Dan Bross, KUAC - Fairbanks
Dan Bross is a reporter at KUAC in Fairbanks.
Stryker Soldiers Begin To Return To Ft. Wainwright
The first major group of Ft. Wainwright Stryker Brigade soldiers returned to Fairbanks yesterday following a year-long deployment to Afghanistan.
Game Board Votes Down Bear Snaring Proposal
The state game board voted down a bear snaring proposal before adjourning from a week-long meeting in Fairbanks Friday. The state proposal, which would have allowed black bear trapping in areas of the interior, to reduce predation of moose, was unanimously rejected by the board.
Game Board Approves Interior Bear Baiting Expansion
The Board of Game has made changes to expand bear baiting in the interior. Bear baiting programs have primarily focused on black bears, but Fish and Game spokeswoman Cathie Harms says the board approved proposals that would allow hunters to kill grizzly bears at bait stations in game management units 20C, southwest of Fairbanks and 21 D near Galena.
Moving F-16s From Eielson Would Result In 600 Lost Jobs
More than 600 jobs would be lost at Eielson if the Air Force moves the base’s F-16 Fighter Squadron to Joint Base Elmendorf Richardson in Anchorage. An Air Force document released Tuesday identifies the job cuts that would effectively reduce Eielson’s current workforce 22 percent. Air Force spokeswoman Ann Stefanek at the Pentagon says the cuts would affect military and civilian jobs.
‘Video Visiting’ Helping Families Stay Connected With Inmates
A new service in Fairbanks will help prison inmates, their family and friends, stay batter connected. “Video Visiting” provides audio and video interface between a designated site in Fairbanks and a Colorado prison, where many Alaska inmates are serving time.
Investigators Recommend Court Martial For Four Ft. Wainwright Soldiers
Another preliminary hearing has recommended court martial trials for Ft. Wainwright soldiers charged in connection with the death of a fellow Stryker Brigade soldier.
Stryker Brigade Helps Reopen Afghanistan School
The Ft. Wainwright Stryker Brigade has facilitated the re-opening of a school in Afghanistan. Stryker Lieutenant Miles Dunning is in charge of overseeing humanitarian assistance projects for the infantry company that led the village school project near Sperwan Ghar, in southern Afghanistan.
Bear Snaring Opponents Gather Over 3,000 Signatures
Opponents of a bear snaring proposal have gathered over 3,000 signatures in an effort to get the state game board to drop it. The Department of Fish and Game proposal would allow the public to snare bears in a wide area of the state, primarily in the interior, as a way to reduce predation.
World Ice Art Championships Underway In Fairbanks
The World Ice Art Championships are underway in Fairbanks. It’s the first year at a new home for the annual carving competition and kid’s fun park. As KUAC’s Dan Bross reports, like the sculptures it’s venue for, the Ice Park is a work a progress.
Course Teaches About Home Sustainability
Ultra energy efficient building is possible and makes sense. That’s the focus of a course called: “A 21st Century Sustainable Home” at University of Alaska Fairbanks this Saturday.
NPS May Allow Limited Harvest Of Certain Items In Parks
The National Park Service is considering allowing subsistence harvest of plant and animal parts like birch bark and shed antlers. It’s currently illegal to take such items from most parks.
Competitors Run, Ski And Bike Their Way To McGrath, Nome
Competitors in a human powered ultra-marathon on the Iditarod Trail have been slowed by heavy snow. A storm dumped more than two feet of snow just after the race started in Knik Sunday.
Ft. Wainwright Soldier Facing Court Martial
A Ft. Wainwright based soldier will face court martial in the death of a fellow Stryker Brigade member in Afghanistan. Charges against Sergeant Travis Carden, including maltreatment, assault and reckless endangerment, have been referred to court martial in connection with the death of Private Danny Chen last year.
New UAF Lab Enables Power Generation Testing
A new laboratory at the University of Alaska Fairbanks enables realistic testing of power generations systems for Alaska villages. Alaska Center for Energy and Power Director Gwen Holdman says the 5,000 square foot lab can analyze both traditional diesel and alternative energy generation systems.
Rep. Young Responds To Planned Eielson F-16 Move
Representative Don Young says it will be tough to turn around the Air Force’s planned move of an F-16 fighter jet squadron from Eielson to Joint base Elmendorf Richardson in Anchorage.
Researchers Launch Rocket to Study Northern Lights
A rocket was successfully launched from Poker Flat north of Fairbanks over the weekend. Saturday night’s flight was part of a multi-university project aimed at understanding the effect of the northern lights on global positioning system and other radio signals. Principle investigator Steve Powell of Cornell University says satellite data indicated an intense stream, of charged particles from the sun heading toward the earth, and the aurora did not disappoint.
Bill Would Offer Energy Relieve for Alaskans
A bill introduced in the state legislature offers energy relief for Alaskans. The bipartisan sponsored measure would provide vouchers to all Permanent Fund Dividend eligible adults for 250 gallons of heating fuel, or an equivalent amount of natural gas, or 1,500 kilowatt hours of electricity.
February Much Warmer than January
February weather will go down in the record books in stark contrast to January. Above normal warmth so far this month following January’s extreme cold is hard to pin on any one factor, but National Weather Service lead forecaster Rick Thoman in Fairbanks says the cooling of equatorial Pacific waters called La Nina likely figures into it.
General Schwartz To Explain Planned Movement of Eielson F-16s
Air Force Chief of Staff General Norton Schwartz meets with a group of local officials in Fairbanks tomorrow. General Schwartz is coming to explain the Air Force’s planned movement of Eielson Air Force Base’s F-16 Squadron, and as many 2,000 of the base’s 2,700 people, to Joint Base Elmendorf Richardson in Anchorage.
‘On the Ice’ Movie Set to Premiere
Another Alaska based movie is premiering. Like the recently released “Big Miracle, “On the Ice” is set in Barrow, but as KUAC’s Dan Bross reports the films are very different.