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The Alaska SeaLife Center   VIDEO CNN's Sean Callebs reports on the Alaska Sea Life Center's origin and future. Windows Media 28K 80K Why the Alaska Sea Life Center is needed Real 28K 80K Windows Media 28K 80K

September 9, 1999
Web posted at: 11:32 a.m. EDT (1532 GMT)

(CNN) -- Part aquarium and part state-of-the-art cold water research facility, the Alaska SeaLife Center was born out of disaster.

Nearly a decade in the making, it wouldn't exist had the Exxon Valdez not run aground in 1989, dumping 11 million gallons of crude oil in a pristine environment.

"About two thirds of the funding came from the Exxon Valdez oil spill," said Kim Sundberg, director of the center.

"What we found out from the spill is that we really did not know very much about what was going on with the wildlife and even the fish in Prince William Sound," he said.

In all, the Oil Spill Trustee Council approved nearly $40 million for the center, with tight restrictions on how the money can be spent.

"The spill settlement funds can only be used to restore injured species and resources," Sundberg said.

So while visitors to the town of Seward, where the center is located, can watch the endangered Stellar Sea Lion, Alaska's king crab or an array of sea birds, research goes on behind the scenes.

An injured seal is rehabilitated at the center

Tours are given to show the center is equipped to rehabilitate animals, but few visitors may know there also are nearly two dozen scientific programs being funded -- everything from examining heavy metals in the Alaskan Gulf waters to trying to find out why sea lions and seals are dying at an alarming rate in this region.

Its mission may be research, but it is thousands of tourists that fill the center day in and day out. Administrators admit it is ironic that Alaska's coast system, its environment, its people and its legions of visitors all benefit from the worst oil spill in North American history.

The SeaLife Center has critics who believe the $40 million from the Exxon payout could have been used differently.

"It was not without controversy," said Molly McCammon, director of the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council.

The endangered Alaskan king crab

"I mean, people called it Wally World, the Whale Jail and things like that."

The SeaLife Center is in its infancy -- less than two years old. But with the facility's reputation on the rise, scientists say the dividends from the disaster will pay off for generations.

"Alaska is, you know, one of the last frontiers," Sundberg said. "It's got two oceans, three seas and supplies over half the nation's seafood."

"The resources are still intact, so there is a lot of potential and need for this facility."

CNN Correspondent Sean Callebs contributed to this report.

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