Month: September 2016

Council’s executive committee re-elected to another term in office

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Left to right: Treasurer Wayne Donaldson, who represents the City of Kodiak; Vice President Thane Miller, represents Prince William Sound Aquaculture Corporation; President Amanda Bauer, represents the City of Valdez; Member-at-Large Robert Archibald, representing the City of Homer; Member-at-Large Patience Andersen Faulkner, representing the Cordova District Fishermen United; and Member-at-Large Melissa Berns, who represents the Kodiak Village Mayors Association. Not pictured is Secretary Bob Shavelson, who represents the Oil Spill Region Environmental Coalition.

The council board held annual elections to choose its seven-member executive committee at its May meeting in Valdez.

Amanda Bauer of Valdez was elected to her fourth consecutive term as president. Thane Miller, who represents Prince William Sound Aquaculture Corporation on the board, was elected to his fourth consecutive term as vice-president. Bob Shavelson, who represents the Oil Spill Region Environmental Coalition, was re-elected as secretary. Wayne Donaldson, who represents the City of Kodiak, was elected as treasurer.

Long-time board member Patience Andersen Faulkner, who represents the Cordova District Fishermen United, Robert Archibald, who represents the City of Homer, and Melissa Berns, who represents the Kodiak Village Mayors Association were all re-elected to serve as at-large members of the executive committee.

These officers will serve until the next elections in May 2016.

Duffy resigns from board

Pat Duffy, who served on the council’s board of directors since September of 2007, resigned in May. Duffy represented the Alaska State Chamber of Commerce. He served several terms as vice president and as member-at-large. He also served on the council’s finance committee, helping to oversee development of the council’s annual budget and other financial matters.

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Homer teens use technology to monitor Kachemak Bay for aquatic invasions

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By Beth Trowbridge
Executive Director for the Center for Alaskan Coastal Studies

Students put together the drones prior to a test drive.

Four Homer high school students, a project leader, and lots of volunteers took part in the center’s “Creating Teen Leaders through Marine Technology and Research” program this summer, helping monitor for aquatic invasive species throughout Kachemak Bay.

The students built an underwater remotely operated vehicle, or ROV, from a kit, which they used to explore the Homer and Seldovia harbors for aquatic invasive species. “We all had various skills that we could contribute but it took all of our expertise to organize, create, and improvise the structure,” said Landon Bunting, one of the students, describing the teamwork that developed between the students during the project.

The students also used drones to help learn to navigate the underwater ROV. “Flying the drones and watching them be flown allowed for a better understanding of operating ROVs through a ‘fluid’ such as air or water,” added Bunting. “This experiment allowed each of us to learn from our mistakes and to learn the benefit of different types of remote operated vehicles.”

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