Dan Bross, KUAC - Fairbanks
Initiative Revives Air Regulation Debate
Sides are lining out their positions is the long running battle over who should be in charge of cleaning up Fairbanks air. A twice passed citizen initiative, which bans the North Star Borough from regulating wood and coal burning stoves and boilers, is up for renewal in next month’s municipal election.
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Forecasters Keeping Eye Out for an El Nino
Weather forecasters have their eye out for an El Nino this fall and winter. The equatorial Pacific Ocean warming has been observed in its early stages this summer. National Weather Service Alaska region climate science and services manager Rick Thoman is tracking conditions that signal El Nino.
Cold, Wet Front Drops 3 Inches of Snow On Deadhorse
A cold front is ushering in wet, chilly conditions across much of the state. The Alaska Department of Transportation reported three inches of snow in Deadhorse earlier this afternoon.
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New Tanana Rec Site Not Thwarted By Rain
It’s been one of the rainiest summer’s on record in Fairbanks, but that hasn’t hampered the debut of new recreation area.
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4 Injured In Brooks Range Plane Crash
A pilot and passengers were were hurt in a plane crash in the Brooks Range on Sunday. National Transportation Safety Board Alaska Region chief Clint Johnson says the single engine Navion, operated by Kirst Aviation of Fairbanks went down in Atigun Pass, near mile 244 of the Dalton Highway.
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Fairbanks City Hall Renamed for Pat Cole
Fairbanks City Hall now bears the name of a former employee who died after four decades of local government service.
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Yukon River Kings In Jeopardy Despite Meeting Escapement Goal
Yukon River king salmon continue to show symptoms indicative of low production. Unprecedented fishing restrictions in Alaska this summer allowed over 64,ooo kings to cross the border into Canada. That was enough to surpass an escapement goal, but it doesn't tell the whole story.
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Modeling Indicates Fairbanks LNG Project is a Go
The state is a step closer to proving its North Slope to Fairbanks natural gas trucking project can work. The Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority lead Interior Energy Project is aimed at providing gas at about half the cost of heating oil, and officials say they’re honing in on the target.
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US Arctic Representative Tours Alaska
The United States Special Representative for the Arctic is visiting Alaska. Retired Coast guard Admiral Robert Papp is charged with managing the country’s entire arctic portfolio. That includes investigation of issues and potential claims to arctic waters off Alaska’s northern coastline.
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Village Fire Crews Heading to Lower 48 to Fight Fires
Alaska village-based firefighting crews are heading south to fight blazes in the Lower 48. Alaska Division of Forestry spokesman Sam Harrel is tracking the deployments, which began over the weekend with crews from the communities of Delta Junction, Kaltag, Fort Yukon, Venetie, Koyukuk and Galena.
ConocoPhillips to Operate New Doyon Drill Rig
Doyon is building a new North Slope oil drilling rig, the Interior Regional Native Corporation will operate for Conoco Phillips.
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Usibelli Submits Coal Bed Methane Plan
Usibelli Coal has submitted a plan to drill coal bed methane exploration wells on state land near Healy. The company is licensed to look for shallow gas on over 200 thousand acres of state and private land in the area, and this is the first action the company has taken.
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Tribal Leaders Discuss Ambler Road
Tribal leaders are gathering interested parties, including state and federal officials, in the village of Allakaket to discuss the state’s proposed road into the Ambler Mining District. Upper Koyukuk River people are concerned about impacts to subsistence resources by the road, and mining development it would bring.
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Fort Yukon Plans New Landfill to Improve Safety, Facilitate More Recycling
The City of Ft. Yukon plans to build a new landfill. The project is aimed at improving safety and recycling some of the community’s waste stream.
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NASA Testing Arctic Sea Ice Monitoring Technology With High-Flying Ex-Spy Plane
NASA is piloting a mission out of Fairbanks with a specialized plane that can fly high enough to test technology destined for satellite applications.
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Fairbanks Wind Energy Battle Continues
A Fairbanks based alternative energy company continues to push Golden Valley Electric Association to buy more of its wind power. Alaska Environmental Power operates a wind farm in Delta Junction, and recently teamed with an Anchorage law firm on a report it hopes will sway utility members.
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Rep. Guttenberg Looks To Jumpstart Fairbanks LNG
State Representative David Guttenberg wants to jumpstart Fairbanks’ conversion to natural gas heating. The state is pursuing a public private project to process North Slope gas and truck it to Fairbanks, but Gutenberg says it faces a familiar problem.
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Fairbanks Rains Approach Record Levels
Scattered rain showers are in the Fairbanks area forecast, and any precipitation that falls will add to local totals that have Fairbanks on track to continue breaking wet weather records.
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Fairbanks Borough Pursuing Drone Park
The Fairbanks North Star Borough wants to set up a special area for companies to develop and test drone aircraft for the military. The project would capitalize on recent year’s state laws aimed at helping woo the defense industry and spur economic development.
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Rainy Weather Continuing Into July
Rain continues to fall across the central and eastern interior as July extends a trend that made June Fairbanks rainiest on record.
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