Participants were from the local oil industry companies, Alaska state agencies, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and U.S. Coast Guard.  Class field exercises were conducted on the Beaufort Sea Coast and along the shorelines of the Sagavanirktok River.  A first for our SCAT training was the innovative use of UAS (drones) during the field exercise to evaluate their utility for SCAT reconnaissance surveys. Use of this emerging technology will allow teams to focus their energies to quickly access and assess oil zones for cleanup during a real oil spill incident. This is a critical time in the Arctic as we experience climate change impacts on the sensitive shorelines and habitats along Alaska’s northern coastlines.  The students were enthusiastic and eager to learn; they appreciated the extra efforts by the NOAA instructors to customize the course with an Arctic focus.

For further information, contact Catherine.Berg@noaa.gov.

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