Group fights to keep Consulate of Mexico in Anchorage
Mexicans living in Alaska will soon have to travel out of state to receive services from the Consulate of Mexico, but a group is petitioning to keep the Anchorage office open.
Alaska News Nightly: Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2015
Mukowski skips abortion vote; New dinosaur species discovered in Alaska; Ice Age humans dined on salmon; Walker to call special session; Dog team nearly killed; Scientists exploring Sitka landslide; Kodiak police defend actions; Mat-Su tobacco tax under scrutiny
Murkowski missed – didn’t duck – abortion vote, staffer says
Sen. Lisa Murkowski was absent today for a procedural vote on banning abortion after the 20th week. As her spokeswoman explains it, Murkowski did not intentionally duck the abortion vote, but missed it due to "prior travel commitments."
New dinosaur species discovered in Alaska
A new dinosaur species has been discovered in Alaska. Bones of the plant eating Hadrosaur were excavated by researchers working in a known fossil rich zone north of the Brooks Range.
Salmon bones reveal Ice Age fishing holes
Researchers in Alaska have found the earliest known evidence that Ice Age humans in North America used salmon as a food source. A new paper published on Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences asserts that chum salmon have been harvested in Alaska for 11 thousand years.
Walker to call special session on Alaska LNG
Governor Bill Walker said Monday night that he plans to call a special session of the legislature to discuss the state's massive natural gas pipeline project, dubbed Alaska LNG.
Dog team nearly killed by river erosion
Just as it was getting dark Saturday evening, Akiak resident and dog musher Mike Williams Sr. stepped outside to see his dog lot falling into the Kuskokwim River and seven of his sled dogs being pulled into the water. “They were beginning to choke,” Williams said, “but they’re alive, they’re okay now. They got them just in time,” Williams said.
Scientists exploring what caused deadly Sitka landslide
One month after a deadly landslide struck in Sitka, a group of scientists and agency officials are starting the complicated task of learning what happened. The Geo Task Force has been meeting informally at the Sitka Sound Science Center. The center’s director, Lisa Busch, believes these gatherings are an important first step in understanding the area’s geophysical hazards.
Kodiak police respond to allegations of excessive force
Last Wednesday evening, a little after 5 pm, an autistic 28-year-old Kodiak man walked down his quiet neighborhood street to check the mailbox, as he does most days. His condition is such that it's one of the few tasks that he's comfortable executing and is allowed to do unsupervised. It's unclear what happened next, but when Nick Pletnikoff''s mother found him, he was surrounded by three Kodiak Police Officers who had pinned him to the ground and pepper-sprayed him from point-blank range.
Electronic cigarette tax vexes vapers
A hefty excise tax on wholesale tobacco products sold in the Matanuska Susitna Borough is under scrutiny.
Charges filed against owners of Alaska marijuana businesses
The owners of two marijuana delivery services and the owner of the Alaska Cannabis Club in Anchorage have been charged with drug crimes for the delivery and possession of marijuana.
B.C. meeting with Tulsequah Chief Mine owner
A top British Columbia official is meeting with owners of the Tulsequah Chief Mine, which is leaking pollution into a river that flows into Alaska.
Willow Creek remains identified as fisherman missing since last August
The remains found on Saturday on a sandbar in Willow Creek have been identified as those of Jerry Warner, 71, of Missouri. Warner was reported missing on August 3rd of last year.
Cheaper courses at Northwest Campus after $14k NSEDC grant
It’s not too late to register for classes at Northwest Campus, and this semester, many one-credit courses will come a little cheaper, thanks to a $14,000 grant from the Norton Sound Economic Development Corporation.
Alaska News Nightly: Monday, Sept. 21, 2015
$2K PFD announced; Senators want to repeal "Cadillac" health plan tax; Hearings start on fighter jets; Feds open criminal investigation into walrus deaths; Starfish losing arms; Newtok nervous about relocation timeline; HUD grants to fight mold granted; UAS to offer marine transportation degree; ANSEP attracting more students.
Alaska Senators sponsor legislation to repeal Cadillac tax
Alaska's two U. S. Senators are co-sponsoring legislation to repeal the so-called Cadillac tax, which will impact high priced employer health plans starting in 2018. Because health care is so expensive in Alaska, the tax could have a big impact in the state.
Hearings start on fighter jets coming to Eielson
Local hearings are happening this week on the planned basing of 54 F-35 fighter jets at Eielson Air Force Base. The sessions, in North Pole, Delta and Fairbanks, provide opportunity to comment on a draft Environmental Impact Statement on the basing plan.
Washington opens criminal investigation into walrus deaths
The federal government has opened a criminal investigation into the death of 25 Pacific walrus found on an isolated northwest Alaska beach. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service spokeswoman Crystal Leonetti says agency investigators have not returned from the site at Cape Lisburne but that the case is now in the hands of the U.S. Attorney office.
Starfish losing arms to disease
Starfish from Mexico to Alaska have been hammered by a wasting disease that causes their arms to melt and fall off. Sea stars in the Aleutian Islands have not been affected yet.
Newtok feeling nervous about relocation timeline
Residents in the small coastal village of Newtok in Southwest Alaska have been preparing to move as erosion eats away at their village. A dispute over who has tribal authority has slowed the process,but now that dispute has been decided by federal courts and a new set of tribal officials are getting the relocation effort underway again. With climate change accelerating the erosion many are getting anxious that the move can’t happen soon enough.