With March 2014 marking the 25th anniversary of the 1989 Exxon Valdez Oil Spill, Alicia Zorzetto, Digital Librarian for the Prince William Sound Regional Citizens' Advisory Council (PWSRCAC), wanted to do something to mark this milestone in Alaska and the nation's history. It was important to recognize the human aspects of this tragedy; to tell the stories of the people involved with and impacted by the spill and its aftermath. The goal was to compile, disseminate and preserve a record of the causes and effects of the oil spill disaster for people around the world to learn from so nothing like this would happen again.
The interviews included in the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Project Jukebox come from a variety of sources. Recordings made by Sharon Bushell in 2007-2008 that were originally done for the publication The Spill: Personal Stories from the Exxon Valdez Disaster, by Stan Jones and Sharon Bushell. (Kenmore, WA: Epicenter Press, 2009) that have been housed at PWSRCAC in Anchorage, Alaska. Archival recordings from the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Collection at the Alaska Resources Library & Information Services (ARLIS) in Anchorage, Alaska. And a series of new recordings made in 2013 and 2014 by Alicia Zorzetto and Amanda Johnson of PWSRCAC. All of the recordings that appear in the Jukebox have been accessioned into the Oral History Collection, Alaska and Polar Regions Collections and Archives, Elmer E. Rasmuson Library, University of Alaska Fairbanks.
Images and some video used in this project were provided by the Alaska Resources Library and Information Services (ARLIS). The transcript of Chief Walter Meganack's speech was provided by the National Wildlife Federation.
The Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Project Jukebox was completed in June 2014 by Lisa Krynicki and Karen Brewster of the University of Alaska Fairbanks' Oral History Program at Elmer E. Rasmuson Library, with assistance from Leslie McCartney, Joann Henszey, and Robyn Russell. Thanks also go to Derwin Teague and Michael Knavel of the Alaska Film Archives and Ilana Kingsley, Elmer E. Rasmuson Library’s Web Librarian, for their technical assistance.
Alicia Zorzetto and Amanda Johnson of PWSRCAC conducted interviews, provided background information, photographs and other related material, and generally answered all questions related to the history of the oil spill.
The Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Project Jukebox was funded by a grant from the Alaska State Library and by the Prince William Sound Regional Citizens’ Advisory Council. Assistance was also received from the Alaska Resources Library and Information Services (ARLIS).