Levin Bill Would Greatly Expand Thunder Bay Marine Sanctuary, Help to Preserve Great Lakes History

Press Release

Levin Bill Would Greatly Expand Thunder Bay Marine Sanctuary, Help to Preserve Great Lakes History

Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., today introduced legislation to significantly expand the boundaries of Michigan's Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary, making it more than eight times its current size. The expansion would help to preserve the rich history of "Shipwreck Alley" for historians and divers, where dozens of ships perished in the waters of Lake Huron. Levin introduced similar legislation in 2007, and he testified at a hearing of a Senate Commerce subcommittee about the legislation in May 2008.

"Thunder Bay is one of Michigan's absolute jewels," said Levin. "At this underwater museum, divers and researchers can explore maritime history first-hand. By expanding the boundary of the marine sanctuary, we can protect and preserve these well-preserved treasures for years to come."

The Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary was created in October 2000 as a unique federal-state partnership. The sanctuary preserves the maritime history of the Great Lakes, offers educational opportunities for students and researchers and provides a fascinating site for divers and snorkelers to explore.

Levin's bill - the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary and Underwater Preserve Boundary Modification Act - would extend the sanctuary's boundaries to include the waters off Alcona, Alpena and Presque Isle Counties in Michigan and would extend the sanctuary east to the International Boundary. The current sanctuary includes 448 square miles of water and 115 miles of shoreline, and the expansion would include 3,722 square miles and include 226 miles of shoreline.

Throughout history, the Great Lakes have been an important passageway and trading route. The geography of Thunder Bay and the weather patterns in the lakes, however, caused dozens of ships to perish in what mariners call "Shipwreck Alley." Because the wrecks are in fresh water, many of the sites are well preserved and have been a wealth of information for researchers and students. The current sanctuary holds 116 shipwrecks, and the expansion proposed in the bill would protect an estimated 178 additional shipwrecks. The sanctuary also protects and interprets the remains of commercial fishing sites, historic docks, and other underwater archaeological sites.

The expansion would extend the sanctuary to cover the historic shipwreck site of the Cornelia B. Windiate, which is a three-mast wooden schooner and one of the Great Lakes' most intact shipwrecks. The ship sank in December 1875 when bound from Milwaukee to Buffalo with a cargo of wheat, and was featured in an episode of Deep Sea Detectives on The History Channel. The expansion would also cover the H.P. Bridge, a three-mast wooden barkentine that contains many artifacts such as pottery, clothing, and ship tackle and hardware.

The sanctuary has also been a model for research and education programs. Using real-time video links, students in Alpena interact with divers exploring underwater worlds thousands of miles away. In the near future, students from around the country will be able to control remote submarines that allow them to explore the E.B. Allen or the steamship Montana. Visitors to Thunder Bay can also view artifacts and interpretive exhibits and watch films about Thunder Bay and all of our Nation's Maritime Sanctuaries. Scientists from around the world dock their vessels in the Thunder Bay River as they use the facility for their research.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration originally proposed for the sanctuary to encompass an area twice as big as what was established, but the proposal was scaled back to address concerns raised by some state and local communities that wanted to begin cautiously. Today, the expansion has broad support throughout the area.

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