USCGC Alder (WLB-216)

USCGC Alder (WLB-216) is a Juniper-class, 225 ft seagoing buoy tender of the United States Coast Guard.

Alder was built by Marinette Marine Corporation and launched on February 7, 2004. Alder's maiden voyage was on September 12, 2004. The Alder is currently assigned to Duluth, Minnesota as its home port. Alder replaced the previous cutter stationed in Duluth, the USCGC Sundew, which retired after 60 years of service.

Alder is designed as a multi-mission vessel, with its missions being Aids to Navigation, Icebreaking, Search and Rescue, Homeland Security, Law Enforcement, and Marine Environmental Protection.

Operation Nanook 2010
In August 2010 the Guided Missile Destroyer USS Porter and the Alder participated in Operation Nanook 2010 in Baffin Bay and the Davis Straits. This was the fourth annual Operation Nanook organized by the Canadian Government, but it was the first to host foreign vessels.