Local Research Report on
Japan’s Earthquake and Tsunami Debris in theState of Alaska

Objective:
Regarding the issue of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami debris washing up on the western coastal areas of
the United States, the objective of this research is to strengthen collaborative ties between Japan and the U.S.
and explore the possibilities for working collaboratively on handling this issue.
Since the amount of debris found in the state of Alaska is greater than in other states, five researchers will bedispatched to Alaska for the research. This research has been funded by the Sasakawa Peace Foundation andJEAN’s organizational funds.
Research participants:	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	  	 
1.

Azusa Kojima, Director of JEAN: In charge of beach debris status investigation.

2.

Shigeru Fujieda, Professor at Faculty of Fisheries at Kagoshima University: In charge of beach debris
status investigation.

3.

Akio Matsumoto, Secretary General of The Sea Beautification Society: In charge of handling of driftedbuoys.

4.

Katsuyuki Sugimori, Ocean photographer at Non-Profit Organization, The Oceanic Wildlife Society): Incharge of photography.

5.

Hiromi Okamoto of ELCOM Co., Ltd.: In charge of providing technical information on styrofoam volume
reduction.

Research schedule:
Date
June 25thSchedule
Depart Japan
Arrive in Anchorage shortly after 2:00 pm local time

June 26th

Visit Consular Office of Japan Anchorage
Meeting with Consul Funayama
Meeting and scheduling with Representative Director, Chris
Pallister of Gulf of Alaska Keeper (GoAK)

June 27th

Coast inspection tour: Montague Island
Inspection of debris on the coasts from helicopter.

Observed the GoAK crew collecting debris. Landed on therocky coast and found debris washed up in between thelarge amounts of driftwood.
Collected plastic bottles and sorted the caps and labels.
according to country of origin. Searched for pipes used foroyster farming and plastic lighters. Landed at sandy coastand found debris that had washed up in between thedriftwood.

June 28th

Found broken, minute pieces of plastic.	  	 Visit Japan-US earthquake and tsunami debris workshop /Alaska State University Anchorage and Dr. Kennish’s office

June 29th

Coast inspection tour 2: Prince William Sound
After visiting GoAK’s boat in Whittier, headed to Prince
William Sound on “Chugach” boat.

Inspected the convoluted coastline from the boat.

Assisted with the transfer of debris collected by the GoAK
crew at Montague Island from the boat to a container.

June 30thReturn to Japan	  	  Japan-U.S. earthquake and tsunami debris workshop:
A workshop for sharing information on the debris from the earthquake and tsunami was held at
Phillips Integrated Science Building at the University of Alaska Anchorage. See below for minutes:

Opening speech by Chairman Chris Pallister of GoAK
Speech by Consul Koichi Funayama (Consular Office of Japan Anchorage):Thank you for having me here, and I would like to extend my gratitude to the members that havecome from Japan.
Immediately after the Japanese government announced that as a result of the 3.11 earthquake
and tsunami, debris would be washing up on the coastal areas of the U.S, Japanese experts
presented the speculated date of arrival of the debris. Since then, the Consular Office of Japan in
Anchorage has been sharing information with the Japanese and the US governments, specifying
the debris that has come from Japan, and translating documents pertaining to this issue.
Ocean waste is a huge problem in Alaska. Beach clean up is arduous work, however, there aremany people here that are working to tackle this problem and our office is doing its best tosupport these people and to help protect the natural environment.
Presentation 1 by Azusa Kojima (Chairman of Japan Environment Action Network) on thestatus of Japan’s ocean waste and the efforts of JEAN.
Presentation 2 by Akio Sakamoto (Secretary General of The Sea Beautification Society) on
the collection of earthquake and tsunami debris and supporting local fishermen as well as
returning fishing equipment.
Presentation 3 by Shigeru Fujieda (Professor at Kagoshima University, Faculty of Fisheries/
Director of JEAN) on the collection and recycling of styrofoam floating devices used by thefishing industry.
Presentation 4 by Hiromi Okamoto (ELCOM Co., Ltd.). Introduction of technique used at
the Japan Fisheries Agency to reduce the volume of styrofoam floating devices.
Presentation 5 by Mary Fisher (Secretary General of Alaskans for Litter Prevention andRecycling (ALPR):
ALPR is an NGO established 30 years ago with many business organizations participating in its
efforts. It has been working with GoAK for many years and has been providing waste bags for thecollected debris.
The new green colored bags have been made larger for carrying the styrofoam floats that are notheavy but bulky. In Anchorage, there are not many problems with landfill sites,however, space isa problem on Kodiak and Yakutat islands. The most essential point here is securing a source offunds so that recycling can be implemented.
Research is currently being conducted on styrofoam volume reduction equipment so we are very
interested in the techniques of Japan.

