UPDATE: State lab says harvested seals werent oiled

NOME -- Lab tests for oil on two seals recently harvested in the Bering Sea have come back negative.

Coast Guard Petty Officer Frances Caselton says samples of the seals' flippers and jaw skin were tested by the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation and neither contained petroleum.

The seals were harvested by hunters near Gambell on St. Lawrence Island, who believed a dark substance on the animals' hides was oil. Gay Sheffield with the University of Alaska Fairbanks Marine Advisory Program also sent tissue samples to the North Slope Borough Department of Wildlife Management, which she says assisted with testing after oiled seals were harvested in 2012.

Test results for the recent seals are still unknown.

Caselton says the Coast Guard did an overflight last week but didn't see any oil in the area where the seals were harvested.

In order to conduct thorough testing of potentially oiled animals, Caselton says, it's best to have as much of the animal hide as possible. Sheffield asks anyone who thinks they've seen oiled wildlife to take a picture and contact her immediately. — KNOM

ORIGINAL STORY:

NOME -- Two seals recently harvested near Gambell in the Bering Sea were found coated in a dark, oily substance. While the hunters on St. Lawrence Island believed it was oil, testing by the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation has not yet confirmed that.

"They tested the flipper samples that were sent in from each seal — a front flipper, and there was no petroleum product on the flippers that were tested," said Gay Sheffield, Marine Advisory Program agent for the University of Alaska Fairbanks. "There are some other skim samples that were sent in from the jaw and face area, and I have not heard the results of those."

Sheffield said it's reminding her of oiled seals harvested in 2012. Laboratory tests found that two seals taken from near St. Lawrence Island then were oiled. That's why Sheffield was nervous when two more stained seals were found this year.

This is not a common occurrence in the region, said Brandon Ahmasuk, subsistence director for Kawerak Inc. the regional Native corporation. He says it's challenging to pinpoint the source due to the small number of oiled animals found in the wide area. Still, he said, he's frustrated by the lack of answers and the shortage of help from larger agencies like the U.S. Coast Guard.

"It's a food security (issue) for the inhabitants of the region. You know, this is their food — they don't take it lightly," said Ahmasuk. "But outside agencies don't seem to take that into consideration that this is a people's food source. They can't simply go to Walmart Supercenter or Fred Meyer's. Their supercenter ... it's the sea. It's just that plain and simple. But more often than not it's just overlooked."

Ahmasuk said he and Sheffield, through local organizations, have emphasized their concerns to state and federal agencies.

Sheffield also sent tissue samples to the North Slope Borough Department of Wildlife Management, which she said assisted with testing back in 2012.

While local responders are closer in case of a crisis, the Coast Guard has much-needed resources. However, those resources are based out of Kodiak, and Ahmasuk said they're not guaranteed to be close in case of an emergency.

A local pilot reported seeing an oil-like substance in the water between Shishmaref and Wales about two weeks ago. Sheffield filed a report with the National Response Center and says the Coast Guard was scheduled to do a C-130 reconnaissance flight over St. Lawrence Island and the Bering Strait area late last week.

The two incidents are thus far unconnected, but Sheffield and Ahmasuk say they're waiting for more information, and they're asking anyone who sees oiled wildlife to take a picture and contact them immediately.