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The NewsRoom
Release: 4023
Date: August 14, 2009
MMS Awards Grant to Alaska to Monitor Sea Lions
Provides $32,722 through the Coastal Impact Assistance Program
ANCHORAGE
– The Minerals
Management Service (MMS) has awarded a $32,722 grant to the Alaska
Department of Natural Resources through the Coastal Impact
Assistance Program (CIAP) for a three-year project to monitor the
endangered Steller Sea Lion in the Bering Sea.
The project will monitor the sea lions’ use of
rarely-surveyed areas in the Bering Sea, specifically around St.
Lawrence Island, Cape Newenham, and Amak Island. The project will
collect new data, including how many sea lions are living in the
areas, and their sex and age. The data collected will provide a
baseline for further studies to assess the potential effects of oil
and gas development and large-scale commercial fisheries on the
endangered sea lions.
“MMS is committed to supporting our partners through
the Coastal Impact Assistance Program with important projects that
will promote conservation, especially for the Endangered Steller Sea
Lion,” said MMS Alaska Regional Director John Goll.
Alaska’s CIAP plan
was approved by the Minerals Management Service on September 30,
2008. The CIAP was
created by the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and provides $250 million
in grants annually, from 2007-2010, to six eligible Outer
Continental Shelf oil and gas producing states – Texas, Louisiana,
Alabama, Alaska, California, and Mississippi. The total funding to
Alaska includes $79.8 million for fiscal years 2007 through 2010.
Contact:
Nicholas
Pardi
(202) 208-3985
MMS: Securing Ocean Energy & Economic Value for America
U.S. Department of the Interior
Last Updated:
09/17/2010,
05:10 PM
Central Time
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