Agency proposes critical habitat for seals

ANCHORAGE (AP) - The federal agency that oversees the U.S. seal population has proposed 350,000 square miles of ocean off Alaska’s north and west coast as critical habitat for the main prey of polar bears.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced Tuesday that it’s proposing critical habitat for ringed seals throughout U.S. jurisdiction in the Beaufort and Bering seas and in much of the western Bering Sea.

“After reviewing the best available information, our scientists identified the habitat features that are essential for sustaining Arctic ringed seals - a species that is...