Murkowski’s irate; Interior nominee heard all about it
U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski used a confirmation hearing as an opportunity to voice her frustration over a string of decisions by Sec. Sally Jewell limiting development in Alaska, including last week's cancellation of Arctic offshore lease sales. An Interior Department nominee felt the burn today.
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Online map plots coastal erosion in eight Western Alaska locations
Each year, coastal communities in Western Alaska watch feet - even yards - of shoreline disappear into the waves. Now, a new online mapping tool will let them look at past erosion and see where coastlines might be in future years.
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Obama Administration cancels offshore lease sales, citing lack of interest
The Interior Department won't auction off drilling rights in the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas in the next two years. The auctions would have been the first in the Arctic Ocean since 2008, and the first under President Obama.
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AK: Tlingit carver featured in small-town, large-scale Smithsonian project
Tlingit master carver Wayne Price has a relationship with the ocean and the tides that runs deeper than most. He carves dugout canoes in Haines and his work and words are set to hit the road in the spring as part of the Smithsonian’s Water/Ways exhibit. It’s a traveling show from the Smithsonian Institution’s Museum on Main Street designed for rural museums.
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Hearing ends 26 years of litigation over Exxon Valdez oil spill
The state and federal governments have decided not to pursue a final $100-million from ExxonMobil over its 1989 oil spill in Prince William Sound.
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AFN keynote, Haida master weaver talks on family, heritage
Alaska Natives from all over the state are in Anchorage for the annual Alaska Federation of Natives Convention, Oct. 15-17. The keynote speaker is Haida master weaver Delores Churchill and her grandson, Haida master carver Donald Varnell. This fall, Churchill was in Petersburg to hold a weaving workshop.
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Dutch Harbor rats (unwittingly) help save Pribilof seabirds from their kind
Biologists and tribal officials in the Bering Sea off the west coast of Alaska are working to protect one of the world's greatest gatherings of seabirds. With a little unwilling help from wharf rats in Alaska's Dutch Harbor, the nation's busiest fishing port, they aim to keep rats as far away as Seattle from devouring the birds of the rat-free Pribilof Islands.
With $3B budget deficit, lawmakers eye oil tax credits
With the state facing a deficit next year of more than $3 billion, lawmakers face the always vexing question of what can be cut. One option on the table is reducing tax credits for oil and gas companies.
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Murkowski raises big cash, expects a fight
U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski is raising serious money for her re-election bid next year, despite having no serious challenger yet.
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Planned totem poles in Douglas mark ‘A Time for Healing’
Savikko Park and Gastineau Elementary School will be the future sites of two totem poles. Plans include interpretive signs in Tlingit and English, explaining the history of the original people of Juneau and Douglas: the Aakʼw Ḵwáan and Tʼaaḵu Ḵwáan. Technology also plays a part in telling the story.
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Congressional panel to hear criticism of EPA’s Pebble process
A U.S. House Committee chairman has announced a hearing to examine whether the EPA unfairly blocked the Pebble Mine in Southwest Alaska with a so-called “pre-emptive veto,” before the mine has even applied for permits.
Assembly votes for changes to residential construction and design
After months of examination and discussion, the Assembly passed a measure that could change the DNA of housing and neighborhoods across Anchorage.
Why did Shell walk away from Alaska?
Shell’s announcement left the state wondering what to blame -- low oil prices? Tough regulations? Better prospects elsewhere? In other words, is it us -- or is it Shell?
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‘Not in our Smokehouse’ calls elders and youth to action
The Elders and Youth Conference kicked off in Anchorage today. This year’s theme is a call to action “Not in Our Smokehouse!”
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Homelessness survey finds at least 70 in Juneau sleeping outside
Volunteers and staff from Juneau’s shelter and soup kitchen went to the streets and interviewed 70 homeless people over the course of a few days in September. It’s been three years since the vulnerability index survey was done in the capital city.
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Begich says he’s no moper; urges Native youth to persist
Former U.S. senator Mark Begich spoke to the Alaska Federation of Natives Elders and Youth Conference today, one of his biggest Alaskan audiences since he lost re-election and left office in January.
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Assembly hears testimony on Title 21, tax cap proposals
The Anchorage Assembly is preparing for public testimony on two controversial measures at its Tuesday meeting.
Keeping produce on the menu: Church picks up state’s slack
An eleventh-hour donation to the Bristol Bay Borough School is keeping fresh fruits and vegetables on students’ plates this year.
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Alaskan receives White House honor, appointment as poetry ‘ambassador’
First Lady Michelle Obama honored five young American poets at the White House this morning, including one Alaskan: Anna Lance, a 17-year-old from Eagle River, who represents the West. But being named a National Student Poet isn’t just about glory. It comes with an obligation, too.
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Drilling for gold: Inside the KSM’s exploration project
British Columbia’s Kerr-Sulphurets-Mitchell mining project wrapped up its 2015 exploration season in late September. The KSM, about 30 miles east of the Alaska border, is the largest of 10 or so such projects near waterways that flow into Southeast. The mine's owner has spent close to $200 million searching for ore. In this segment, we take a boots-on-the-ground tour of the exploration process.
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