News Photo by Steve Schulwitz The Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Center and the NOAA staff that runs it are important for the research it does in the Great Lakes. Now, cuts made by the federal government could impact its operations.

ALPENA — The Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary, managed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and its studies and programs will be either directly or indirectly impacted by the cuts imposed by the Trump administration.

The same applies to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife office in Alpena and potentially other federal agencies in northern Michigan, like the National Weather Service office in Gaylord.

It is still not known if there have been cuts to the staff to the sanctuary staff because administrators and spokespeople of the agencies are reluctant to speak about personnel matters to the media.

So far, about 800 NOAA employees have lost their jobs around the country and a second wave of layoffs is possible.

The job cuts seem to be aimed, at least for now, at probationary employees who have two years or less of tenure or others who have recently been promoted.

Last week, U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Ann Arbor, who represents Michigan’s 6th congressional district, confirmed in a letter to Vice Admiral Nancy Hann, deputy undersecretary for operations for NOAA, that 15 probationary employees at NOAA’s Great Lakes Environmental Research Lab in Ann Arbor had been fired.

The research lab has a direct connection to the Sanctuary and the cut in jobs could impact Sanctuary operations and initiatives locally.

The research lab partners with the Sanctuary and helps with research and exploratory projects, as well as monitoring webcams, and real-time weather status updates. It also shares research vessels with the NOAA staff in Alpena and has a dive team to assist local scientists in Alpena.

The 20% cut of staffing could trickle down to Alpena and impact operations, discoveries, and mission goals if the job loss is long-term.

Chuck Wiesen, president of Friends of Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary, described the cuts to NOAA staff as devastating for the Sanctuary and people need to contact their elected officials to speak out against them.

“The agency, its mission, and staff are under attack,” Wiesen said in an email to The News. “The firings and proposed budget cuts could be devastating to the sanctuary, the Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Center, and our community. For 25 years, I have had the privilege of witnessing the hard work, dedication, and creativity of the NOAA team. Our board is urging that every resident of Northeast Michigan take a few minutes to call or write to your federal and state elected officials and let them know how important NOAA is to our community and Great Lakes. This is the least we can do for an institution that has done so much for all of us.”

U.S. Michigan Sen. Gary Peters, a Democrat, has been a strong supporter of the Sanctuary and has made numerous visits to it and even scuba-dived some of the shipwrecks NOAA is trying to preserve. He said the NOAA staff and all of its partners do much more than research. He said, in an email to The News, that funding cuts and a reduction of staff could have a negative impact on Alpena and the entire region.

“From educational opportunities and historic preservation to increased economic development and tourism, the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary is a critical component of Michigan’s maritime cultural landscape,” Peters said. “Reckless cuts to staff and funding for Thunder Bay have serious consequences for the local community and to preservation efforts across the Great Lakes. I’ll always fight to protect the people and the resources that help support Michigan communities and our Great Lakes.”

Congressman Jack Bergman, R-Watersmeet, said employees at federal agencies need to continue to show Trump and the Department of Government Efficiency their value and importance. He said it is not unprecedented to have a president force large job cuts to shrink government and spending, but he said he will continue to watch closely all developments with cuts to federal employees and funding in northern Michigan and fight to restore jobs that are needed.

“I’ve long supported much of the work being done by NOAA and Fish and Wildlife Services which have been a large topic of discussion across the 1st District,” Bergman said. “Over the next few weeks and months it will be critical for each agency to show what the added value of each position lost is, and when and where it makes sense, we will work to make sure those jobs are restored. Just like the taxpayer has had to do over the past few years during record high inflation, the government must find all of the areas where we are overspending, over-hiring, or jobs that are just straight up not the role of the federal government.

“Historically, rightsizing the government has not been a partisan issue – in fact, President Clinton cut the federal workforce by nearly 270,000 people,” he continued. “Our Nation’s government is in dire need of reform and President Trump is doing just that.

“As this process takes place, there will undoubtedly be, at least temporarily, some cuts that need to be backfilled or replaced – and that is something I’m keeping a close eye on, especially in areas concerning our national security and our natural resources.”

Some of Trump’s and DOGE’s actions appear to run parallel to the controversial Project 2025.

Project 2025 is a political initiative published by the Heritage Foundation that aims to promote conservative and right-wing policies to reshape the United States federal government.

The project calls for sweeping changes to many of NOAA’s six primary offices, such as the National Weather Service, the National Marine Fisheries Service, and the National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service, to name a few.

These entities could be privatized or merged with other federal government departments, or their responsibility could be handed off to private companies if Trump follows Project 2025’s game plan.

Project 2025 says NOAA has become too vast and costly and aspects of it need to be changed significantly. The plan claims all of the offices under the NOAA umbrella cost taxpayers millions of dollars while stirring up fear over the potential effects of climate change.

During his campaign, Trump said he knew nothing about Project 2025 and has distanced himself from it, as have other Republicans.

The National Weather Service, which falls under NOAA’s umbrella, is also experiencing cuts to staff which includes forecasters. Northeast Michigan depends on the weather office in Gaylord for its weather information, and it is not known if there have been cuts to staff.

Susan Buchanan, a public affairs specialist with the Weather Service said in an email to The News, that she could neither confirm nor deny any job cuts at the Sanctuary in Alpena or at the weather station in Gaylord.

“Per long-standing practice, we are not discussing internal personnel and management matters,” she said. “NOAA remains dedicated to its mission, providing timely information, research, and resources that serve the American public and ensure our nation’s environmental and economic resilience. We continue to provide weather information, forecasts and warnings pursuant to our public safety mission. Thanks for your understanding.”

Laury Marshall, a public affairs specialist for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service also had little to say about any job cuts in Alpena.

“The USFWS reaffirms its unwavering commitment to the American public and the fish, wildlife and natural resources we manage,” Marshall said in an email. “We are working closely with the Office of Personnel Management to ensure we are prioritizing fiscal responsibility for the American people.”

Details on the cuts are sure to come to light at some point, but for now, Wiesen said it is too early in the process and it is still unknown how deep the cuts and layoffs could go. He said it is hard to predict how severe the damage, if any, to the sanctuary and museum could be.

“The firing and cuts are happening in real-time and it seems things are changing by the moment. It is too early to know the full impact,” he said.

Steve Schulwitz can be reached at 989-358-5689 or sschulwitz@TheAlpenaNews.com. Follow him on X @ss_alpenanews.com.