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U.S. Department of Energy
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Evidence of damage to pink salmon inhabiting Prince William Sound, Alaska, three generations after the Exxon Valdez oil spill

Conference ·
OSTI ID:191313
; ;  [1];  [2]
  1. Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Anchorage, AK (United States)
  2. Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Cordova, AK (United States)
Investigations into the environmental effects of the 1 989 Exxon Valdez oil spill lead us to conclude that chronic damage occurred in some pink salmon populations. Differences in survival between streams contaminated by oil and uncontaminated streams have been observed annually since the spill for pink salmon embryos incubating in the intertidal portions of Prince William Sound. The authors assessed the environmental influence on these findings by collecting gametes from both contaminated and uncontaminated streams, transporting them to a hatchery where intra-stream crosses were made, and incubating the resulting embryos under identical conditions. Lower survival was detected in the embryos originating from the oil-contaminated streams indicating that the agent responsible for the differences detected in the field was genetic rather than environmental.
OSTI ID:
191313
Report Number(s):
CONF-9511137--; ISBN 1-880611-03-1
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English