Presentation 6 by Elaine Buss Floyd (Acting Director of Alaska Department ofEnvironmental Conservation):
Alaska and Japan are actively engaged in tourism, trade and investments as well as importingand exporting seafood and minerals with each other. Many Alaskans visit Japan, hence therelationship between the Alaskans and Japanese people is most important. We thank theJapanese government for the compensation money that they gave to our country after theearthquake and tsunami.
We are working together with other departments of the Alaska state government on the topic at
hand, and have been dealing with the earthquake and tsunami debris issue along with the federal
government through the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). We have been
taking aerial photos of the coasts and have been determining where to start tackling this problem
on the long coast.
We have submitted a proposal to the NOAA on how to use the compensation money from Japan.
Initially, we requested $250,000 to be given to Alaska, and that was approved. We are now in theprocess of having our second request for $750,000 be approved.
We would like to analyze the data collected and make use of this fund sent to NOAA from Japan.
Soon we will be sending a report along with photos so that people in Japan can see how thefunds are being used to deal with the debris issue.
Presentation 7 by Tim Veenstra (Owner of Airborne Technologies, Inc.):
Last summer, we were commissioned by the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservationand conducted investigative research of tsunami debris by taking aerial photos of the coasts. The
photos were taken as high-resolution images. While editing, the images were categorized into fivelevels and assigned keywords such as “bonten” (a type of buoy), facilitating searches on ourwebsite.
Even for the same location, when the image is enlarged, it may be categorized into a higher level
category (i.e., greater amount of debris). These high-resolution aerial photos are available to thepublic on the websites of Airborne Technologies, the Alaskan state government and NOAA.
The largest amount of debris washed ashore was found on parts of the coasts of Montague,
Kayak and Kodiak islands. The Alaskan current flows into these coastal areas. If the images areenlarged, debris the size of a golf ball can be viewed. Minute debris cannot be seen with theseaerial photos.
The actual state of the coasts can be understood from the photos and from the work of Chris andhis crew, but the debris has washed up throughout Alaska, and there are places wherehelicopters cannot land. In one 20 - 35 mile section, the entire area is in the same state (withmuch debris washed ashore). In even just one area, there is such a large amount of debris
washed ashore, and although it is possible to view the debris from the air, collection will be very
difficult.
Comments by Chris Pallister of GoAK:
Since mid-May, we have been on a 70-day clean-up mission with eight crewmembers on Prince
William Sound (PWS) under the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council. So far, the collected
debris has been brought to Whittier, and then transported to Anchorage using the containers of
the Central Recycling Service (CRS). Most of the collected debris is plastic.
The debris is then sorted at CRS. Materials that can be used are reused, but the rest is sent tolandfill sites. Flotsam from the tsunami has washed ashore in the U.S. and British Columbia,
Canada, but we must not forget that the items once belonged to those who perished in Japan due
to the tsunami.
Every time I pick up flotsam items, I bear in mind that they were once part of the lives of thetsunami victims.
Approximately 12-transfer vessels filled with debris have been collected since May. One vessel
filled with debris is equivalent to about 42 m³ (11095 gal.). Currently, debris collection is taking
place on the Gulf of Alaska side of Montague Island. It is assumed that if all of the debris from theGulf of Alaska side of Montague Island is collected, about 600 vessels will be filled.
Compared to last fall, the amount of large EPS floats has decreased, and currently, there is muchdriftwood and broken pieces of EPS. Similar to Hawaii’s plastic beach, the area is littered withplastics. It is important to collect the large pieces now before they break down into small pieces.
Presentation by John Kennish, Ph.D. (Professor of Chemistry at the University of Alaska
Anchorage):
I am researching how plastic ocean waste is polluting the environment. This research started
from the plastic debris collected by Chris and his crew. The amount of plastic waste found in theocean since the 1950s is on the increase. There are many advantages of using plastic, one ofwhich is convenience, but it also destroys the environment. Since plastic is durable and floats onwater, it has drifted and washed ashore in various locations.
This research is on the concentration level of phthalic acid esters in Alaskan marine organisms.
Regarding toxicity from plastic, abnormal reproduction occurred the most frequently.
Plastic waste absorbs the toxins from insecticides and other substances and has been causing
environmental problems. Please note in particular the high levels of phthalic acid esters in tufted
puffins.

