Assessment of nearshore communities and habitats: Lower Cook Inlet Nearshore Ecosystem 2015-2018
Jones T, Saupe S, Iken K, Konar B, Venator S, Lindeberg M, Coletti H, Pister B, Reynolds J, Haven K. 2019. Assessment of nearshore communities and habitats: Lower Cook Inlet Nearshore Ecosystem 2015-2018. OCS Study BOEM 2019-075. US Department of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. Anchorage, AK
In 2015, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) partnered with the National Park Service (NPS), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Cook Inlet Regional Citizens Advisory Council (CIRCAC), and the University of Alaska Fairbanks to study nearshore habitats in lower Cook Inlet, Alaska. This area is adjacent to the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Cook Inlet Planning Area. In 2017, BOEM’s OCS Oil and Gas Leasing Program included Lease Sale 244 in the Cook Inlet Planning area. An OCS Cook Inlet Lease Sale National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) analysis had not been undertaken in the area since 2003, and updated information on the habitat and biological communities was needed. The project’s goals were to: 1) review existing biological information in the area 2) identify habitats with little historical research done, and 3) characterize biological populations and ecological systems that are potentially most subject to impact from petroleum exploration and development. Given that nearshore habitats are often most at risk from oil spills and other development impacts, the focus of this work was in the nearshore area, specifically the intertidal and shallow subtidal zones adjacent to the northern portion of the Cook Inlet Planning Area, where Lease Sale 244 was focused.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Jones, Tahzay; Saupe, Susan; Iken, Katrin; Konar, Brenda; Venator, Sarah; Lindeberg, Mandy; Coletti, Heather; Pister, Benjamin; Reynolds, Joel; Haven, Katlyn
- Date of Issue
- 2019-12
- Publisher
- US Department of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management
- Units
- KATM , LACL , SWAN
- Keywords
- algae, Augustine Island, Cook Inlet, eelgrass, habitat assessment, herring spawn, intertidal, Kamishak Bay, kelp, marine invertebrate, nearshore, quadrat
- Subjects
- Ecological Framework: Geology and Soils | Geomorphology | Coastal/Oceanographic Features and Processes , Ecological Framework: Biological Integrity | Focal Species or Communities | Marine Communities , Ecological Framework: Biological Integrity | Focal Species or Communities | Intertidal Communities , Ecological Framework: Biological Integrity | Focal Species or Communities | Marine Invertebrates