The city of St. George, home to 100 people, has asked the federal government to create a marine sanctuary around their island in the Bering Sea. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration officially received the application today.
Mayor Pat Pletnikoff said in a recent interview the city is appealing to the government for help to preserve the rich ecosystem around their island. He says they also want more research on the seal and bird populations they rely on for subsistence.
“There’s a lot of fishing companies, large fishing vessels that we don’t use, that trawl, and the factory longliners that come in near St. George Island and fish,” he said. “We don’t know what the total impact is.”
The city has nominated waters around St. George, extending out as far as 30 miles, for sanctuary status. Pletnikoff says a sanctuary designation wouldn’t automatically exclude fishing or a harbor expansion.
Marine sanctuaries are established after a public process that can take years. In that way, they’re different from marine monuments, which are created by presidential order.
Liz Ruskin is the Washington, D.C., correspondent at Alaska Public Media. Reach her at lruskin@alaskapublic.org. Read more about Liz here.
