Jeff Williams / Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge

On August 7, 2008, Kasatochi Volcano blew up. The explosion was large, unanticipated and completely devastating to life on the tiny Aleutian island. Prior to the eruption, Kasatochi was a thriving nesting site for hundreds of thousands of seabirds, but the eruption buried the island and the nests in dozens of feet of volcanic ash, completely destroying the local ecosystem.

Now, four years later, the island is experiencing a rebirth of sorts, with plants, insects and maybe even some birds beginning to resume residence.  

Jeff Williams is a biologist with the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge. He joins The Exchange to talk about his work on Kasatochi and some of the projects happening the Refuge this summer.