Ben Matheson, KNOM - Nome
Ben Matheson is a contributor with the Alaska Public Radio Network.
Kuskokwim Inter-Tribal Fish Commission Comes Together In Bethel
Tribal representatives took the first steps on Wednesday towards establishing the Kuskokwim River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission. The group intends to push for co-management of salmon stocks and more direct involvement for tribal fisherman.
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Kuskokwim Working Group Grapples With Fishwheels, Threatened Weirs, And Confusion
On the day that the summer’s king salmon restrictions began, the Kuskokwim River Salmon Management Working Group met to hash out the details of this summer fishing plans. Managing a precarious king salmon run along 700 miles of river will be anything but simple.
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Ravn Outlines Safety Improvements As NTSB Pushes For Investigation
The National Transportation Safety Board took the unusual move last month of asking the Federal Aviation Administration to investigate the Ravn family of companies. A report says Hageland failed to achieve safety outcomes, at the time losing operational control and launching flights without proper oversight. The company’s CEO says the report does not reflect the changes Ravn has made in recent months.
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Inter-Tribal Fish Commissions to Meet in Bethel and St. Marys
Just weeks before the salmon run begins in earnest, discussions are underway to form two inter-tribal fish commissions, one each for the Kuskokwim and Yukon Rivers.
Managers May Close Kuskokwim to King Salmon Fishing Earlier than Planned
The waters of Kuskokwim River are free of ice and at the moment open to subsistence king salmon fishing, but that could quickly change, depending on how many fisherman are targeting and catching king salmon in a year that managers believe is crucial for viability of the run.
Bethel City Council Fires City Manager Lee Foley
The Bethel City Council voted unanimously to fire City Manager Lee Foley during a special meeting Monday.
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Two Bethel Establishments Reportedly Were Operating as Bottle Clubs
The Alaska Alcohol Beverage Control Board says two Bethel establishments have been illegally allowing patrons to bring in and consume their own alcohol, operating as what’s known as “bottle clubs.” But two conflicting statutes in the state alcohol law put certain clubs in a gray area.
Bethel City Council Confirms Code And Policy Violations
The Bethel City Council met Monday night in executive session for three hours with the attorney they hired to conduct an investigation into nepotism, contracts, and personnel issues.
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Bethel’s Megan Leary Takes First Runner-Up At Miss Indian World
Bethel’s Megan Leary is the 2014 first runner up of the Miss Indian World competition, which concluded Saturday night at the Gathering of Nations in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
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Federal Subsistence Board Votes To Limit Kuskokwim Kings to Federally Qualified Users
The Federal Subsistence Board Thursday unanimously approved a special action request from the Napaskiak Traditional Council that would limit any available king salmon to federally qualified subsistence users of 32 specific Kuskokwim communities.
NTSB Releases Preliminary Report on Fatal Hageland Crash
The National Transportation Safety Board has published a preliminary report about the crash that killed two pilots near Three Step Mountain.
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National Weather Service Forecasts Kuskokwim Breakup
The Alaska Pacific River Forecast Center predicts the Kuskowkim will break up at Bethel between May 9th and May 15th. That range is right around the historical average of May 12th. But after a warm winter with little snow, the Forecast Center says this year’s breakup could happen in one of several ways.
Yukon Fishermen Prepare For Summer Of Conservation
Fishers on the Kuskokwim River are expecting unprecedented restrictions to bring more king salmon to spawning grounds. On the Yukon River, fisherman can expect a similar set of restrictions.
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NTSB Advances Investigation Into Fatal Training Flight Crash
The National Transportation Safety Board has finished its on-scene investigation into the crash that killed two Hageland Aviation pilots Tuesday. Derrick Cedars of Bethel and Greggory McGee from Anchorage died in Tuesday’s crash.
Plane Down Near Bethel, Two Reported Onboard
A Cessna 208 with two pilots on board has crashed outside of Bethel. Ravn Alaska spokesperson Steve Smith confirms the downed plane was a Hageland Aviation training flight with two pilots on board, and no passengers.
Kuskokwim Working Group Outlines 2014 King Salmon Restrictions
Two months before what would normally be time for king salmon fishing, Kuskokwim residents have a sketch of what the summer’s conservation measures will look like. There will be no directed king salmon fishing. For other chum and red salmon, managers are setting no hard dates for the first gillnet opening, other than its anticipated in the last week of June. The Kuskokwim River Salmon Management Working Group last week painstakingly came to a consensus on conservation measures.
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Board to Review Proposal Limiting King Salmon Fishing to Federally Qualified Subsistence Users
With salmon fishing just a few short months away, the Federal Subsistence Board will consider a special action request to limit king salmon harvest in the Kuskokwim drainage to federally qualified subsistence users.
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Gasline Bill Could Include Rural Provisions
With less than 30 days remaining in the legislative session, the Alaska House is considering gasline legislation that would advance a line from the North Slope to an LNG export facility in Nikiski. For rural Alaska, the bill includes funding that could send gas to communities hundreds of miles from the pipeline.
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Cama-i Festival Wraps Up In Bethel
The three day Cama-i festival wrapped up Sunday in Bethel. More than 20 dance groups from up and down the Yukon and Kuskowkin rivers and across north America came together to dance, celebrate, and this year, to heal.
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Calista Announces Record Dividend
The Calista Corporation is giving out the largest shareholder dividend in corporate history. The Board of Directors approved a dividend distribution totaling $4.65 million.