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Pribilof Islands Environmental Restoration Project
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Location of the Pribilof Islands
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NOAA, through its Office of Response and Restoration, was responsible for site characterization and restoration activities on St. George and St. Paul Islands, part of the five island Pribilof archipelago, in Alaska’s Bering Sea. Public Law No. 104-91, the Pribilof Islands Environmental Restoration Act of 1996, and Public Law No. 106-562, the Pribilof Islands Transition Act of 2000, provide the mandate for these activities. A Two Party Agreement signed in 1996 between NOAA and the State of Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation provides the framework for cleanup activities in the Pribilof Islands.
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Environmental Remediation on St. George Island
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By 1998, several thousand tons of debris, consisting of old cars, trucks, tractors, barrels, storage tanks and the like were removed from St. Paul and St. George Islands. The focus then shifted to underground storage tank removal, petroleum contaminated soil remediation, groundwater treatment (St. George only), landfill closure, and municipal solid waste landfill redevelopment. Soil and groundwater contamination derived from waste oil disposal, spillage, and storage tank and pipeline leakage.
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Revegetation in Progress on St. George Island
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NOAA is the responsible party for cleaning up these sites to protect human health, welfare, safety, and the environment. The Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) oversees the cleanup to assure it meets the State of Alaska standards. NOAA and DEC worked with the local communities through a Restoration Advisory Board comprised of members from both islands. As of September 2008, NOAA completed the cleanup of all 60 sites on St. Paul Island and all 36 sites on St. George Island, and substantially funded development of new permitted solid waste facilities on both islands. With environmental restoration activities concluded in September 2008, NOAA’s Office of Response and Restoration handed off long-term monitoring of groundwater and closed solid waste sites on the Pribilof Islands to NOAA’s Office of the Chief Administrative Officer.
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