Tim Ellis, KUAC - Fairbanks
Tim Ellis is a reporter at KUAC in Fairbanks.
GVEA declares Healy 2 power plant operational
Golden Valley Electric Association’s chief executive says the 50-megawatt Healy 2 power plant is finally fully online and commercially operational after successful testing of repaired/updated systems. Listen now
For the second time this month, Russian warplanes intercepted in Alaska airspace
Two U.S. fighter jets intercepted four Russian warplanes off the west coast of Alaska Tuesday.
Five Guam-based B-52s parked out in Eielson amidst typhoon
Five B-52s from an U.S. air base in Guam are parked on the flightline at Eielson Air Force Base. Air Force officials sent the big bombers and their crews to Eielson this week to wait out Typhoon Mangkhut, which struck the island Monday. Listen now
$14.8 million contract awarded for Clear Air Force station missile defense project
The Army Corps of Engineers has awarded a $14.8 million contract to a Palmer-based contractor for work on a missile defense-related project at Clear Air Force Station, near Anderson. Listen now
Moose hunters riled over new restrictions on military-training range access to camps
Moose-hunting season begins in just over two weeks, and hunters are up in arms over restrictions on access through military-training ranges that will make it hard for them to get back into their favorite camps.
AK: Quartz Lake denizens adapt to a shrinking water level
Quartz Lake is shrinking -- the water level of the popular lake just north of Delta Junction is dropping. And while researchers try to find out why, archeologists are studying how humans have adapted to the lake’s periodic cycles of increasing and decreasing water levels since they moved into the area 14,000 years ago. Listen now
Fairbanks Folk School hopes to expand traditional-skills curriculum at new location
The nonprofit school’s board of directors hopes to attract more students and offer more classes on traditional crafts and outdoors skills in the two buildings they've moved in to over the past couple of weeks. Listen now
In apparent suicide, man dies after jumping from eighth floor of UAF building
University of Alaska Fairbanks officials say a man killed himself on campus this morning by jumping from the eighth-floor of the Gruening Building. Listen now
Corps of Engineers halts cleanup after workers discover buried DDT-tainted junk
The Army Corps of Engineers last fall halted cleanup of fuel-tainted soil near Birch Lake, about 60 miles south of Fairbanks, when workers uncovered buried junk that included barrels with residues of a different contaminant – the banned pesticides DDT and chlordane. Listen now
During Eielson visit, Defense Secretary Mattis highlights Alaska’s strategic military role
Mattis spoke at a news conference this morning at Eielson Air Force Base, after a tour of the missile-defense facility at Fort Greely. Listen now
Walker signs bill to close out oil tax credit debt
Gov. Bill Walker was in Fairbanks Wednesday to sign a piece of legislation that would close out the remaining debt the state incurred under the old oil tax-credit program.
Two coal-seam fires merge to form rapidly-growing wildfire near Healy
State Forestry firefighters are working to contain a fast-growing wildfire near Healy that was ignited by two smoldering fires burning in coal deposits at the surface that merged together. Listen now
Pogo officials consider extending life of gold mine if exploration shows promising deposits
Pogo Mine officials say the company may extend the life of the mine northeast of Delta Junction if exploration they’re conducting this summer confirms the presence of potentially rich gold deposits. Listen now
Fairbanks City Council OKs ordinance advancing bid to secure Polaris
The Fairbanks City Council took a big step Monday toward taking over ownership of the old Polaris Building – a step that Mayor Jim Matherly hopes will lead to demolition of the contaminated and condemned downtown structure. Listen now
Supreme Court denies Schaeffer Cox’s request for appeal of conviction
The U.S. Supreme Court has rejected Fairbanks militia leader Schaeffer Cox’s appeal of his conviction in 2012 on a charge of conspiracy to murder federal officials. Listen now
Fairbanks airfields convert to alternative firefighting foam over contamination concerns
Fairbanks International Airport and Eielson Air Force Base no longer use a type of firefighting foam containing a chemical compound that’s contaminated groundwater around the city, and that poses a potential threat to human health. Listen now
ANWR coastal plain oil, gas lease plan draws heated opposition in Fairbanks
About 250 people turned out Tuesday at a meeting in Fairbanks to offer comments on a federal plan to launch an oil and gas leasing program in the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Listen now
Fairbanks City Councilman demands plan to recover groundwater contamination response Costs
Fairbanks City Councilman David Pruhs has directed staff to draft a plan over the next 90 days on how the city will respond to the growing problem of groundwater contamination caused by chemical compounds in firefighting foam.
IGU board considers Siemens proposal for alternative natural gas source for Fairbanks
An affiliate of the Germany-based industrial giant Siemens is offering to build an LNG plant near Wasilla and transport the gas it processes there to Fairbanks at no cost to the Interior Gas Utility. Listen now
Firefighters mop up 250-acre wildfire in Delta
Firefighters mopped up the remains of a 250-acre wildfire Sunday that busted out two days earlier in a largely residential area near Delta Junction. Listen now