Presentation by Patty Zwollo, Ph.D. (Professor at College of William and Mary):
I will discuss how ocean waste is affecting salmonidae. The immune system of fish is located in
the kidneys and not in the bone marrow, hence the system is operated by the kidneys and spleen.
Since the immune system works in the kidneys of the fish, when we consume fish, we areprotected from bacteria entering our bodies.
In order for the immune cells to properly function, it is vital for them to develop through thedifferent developmental stages. Our research results show that exposure to phthalic acid esters
interferes with the development of the immune system in the fish.
By researching natural young salmon, we are studying the degree of decrease in antibodies,and have also been comparing young silver salmon in Lake Elizabeth to ones in the control area
about 100 feet upstream. So far, results show that the phthalic acid ester level of the fish in thelake is five times higher than that of the fish upstream.
From these findings, it is thought that fish in the lake have fewer antibodies to fight bacteria asa result of the ocean debris that is inhibiting the proper development of the immune system of thefish.
Q&A and sharing of information
On reduction of styrofoam volume
Many questions were asked about the techniques for reducing the volume of

styrofoam, and pelletizing the styrofoam for use as fuel.
On returning the collected buoys to Japan

Mr. Sakamoto has been continuing holding public hearings for local fisheries of theearthquake and tsunami affected areas on the reuse of hard plastic type buoys and themethod of their distribution.

Smaller buoys that can be used for oyster farming in Alaska are being sorted aftercollection for people to take home freely. The larger ones have no use.

The condition of the buoys on the coast was checked. Those that have not degraded
can be returned to Japan, but since some can be reused in Alaska, Japan and the U.S.
will stay in contact to determine the needs of both countries.

	  	  Researching the state of debris washed ashore on Montague Island:From a distance, man-made objects were not noticeable since there were large amounts ofdriftwood on the beach that blocked our view. From nearby, however, we found that plastic
debris equivalent to the amount of the driftwood had washed ashore and scattered.

Since time on the beach was limited, we could not explore the whole area or conduct aninvestigation using the method of International Coastal Cleanup (ICC). Instead, atlocation A, we collected plastic bottles and determined the country origin of these bottles
from the labels and caps.

Debris from Japan included plastic kerosene containers, beverage containers, volleyballs,
oyster farming pipes, etc.

Large amount of polyurethane foam pieces that may have been insulating materials fromhouses had washed ashore.

Many fishing buoys and floating devices as well as ropes were found, including ones made inJapan with trade names inscribed.	  	  Beach investigation of Prince William Sound (from onboard boat):

The gulf is in a scenic location with a view of the mountains and glaciers. Tourist excursionboats cruise the area.

Driftwood could been seen since the beach is an enclosed bay, but there were almost no
manmade materials (waste).

Since the Gulf of Alaska side, on which large amounts of manmade materials has washedashore, cannot be seen even if tourists (from the US and from abroad) board excursion boats, itis considered that the tourists will not become aware of the issue of ocean waste and debris
from the tsunami.