Liz Ruskin, Alaska Public Media
Liz Ruskin is the Washington, D.C., correspondent at Alaska Public Media. Reach her at lruskin@alaskapublic.org. Read more about Liz here.
Rep. Young Riles Indian Country With Hearings on ‘Land in Trust’ Powers
The Interior Secretary’s power to take land into trust for tribes could create pockets of Indian Country across Alaska. Tribes see it as an opportunity to police their own territory and improve village safety. Others see it as the reservation model that Alaskans rejected in the land claims settlement act 44 years ago. Outside the state, land-into-trust is controversial, too.
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UAF Gets a Federal Boost for Unmanned Aircraft
The FAA last week named University of Alaska Fairbanks a “Center of Excellence” for research on unmanned aircraft. UAF and partner universities are charged with helping the FAA figure out how to integrate the unmanned machines in the national airspace. It’s still not clear if much federal money will follow.
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FCC Investigates Bid Discounts for Doyon-Owned Firm
The Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission said Tuesday morning the FCC is ready to investigate how a company partly owned by Fairbanks-based Doyon won licenses to use the wireless spectrum, while claiming it was entitled to billions of dollars in discounts. Critics say Doyon’s big corporate partner, Dish Network, is taking advantage of a program meant to help small businesses. Doyon says the program worked exactly as intended.
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Shell Gets Conditional Approval For Arctic Drilling
Shell has gotten another green light for its oil exploration season in the Chukchi Sea this summer.
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Alaska WWII Vet Enjoys Bird’s Eye View of D.C. Flyover
Alaska Bush pilot Urban Rahoi, a homesteader, lodge owner and Fairbanks businessman, had a ride in a World War II-era B-17 as it flew over the National Mall today. Nice day, he says, but he wanted to be at the controls.
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Russian Fish Called ‘Alaska Pollock’: OK By FDA
If you’re in a supermarket and see a product labeled “Alaska Pollock,” it could well be Russian-caught pollock. And the FDA considers that perfectly legal.
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Sen. Sullivan Lashes Out At Refuge Management He Calls Illegal
Sen. Dan Sullivan pummels the head of U.S. Fish & Wildlife over management of the Arctic Refuge. Sullivan claims the feds are violating the law by managing areas as wilderness without congressional approval. Not so, says the refuge manager.
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Low Pollock Years Linked to Ice Retreat
The years 2002 through 2005 were bad for Bering Sea pollock. The biomass plunged during those years. In a presentation in Washington, D.C., a NOAA fisheries biologist said today ongoing research points to two suspects: ice and fat, in league with each other.
U.S. House Panel Advances Fisheries Law
The U.S. House Natural Resources Committee today moved a bill to renew the Magnuson-Stevens Act. The sponsor, Alaska Rep. Don Young, says the bill makes minor changes to the fisheries law. But some fishermen and conservationists say it undercuts environmental protections and the requirement of science-based management.
Military Construction Bill Has Money for F35s at Eielson AFB
The U.S. House today passed a military construction bill that includes $37 million for buildings at Eielson Air Force Base to support two squadrons of F-35s. The bill has almost as much for a new boiler at the Eielson power plant, and nearly $8 million for the Fort Greely gym.
EPA Head: Alaska ‘Uniqueness’ Could Mean Immunity From CO2 Rule
Administrator Gina McCarthy says Alaska's request for an exemption from the power plant rule will get serious consideration.
Murkowski: Alaskans ‘Scared to Death’ of Water Reg
The White House is reviewing a highly controversial EPA rule on streams and wetlands. Sen. Lisa Murkowski pressed the EPA boss on it, saying it has Alaskans from all sectors worried.
Icebreakers? Sure, but CG Boss Says Cutters Come First
The head of the Coast Guard says the country must invest in new icebreakers to meet a predicted increase in Arctic drilling and marine traffic. But he also told a U.S. Senate panel today the Coast Guard needs lots of ships, and icebreakers aren’t the top item on his acquisitions list.
BOEM Explains 75% Chance of Arctic Oil Spill
Inside a thick government report on the impact of off-shore oil leasing in the Chukchi Sea is a phrase that grabs the attention. It says there's "75% chance of one or more large spills." Today, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management put out a fact sheet to clarify what it means by that 75 percent figure.
US Senate Confirms Attorney General Nominee Loretta Lynch
The U.S. Senate today voted to confirm Loretta Lynch as attorney general. Both Alaska senators voted against her, saying she has not shown she has the independence to stand up to the Obama White House.
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Alaska Miners Dispute Claim That ‘Much’ Of Alaska’s Federal Lands Are Open To Mining
Alaska mining advocates are taking issue with something Interior Secretary Sally Jewell said last week, while defending federal resource management in Alaska.
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Sullivan Wins Amendment to Let States Prosecute Mann Act
Sen. Dan Sullivan added an amendment to the human trafficking bill the U.S. Senate passed today. It addresses a problem he faced as Alaska’s attorney general, when the feds declined to prosecute Bill Allen on sexual abuse charges.
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Arctic Priorities Questioned on Eve of U.S. Chairmanship
The United States assumes chairmanship of the Arctic Council next week, kicking off a two-year window to assert American priorities in the region. The U.S. and other member nations have committed to making the Arctic a “zone of peace.” But now, some Arctic watchers wonder if the U.S. needs to add an item to its Arctic priority list: get tough with Russia.
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Interior Secretary Sally Jewell Defends Federal Land Management
Interior Secretary Sally Jewell today defended the federal government’s land management and brushed off calls from legislators in Alaska, and other states, to seize federal lands.
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Oil Price Likely To Dip Again After Brief Surge
The price of Brent Crude hit above $63 a barrel today, the highest it's been this year. That gives Alaskans something to cheer about, but the head of the U.S. Energy Information Administration told a Senate panel Thursday two political events on the horizon would likely bring the global price down.
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