Preface 



WEBSEC-70 (Western Beaufort Sea Ecological Cruise — 1970) was 

 the first of a series of cruises in the Alaskan Arctic to survey the state of 

 the marine environment and its associated biota. It is hoped that the 

 physical, chemical, biological, and geological data acquired on this and 

 subsequent WEBSEC cruises will contribute to a thorough description 

 of the marine ecosystem in a relatively unpolluted state, providing a base 

 for assessing the impact of pollution from future increases in development, 

 mineral extraction, and transportation. 



The evolution of the concept of the WEBSEC series began with the 

 concern held for the fate of the marine ecosystem in the Alaskan Arctic 

 by individual scientists at the Coast Guard Oceanographic Unit (CGOU). 

 Because Coast Guard icebreakers provide platforms needed to conduct 

 scientific investigations in Arctic waters, it was felt that CGOU should 

 provide the impetus for a study of the marine ecosystem. As planning 

 progressed, however, it became apparent that CGOU's scientific and tech- 

 nical staff lacked the capability to deal with some of the relevant variables 

 in an ecological survey. Inquires were made to fellow scientists in other 

 Federal agencies, universities, and research institutions to enlist assistance 

 in the WEBSEC series. Affirmative responses were received from most 

 people contacted, and scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey and 

 Bureau of Sport Fisheries and Wildlife of the U.S. Department of the 

 Interior the National Marine Fisheries Service of the Department of 

 Commerce, the Smithsonian Institution, and the University of Alaska 

 accompanied CGOU scientists and technicians on the CGC GLACmK on 

 WEBSEC-70. 



The main objective of WEBSEC-70 was to perform an ecological 

 survey in the Beaufort Sea with particular emphasis on the area off 

 Prudhoe Bay. The Chukchi Sea between Point Barrow and Cape Lisburne 

 was chosen as an alternate area of operations in the event that the polar 

 ice pack prevented operations east of Point Barrow, which proved to be 

 the case The cruise was conducted in a triangular area off Cape Lisbume- 

 Icy Cape (fig 1), the offshore extent of which was largely determined by 

 the location of the edge of the polar ice pack. The sampling operations 

 accomplished (listed in table 1) and the participants responsible for 

 processing the resulting samples and data were as ^o'J^^^^/^-^^J!!!!, 

 bottle casts for temperature, salinity, and nutrients (UbOG), Idb Aci 



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