Annie Feidt, Alaska Public Media - Anchorage

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Annie Feidt is the broadcast managing editor at Alaska Public Media. Reach her at afeidt@alaskapublic.org. Read more about Annie here

New Technology May Help Roads Resist Wear and Tear

Most of us spend a lot of time rolling over pavement each day, but very little time thinking about it. For a team of workers at the state Department of Transportation though, it’s their job to consider the intricacies of asphalt.

Alaska Touts Lowest Neonatal Mortality Rate In Nation

The state is celebrating an impressive turn around for mortality rates for the smallest Alaskans- infants in their first month of life.

Experts Puzzling Over Mysterious Seal, Walrus Disease

Experts in the U.S. and Canada are still puzzling over what’s sickening ringed seals and walrus in the Arctic. Dozens of seals have died from the mysterious disease.

Aerial Predator Control Plan on Kenai Peninsula Under Consideration

The state Board of Game is considering a controversial plan to begin aerial predator control on the Kenai Peninsula for the first time. The moose hunt for most of the Kenai has been severely limited. The board of game is looking for ways to give hunters more opportunities to bag moose. But state biologists have said predation is not the issue. And conservation groups are opposing the plan.

‘Club 49’ Waives Some Bag Fees for Alaska Residents

By Annie Feidt, APRN – Anchorage & Matt Lichtenstein, KFSK – Petersburg Alaskan residents will be able to avoid the dreaded baggage fee on Alaska Airlines flights to or from the state starting in November.

North Slope Ringed Seals Develop Mysterious Illness

Dozens of Ringed Seals on the North Slope have developed a mysterious illness that’s causing severe skin lesions. Many of the seals have died. Other Arctic marine mammals could also be affected and several agencies are investigating the cause.

Few Studies Track PFD Impact

The state is sending out nearly 650 thousand Permanent Fund Dividends today. Its the 30th dividend paid to Alaskans. In all that time, there have been very few studies on how Alaskans spend the extra cash and how that spending affects the state’s economy. But retailers say their sales around dividend time take a big jump.

Museum Preserves Knowledge on Local Foods

The Alutiiq Museum is moving forward with a project that will help preserve indigenous knowledge of local food resources and integrate that information with modern preservation techniques. April Laktonen Councellor and Danielle Ringer both work at the museum and are involved with the Alutiiq Wild Foods project.

Chukchi Lease Sale Stands

The federal government is upholding the 2008 oil and gas lease sale in the Chukchi Sea. The sale was challenged in court and last year, a judge required the Interior Department to complete a supplemental environmental impact statement and then decide whether to vacate the sale.

Groups Suing to Stop Shell’s Plan to Drill in the Beaufort Sea

Environmental groups are suing to stop Shell from drilling next year in the Beaufort Sea. Last month, the Interior Department gave conditional approval to Shell’s plan to drill up to four exploratory wells in the Beaufort Sea beginning in the summer of 2012.

Trident Seafoods Paying $2.5 Million in Fines for Clean Water Act Violations

Trident Seafoods is agreeing to pay the federal government $2.5 million to settle clean water act violations at its Alaska processing facilities.

Drilling Rig Breaks Down, Blocks Road While in Transit

A giant drilling rig is completely blocking one of the main roads near Prudhoe Bay.

Upgrades Could Enable Pipeline to Safely Operate Below 500,000 Barrel Capacity

A new study on the Trans Alaska Pipeline System has an optimistic take on the problem of declining oil in the pipeline.

Former AEWC Executive Charged With Embezzlement

The former executive director of the Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission has been charged with embezzling nearly half a million dollars from the organization.

Stryker Brigade Soldier Killed in Afghanistan

Another Stryker Brigade soldier from Fort Wainwright in Fairbanks has died in Afghanistan. 29 year old Specialist Ryan J. Cook, from Florida, died Sept. 18 when insurgents attacked his unit with an IED. Another...

Walruses Hauling Out Near Point Lay Again

Walruses are hauled out near Point Lay in huge numbers again. Federal scientists estimate tens of thousands of animals came to shore in Alaska in late August as the sea ice retreated.

‘Climate Change Reality Project’ Heading to Kotzebue

Kotzebue is one of 24 sites around the world featured in a 24 hour event today to raise awareness about climate change. Former Vice President Al Gore founded the Climate Reality Project as a...

Anglers Can Save Wasted Rockfish

Rockfish swim in deep waters off Alaska. And when they're caught and brought to the surface, the pressure changes can cause incredible trauma. But a recently completed study from the Alaska Department of Fish and Games shows the fish have an amazing ability to recover if they are released back down at depth.

Secretary Kathleen Sebelius Visits Alaska

Kathleen Sebelius is the latest Obama administration official to visit Alaska this month. The Health and Human Services Secretary is touring the state this week at the invitation of Senator Mark Begich. At providence hospital in Anchorage this morning, Sebelius sat down with Alaskans who help provide medical care for the state's seniors.

TAPS Offers Support to Wartime Widows

The war on terror has created a lot of military widows in the U.S. since it began in 2001. But it can be difficult for grieving wives to connect with people who understand what they’re going through.