The U.S. Department of Commerce will accept comments until July 18 during the first steps of the department's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) designating a new national marine sanctuary in Lake Erie, adjacent to Pennsylvania.
A new marine sanctuary will be “an approximately 740-square-mile area adjacent to the 75 mile-long shoreline of Erie County, Pennsylvania,” a news release said.
“The 35 known shipwrecks in the area span every type of ship construction, from the 1838 steamboat Chesapeake to speedboats, tugs, barges and workboats lost before 1940,” the release said. “Based on historical records, an additional 161 shipwrecks may lie within the potential sanctuary’s boundaries.”
People can comment through July 18 at the Federal eRulemaking Portal, www.regulations.gov, inputting docket number NOAA-NOS-2023-0039, the release said. More information about the sanctuary is available online.
“The Biden-Harris administration looks forward to working with local communities to conserve the cultural significance of this special place,” Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said. “The potential designation of a national marine sanctuary in the waters of Lake Erie would help conserve and restore our lands and waters, and increase equitable access to nature for Pennsylvanians and all Americans.”
Indigenous peoples lived on Lake Erie’s shores before the Europeans arrived and some of that history is submerged in the lake. Lake Erie played a role in the War of 1812, and in the years before the Civil War, as having the nation's largest fleet of steamboats and vessels on the Underground Railroad.
The four steps used for designating a new national marine sanctuary are scoping, sanctuary proposal, public review and sanctuary designation, the NOAA National Marine Sanctuaries website said.
In scoping, “NOAA announces its intent to designate a new national marine sanctuary and asks the public for input on potential boundaries, resources that could be protected, issues NOAA should consider and any information that should be included in the resource analysis,” the website said.
