Ben Matheson, KNOM - Nome
Ben Matheson is a contributor with the Alaska Public Radio Network.
Board of Fish Approves Kuskokwim Dipnets, 25 Fathom Net Restrictions
Kuskowkim fisherman will have the option to use dipnets this summer to target other salmon during periods of king salmon closures.
Board of Fish Approves Kuskokwim Dipnetting
Kuskowkim fisherman will be able to use dipnets this summer to target other species of salmon during periods of king salmon closures. The Board of Fish approved the emergency petition this morning.
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GCI Nears 3G Data Service In Bethel
Bethel was expected to have 3G service in December of the last year. The date was then moved to February, and now scheduled for mid to late April.
Calista Heritage Foundations Awards $177,000 In Scholarships
Two hundred and three students from the region will receive $177,000 in scholarships from the Calista Heritage Foundation. All recipients are Calista shareholders or descendants.
VPSOs Prepare For Possibility Of Being Armed
The effort to allow VPSOs to carry guns cleared a major hurdle this week when the Alaska House unanimously passed the bill that does just that. The decision is in the hands of legislators in Juneau now, and while the bill passed the 38-0, the issue on the ground is more nuanced.
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YK Delta Halibut Quotas Halved
The statewide halibut and black cod season opened last Saturday. When YK Delta fishermen participate in the Community Development Quota allocations this summer, they will see their halibut quota cut nearly in half.
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US Fish & Wildlife Proposes Reintroducing Steller’s Eiders To YK Delta
A new effort to help a once healthy population of eiders is using unique methods to try to turn sparse numbers around. Stellers eiders used to be common on parts of the YK Delta coast decades ago. Due to some combination of lead poisoning, predators, and changes of habitat they all but disappeared and were listed as threatened under the federal endangered species act in 1997.
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GCI Receives $41 Million To Build 3G, 4G In Rural Alaska
Forty-eight communities in rural Alaska, including 26 in the YK Delta will receive 3G or 4G data service, thanks to an FCC grant of $41 million that GCI secured.
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Dipnets May Be Allowed On Kuskokwim
Kuskowkim fisherman are expected to face serious restrictions on subsistence salmon fishing this summer in efforts to bring more king salmon to the spawning grounds. With fishing closed possibly all of June, the working group is asking that dipnets be used selectively to harvest non-Chinook salmon.
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Legislature Considers Changing Autopsies In Rural Alaska
When a person dies under suspicious or unusual circumstances, the state has an obligation to make sure that evidence is processed and that they can protect the victim and their family. In rural Alaska, that means sending the body to the medical examiners office in Anchorage. If the legislature acts on a bill, part of that examination could take place locally.
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Bethel Man Up For National Environmental Health Award
A YKHC employee is up for the national Indian Health Service Environmental Health Specialist of the Year. Brian Berbube is representing the Alaska region.
Quinhagak Man Arrested For Murder of 25-year-old Woman
Harold Smith, 26, was arrested in Quinhagak Monday and charged with the first degree murder of 25-year-old Lisa Johnson. Johnson's body was found off a trail near the end of the new runway in Quinhagak on February 3.
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Peter Tony Pleads Guilty To 3 Counts Of Child Sexual Abuse
Former Bethel foster parent Peter Tony has pleaded guilty to three counts of child sexual abuse in a plea deal. In the agreement with prosecutors, the 70-year-old pleaded guilty to charges of sexually abusing a minor in 2012 when he abused a 4-year-old his wife had in day care at their home. Those charges carry sentences anywhere from 5 to 99 years each.
BLM Plans Summer Work At The Red Devil Creek
The BLM has a plan for realigning a portion of Red Devil Creek this summer to stop mercury, arsenic, and antimony from eroding away into the river.
Mekoryuk Residents Seek More Musk Oxen For Local
Residents of Mekoryuk on Nunivak Island are seeking more involvement, and more musk oxen harvest. This is happening as the 20-year-old agreement that guides management is set to undergo changes.
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Search Crews Find Missing Nunapitchuk Man Deceased
Search and rescue crews have found the body of Wassillie Berlin. Searchers found him deceased on the trail between Atmautluak and Bethel. The Nunapitchuk man was reported missing by his brother on Saturday. Crews had found his snowmachine earlier.
NTSB Says Pilot Error To Blame In Fatal Midair Crash
The National Transportation Safety board has found that pilot error was to blame in the 2011 crash that killed one pilot and injured another in separate planes.
Black Tar Heroin And Marijuana Seized In Bethel
This week’s drug-related arrests came after a several-month-long investigation involving the work of a confidential informant. It led to seizures of heroin, pot, and the arrest of an alleged bootlegger who bought over 1,500 bottles of whiskey.
Y-K Delta Regional Committee to Develop Strategic Plan
The Y-K Delta Regional Committee has selected a small steering committee and charged them with drafting strategic plan for the YK-Delta. The 16-person panel is tasked with coming up with a strategic plan by the end of the year.
Hooper Bay to Pay Nearly $1 Million for Death in Jail
A Bethel jury has ordered that the city of Hooper Bay pay close a million dollars to the family of a man that died at the Hooper Bay jail. The jury found that the City of Hooper Bay was negligent in the death of 22-year-old Louis Bunyan. Judge Charles Ray read the next portion of the jury’s verdict, which came in after 8 pm Tuesday.