Emily Schwing, special to Alaska Public Media
New Student Fee to Help Cover UAF Budget Shortfall for Facility Upgrade
In June, Governor Sean Parnell signed Senate Bill 218 into law, paving the way for a $245 million dollar renovation and upgrade to the power plant at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. But the project is funded in part by revenue bonds that have to be paid back to the state. According to a memorandum sent last week by University of Alaska System President Pat Gamble, the Board of Regents plans to implement a student fee to cover costs associated with the project.
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Alaska Exceeds Canadian Chinook Escapement Goal, Decline Remains a Mystery
The Yukon River Chinook salmon run is nearly complete according to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. It’s the first time in roughly eight years that escapement goals lined out in a treaty between Alaska and Canada have been met.
Tanana River Bridge Eases Training Area Access For Military
The Alaska Railroad Corporation hosted a ribbon cutting Tuesday at the Tanana River Crossing bridge and levee. It’s the first phase of the Railroad’s Northern Rail Extension project.
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Russian Adventure, Games and a Walrus Skin Boat Become Lifelong Memories for Alaska Native Family
An Alaska Native family recently traveled to Russia’s Far East to take part in a gathering of indigenous people from seven nations throughout the circumpolar north. The three participated in Native games, music and the celebration of traditional culture in a tiny coastal village along the Bering Sea.
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21 Mushers Add Their Names To 2015 Yukon Quest Roster
The headquarters of the Yukon Quest International Sled Dog Race in both Alaska and Canada were buzzing Saturday with talk of snow and mushing.
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Higher Wildfire Potential Could Impact Northeastern Alaska Caribou Herds
Rural Communities in northeastern Alaska could be left without caribou in the future, according to a recent study. Scientists believe climate change could increase wildfire potential in lichen-rich boreal forest were the Central Arctic and Porcupine caribou herds forage in the winter. A decline in habitat could mean less opportunity for area subsistence hunters.
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2015 Yukon Quest Purse Over $127,000
The Yukon Quest International Sled Dog race organization announced the 2015 race purse Wednesday. The first 15 mushers to cross the finish line next February stand to win a percentage of more than $127,000.
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Inaugural Beringia Arctic Games Brings Indigenous People Together in Russia
This time of year, indigenous people across the Far North gather to play games and celebrate traditions. Earlier this month, in Fairbanks they took part in the World Eskimo Indian Olympics. There was also a gathering of people from across the Circumpolar north in Inuvik, Canada. This year, native people from Arctic nations joined Russia’s Chukchi and Inuit peoples for the first ever Beringia Arctic Games. It was the largest gathering of its kind in a once forgotten corner of the world called Chukotka.
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Scientists Find Climate Cooling Effect in Ancient Thermokarst Lakes
Scientists have long believed melting permafrost emits large amounts of carbon-rich greenhouse gases like methane and carbon dioxide to the atmosphere resulting in a warming climate. But a new study published online by the journal Nature today indicates ancient lakes that formed after permafrost in the Arctic first melted roughly ten thousand years ago may in fact have a net climate cooling effect over long time scales. The study also increases the total amount of carbon estimated in the frozen soils of the Far North by more than 50 percent.
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‘Among Wolves’ Details Researcher’s Lifelong Passion
The University of Alaska Press recently published a book detailing one biologist’s lifelong effort to chronicle the lives of wolves that live inside the boundary of Denali Park and Preserve.
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Big Rule Change Comes To Yukon Quest
The Yukon Quest International Sled Dog Race will have a new set of rules in 2015. Overall rest time has been decreased by two hours, but mushers will be required to make more mandatory stops along the 1000 mile trail.
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Study Says Wolf Deaths Have Implications For Pack
A new study indicates that the death of a wolf has implications for the rest of the pack, depending on the size of the pack and the dead wolf’s sex. The study is in response to the legal trapping of a breeding female that was part of a well-known wolf pack that was frequently spotted in Denali National Park.
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Army Changes Training Procedures In Wake Of Stuart Creek 2 Fire
It’s been one year since the Stuart Creek 2 Wildfire was reported burning in the Yukon Training area northeast of Fairbanks. The blaze, ignited during an Army artillery training exercise, burned more than 87,000 acres. It was one of the largest wildfires in the United States in 2013.
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Newly Forming Permafrost May Not Survive Century’s End
Scientists are announcing a surprising find from the arctic: new permafrost is still forming. But it is unlikely to survive beyond the end of the century. That’s according to a new study out this week in the publication Geophysical Research Letters. Researchers made the discovery at a lake in Alaska’s Eastern Interior.
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Alaska Fire Service Holding Meeting On 100 Mile Creek Fire
The Alaska Fire Service will host a meeting tonight in Delta Junction to answer questions about the 100 Mile Creek Fire burning 20 miles southwest of that town.
UAF Gets $4 Million For Veterinary Medicine Facility
The University of Alaska Board of Regents agreed last week to fund a $4 million design project to re-purpose an already existing building on the UAF campus by September, 2015 when the first students begin studies in a new veterinary medicine program. But, the new program is on a list of recommended budget cuts.
UA Board Approves $5 Million To Extend Work On Engineering Building
The cost of a new engineering building on the University of Alaska Fairbanks campus continues to rise as officials struggle to find ways to pay for its construction. The Board of Regents agreed last week to add $5 million to the project.
Local Researchers Find New Home As Japanese Agencies Leave
The University of Alaska Board of Regents gave their formal approval for a $4.4 million project to re-purpose the Syun-Ichi Akasofu Building on the campus of the University of Alaska, Fairbanks during a regular meeting last week. The project comes after two Japanese agencies vacated the buildings. Their absence means a loss of funding that would otherwise pay to maintain the building.
Wolf Population Declining In Denali National Park
A survey of wolves in Denali National Park and Preserve this spring turned out the fourth lowest count since biologists started keeping track of the animals nearly 30 years ago. Park Service officials say the numbers show a decline in the population, but they haven’t settled on an explanation.
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2-Year State Predator Control Program Claims 153 Interior Bears
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game shot 64 black and brown bears from helicopters in the Western Interior in May. That brings the total number of bears shot during a two-year effort to 153. The Board of Game approved the program following requests from Kuskokwim River-area hunters, who were concerned about a declining moose population.
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