NOAA Awards More Than $2.4 Million To The Kodiak Island Borough To Support A Marine Fiber Optic Cable

NOAA AWARDS MORE THAN $2.4 MILLION TO THE KODIAK ISLAND BOROUGH TO SUPPORT A MARINE FIBER OPTIC CABLE

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration granted $2,473,694 to the Kodiak Island Borough for the preparation and installation of a marine fiber optic cable linking several cities in Alaska. NOAA is an agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce.

The grant will finance research and preparation activities for the installation of a marine fiber optic cable that will originate in Kodiac and connect the cities of Homer, Kenai and Anchorage, Alaska. The project will increase the supply of communication links between the islands and communities of Alaska. Before installing the cable, oceanic research, engineering and permitting must be done to ensure its success. Installation of the cable will support new economic development in the serviced areas and enhance existing uses of communications capability to these areas. The expanded capabilities include improved access for research, education and distance learning, advanced telemedicine services, augmented homeland security, search and rescue, and oil spill response.

“The updated system that will be installed using funds from this NOAA grant will provide Alaskans with the tools they need to benefit fully from the best communications technology,” said retired Navy Vice Adm. Conrad C. Lautenbacher, Ph.D., under secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and NOAA administrator. “NOAA and the Bush Administration are working with communities like the Kodiak Island Borough to balance the needs of citizens while protecting and increasing our understanding of the environment.”

Each year, NOAA awards approximately $900 million in grants to members of the academic, scientific and business communities to assist the agency in fulfilling its mission to study the Earth’s natural systems in order to predict environmental change, manage ocean resources, protect life and property and provide decision makers with reliable scientific information. NOAA’s goals and programs reflect a commitment to these basic responsibilities of science and service to the nation for the past 34 years.

NOAA is dedicated to enhancing economic security and national safety through the prediction and research of weather and climate-related events and providing environmental stewardship of our nation’s coastal and marine resources.

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