Russia hosts North Pacific marine science conference

Scientists from 15 countries gathered Friday in the eastern Russian city of Khabarovsk to attend the 2011 annual meeting of the North Pacific Marine Science Organization (PICES). The 10-day conference, under the title of Mechanisms of Marine Ecosystem Reorganization in the North Pacific Ocean, includes more than 50 scientific forums. The meeting is hosted by the Russian Federal Agency for Fisheries in cooperation with the local government and in coordination with the PICES Secretariat. PICES, established in 1992, is an intergovernmental scientific organization promoting and coordinating marine research in the North Pacific and adjacent seas. Its present members are Canada, China, Japan, Russia, South Korea and the United States.