keep plastics out of the local landfill by sorting them for upcycling into plastic lumber.

Marine Debris Removal and Habitat Protection in Kake’s Traditional Harvesting Areas

Kake (Southeast) 2025-2027

The City of Kake, in partnership with the Kake Tribal Corporation, the Organized Village of Kake, and local harvesters, will work to restore marine harvesting areas by removing marine debris from traditional subsistence zones. The goal is to protect habitats that provide essential access to resources like seaweed, cockles, and clams, which are important for the community’s food security and cultural identity. The project aims to elevate Indigenous stewardship and build local capacity for future marine debris removal.

Southeast Alaska Commercial Fisherman Marine Debris Clean Up and Fleet Outreach

Alexander Archipelago (Southeast) 2024-2026

Zachary and Jacquie Foss, owners of the F/V Axel, are removing marine debris from southern Baranof Island, southwest Kuiu Island, Coronation Island, the west coast of Chichagof Island, and other nearby islands. This project helps build awareness among commercial fishers in southeast Alaska and engages them in reporting marine debris to an online tool to inform future cleanup efforts.

ACMD Founding Collaborators

Aleut Community of St. Paul Island

St. Paul Island (West) 2023-2026

For nearly two decades, the Aleut Community of St. Paul Island (ACSPI) has monitored and removed marine debris from the shores of St. Paul Island. The island’s location in the Bering Sea places it in the path of currents that carrynets, line, and other plastics to beaches where they pose an entanglement and ingestion risk to fur seals and other wildlife. 

As an ACMD partner, ACSPI is expanding its work to remove debris from underwater areas, where old crab pots continue to trap and kill animals that are important to both commercial and subsistence fisheries. The project will use side-scan sonar to locate pots for removal, with the goal of building the resources to conduct more searches and cleanups in years to come.

Ocean Plastics Recovery

Kodiak (Southwest) 2023-2026

Ocean Plastics Recovery (OPR) has been working to monitor, collect, and recycle marine debris in the Gulf of Alaska. They have established a recycling center at their headquarters in Kodiak specifically for marine debris, and are actively building capacity to recycle line, nets, buoys, bottles, and other plastic debris in Alaska without the need to backhaul. OPR’s annual clean-ups and surveys of Kayak Island contribute to a greater understanding of debris accumulation in one of Alaska’s most significant catchment sites.

Native Village of Port Heiden

Port Heiden (Southwest) 2023-2026

The Native Village of Port Heiden (NVPH) has conducted both small and large-scale marine debris cleanups spanning many years. Without consistent or affordable options for disposing of collected debris, thousands of pounds have accumulated and been stored in the community. In partnership with the ACMD, NVPH has organized the disposal of years’ worth of litter through backhaul opportunities, which allows for continued cleanups in and around Port Heiden.

Douglas Indian Association

Juneau/Douglas (Southeast) 2023-2026

In a region known for its crab fisheries, the Douglas Indian Association (DIA) is tackling the issue of crab pots that become lost or abandoned on the seafloor. These pots continue to catch animals, which often perish in the traps. DIA is using side-scan sonar to locate abandoned traps in the Gastineau Channel and other areas around Juneau and Douglas Island for removal.

Ocean Conservancy

State-wide

Ocean Conservancy is a key collaborative partner of the Alaska Center for Marine Debris. The organization supports several community-led projects by helping with cleanup logistics and coordination, providing data training and management, offering education and outreach resources, and funding disposal and recycling of marine debris through their EPA funded backhaul project.