2021 marked a milestone for the Coast Guard’s Marine Safety Task Force initiative in Alaska. Teams operated with new partners, visited more communities, and strengthened relations in Western portions of Alaska, due to unprecedented planning, action, and support. The initiative, first implemented in 2019, manages the seasonal deployment of Coast Guard teams to remote areas across the state to conduct vessel and facility inspections, provide operator training, improve maritime domain awareness, and conduct outreach for preparedness and safety programs.
(Coast Guard Alaska Marine Safety Task Force Operations 2021, by PO2 Melissa McKenzie, identified by DVIDS)
Petty Officer 1st Class Nate Littlejohn says that through MSTF operations, the Coast Guard observed the impacts of climate change to the Arctic and western portions of Alaska. As permafrost thaws, the ground under many aging fuel facilities is becoming unstable, which could leave people unable to heat their homes and schools or fuel their traditional hunting and fishing transportation. Potential fuel oil spills caused by aging infrastructure in changing landscapes threatens local ecosystems that sustain communities.
In 2021, MSTF teams visited 95 remote communities, completed 128 fuel storage facility inspections, 470 commercial fishing vessel exams, five gold dredge exams, and monitored six fuel-to-shore transfers.
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Image and video courtesy of the U.S. Coast Guard District 17, Defense Visual Information Distribution Service.