According to the Services Alaska Regional Director, Dave Allen, Merritt has been with the Service for almost 20 years. "Merritt has the experience and training needed to manage the Tetlin Refuge," Allen said. "Hes going into this job with an enthusiasm and commitment to the resource that will serve the mission of the Service very well."
In his new role, Merritt will manage a refuge that is one of only two refuges in Alaska that are accessible by road. The Tetlin Refuge is characterized by broad flat river basins bisected by rolling hills, extensive marsh and lake complexes and the foothills of the Nutzotin and Mentasta Mountains. Two large glacial rivers, the Chisana and Nabesna, flow northward through the Refuge, joining near the Refuges northwestern boundary to form the Tanana River, one of Alaskas major rivers.
The Tetlin Refuge is located in a major migration corridor for migratory birds, including Sandhill cranes and trumpeter swans. More than 65,000 ducklings are produced each year on the Refuges wetland nesting areas. Tetlin provides habitat for more than 100 species of nesting birds, as well as for caribou, moose, bears and wolves.
Merritt graduated from Humboldt State University in 1977 with a degree in wildlife management. He joined the Fish and Wildlife Service in 1979 after two years with the Bureau of Land Management. Since joining the Service, Merritt has worked on refuges in Michigan, Colorado and Montana. He served as Refuge Manager for the 3.85 million acre Innoko Refuge in Alaska for seven years.
"The big management challenges we face as we approach the new millennium are in the context of long-term stewardship," Merritt said. "How do we find ways to do meaningful work now
that will help future managers ensure the long-term protection of these priceless resources, resources that the American people have entrusted to our care? Meeting these challenges is what its all about for me. Thats why I signed on with the Fish and Wildlife Service."
The only collection of federal lands devoted specifically to wildlife conservation, the 93-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System is a network of diverse and strategically located habitats. More than 500 national wildlife refuges and thousands of waterfowl production areas across the United States and U.S. territories teem with millions of migratory birds, serve as havens for endangered species, support premier fisheries, and host a tremendous array of other plants and animals. The Refuge System also comprises more than 20 million acres of wilderness areas. Nearly 35 million people visit Refuge System sites each year to enjoy hundreds of recreational and educational programs. Alaskas 16 refuges comprise 85 percent of the total acreage of the National Wildlife Refuge System.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting, and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 93-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System comprised of more than 500 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands, and other special management areas. It also operates 66 national fish hatcheries, 64 fish and wildlife management assistance offices and 78 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces Federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state wildlife agencies.
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