Alutiiq Pride Marine Institute: Science and industry in Seward.

• Author: Erickson, Nancy
• Position: FISHERIES

Seward's Alutiiq Pride Marine Institute quietly celebrated its 30th anniversary recently, but many residents and even some in the industry are unaware of the pioneering work the shellfish hatchery and mariculture research center has conducted.

Built by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game from criminal settlement funds resulting from the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill, the Mariculture Technical Center opened in 1992 with the primary purpose of producing oysters and clams for aquatic farmers.

The institute was initially operated by the Qutekcak Native Tribe of Seward, and it became the Alutiiq Pride Shellfish Hatchery in 2002, recently rebranding as the Alutiiq Pride Marine Institute (APMI).

APMI is a division of Chugach Regional Resources Commission (CRRC), an intertribal consortium of seven Alaska Native tribes in the Prince William Sound and Lower Cook Inlet region: village councils in Tatitlek, Eyak (Cordova), Port Graham, Nanwalek, Chenega, the Qutekcak Native Tribe, and the Valdez Native Tribe. CRRC was organized in 1984 and incorporated as a nonprofit in 1990.

The seven villages' strong cultural ties and rich understanding of natural resources and marine systems on the waters and lands of this region give CRRC access to a deep knowledge base generally not readily accessible to other aquaculture facilities.

Making Strides with Shellfish

Located on the corner of Railway Avenue and Lowell Point Road in Seward, a walk through APMI's doors reveals a lot more than researchers propagating shellfish for aquatic farmers.

"We do much more now than just hatch oysters," says Jeff Hetrick, mariculture director. "We've raised geoducks, clams, oysters, littleneck clams, butter clams, cockles, abalone, red king crab, blue king crab, rock scallops, and sea cucumbers, to name a few. We've also cared for salmon, halibut, herring, and octopus for research projects."

"We provide juvenile shellfish seed and kelp string with partners statewide," Hetrick adds. "We're presently raising abalone and sea cucumbers for Southeast projects and clams for our communities' enhancement projects. All our research is applicable statewide."

The main room contains the algae lab, where flasks under grow lights produce food for the hatchery's inhabitants.

Beyond huge round tanks in the main room are smaller containers housing baby soft shelled clams. When they grow to about one-quarter inch, they are re-seeded to beaches near Seward. Smaller tanks also contain littleneck...