Growing Samoan Community Comes Together Through Softball
The Samoan population in Anchorage more than doubled between 2000 and 2010. And as the community has grown rapidly, so has its presence on the city's softball fields. Samoan churches in Anchorage run coed softball tournaments throughout the summer as a way to bring the community together. The atmosphere is friendly but the competition is fierce.
Rep. Young Wants States To Take Over Management Of Some National Parks
Representative Don Young wants states to take over management of some National Parks. Young, a longtime critic of the National Park Service, says the proposal is a good fit for Alaska, where he says agency regulations unnecessarily limit access.
Navigable Waters Lawsuit Working Way Through Courts
An Alaska case challenging National Park Service authority is working its way through the courts. Central resident Jim Wilde is appealing his misdemeanor conviction stemming from a 2010 run in with park rangers during a boat safety check on the Yukon River. The appeal challenges the Park Service’s authority to police navigable waters. Wilde’s attorney Bill Satterberg of Fairbanks says the appeal filed in the 9th Circuit Court in January has been thrown back to a lower court.
Audit Studies Math In Sitka School District
Teachers are doing a good job, students are eager to succeed and parents are invested in what’s going on. But the Sitka School District needs to make sure all three of those groups are on the same page when it comes to math education. That’s the finding of an audit on the way Sitka teaches math. The $18,000 project was commissioned by the Sitka School District last year. Results were presented to the school board Monday.
‘Spirit Bears’ May Be Facing New Threat
Some black bears, especially those on the coast of British Columbia, carry a genetic anomaly that makes their fur white. They’re popularly called spirit bears. KSTK’s Anne Hillman spoke to bear biologist Wayne McCrory, who has been studying the bears and trying to protect them for the past 30 years. He says they could be facing a new, larger threat.
Matanuska Maid Dairy Building Was Uninsured
The fire that destroyed the original Matanuska Maid Dairy warehouse in Palmer on Tuesday took a piece of Alaska's history. The building dates to 1935, when the original Matanuska Valley colonists settled in Alaska, and has been on the Alaska Association For Historic Preservation's list of endangered historic properties for several years.
Brooks Range Council Opposing ‘Road to Resources’ Program
The Brooks Range Council is a grassroots movement opposing Governor Sean Parnell’s plan to develop a road to the Ambler Mining District. The governor’s office has proposed nearly $29 million next year to advance his “Road to Resources” program, which includes $4 million for the planned road to Ambler. That money will be used for permitting and environmental work on the proposed roads, which the governor says will eventually allow access to resources near Umiat, Tanana and Ambler. The Ambler mining district is the proposed terminus of a 220-mile road from the Dalton Highway.
Coast Guard Monitors Possible Pirate Vessel
A year after the Coast Guard seized the stateless fishing vessel Bangun Perkasa and brought it back to Unalaska, the agency is in pursuit of another suspected pirate vessel.
Bigger Bills Loom in Medevac Dispute
A complex legal battle has been brewing between a popular medevac insurance provider and the state’s largest medevac company for the past year. While Guardian Flight won’t talk about the case, the insurer, Apollo MT, says it can’t afford to keep quiet.
Booming Caribou Population Prompts Fish And Game To Issue More Hunting Permits
This year's Nelchina caribou herd population is at an unexpected high, and the department of fish and game issued an additional 2,425 hunting permits in an effort to keep the population within a manageable range.
Motorcycle Rider Dies After Colliding With Moose
Tuesday a motorcyclist hit a moose in Wasilla and was killed in the crash. He's identified as Michael Carlyle of Wasilla. There have been several such fatal motorcycle collisions with moose in the area this year, according to State Troopers.
Trident Seafood President Passes Away
Jerry Dowd, the president of Trident Seafoods, is dead of a heart attack. Dowd was on a fishing trip near Bristol Bay on Monday when his death occurred. Dowd began working at Trident in 2004 and was appointed president of the company's domestic operations in 2006. Prior to that he worked at both Tyson's and ConAgra Poultry. His most recent work focused on expanding Trident's operations in China.
NTSB Investigating Deadly Helicopter Crash
A helicopter pilot died in a crash near the Pogo gold mine outside Delta Junction late Tuesday. Sumitomo Metals confirms that the helicopter was working for the mine. There is no identity released yet. State Troopers responded and the National Transportation Safety Board is on its way to investigate.
The War: A World Without War
During the last installment of this documentary, it is the end of World War II, starting in March 1945 and ending in September 1945. Since D-Day the number of dead or wounded soldiers continues to rise. President Roosevelt dies and Harry Truman steps into office. Then, on August 6, 1945, under orders from President Truman, an American plane drops an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, instantly killing 40,000 people. Two hundred thousand more will die in the next few years and months of burns, radiation, and radiation poisoning.
Alaska Public Television. Wednesday, August 08. 8:00 p.m
Matanuska Maid Building Burns Down
Palmer firemen were hosing down hotspots on the rubble of the old Matanuska Maid Dairy building late Tuesday, after an early morning fire demolished the antique structure in downtown Palmer’s historic district. City public safety director John Owen says the fire call came in at 3:30 a.m.
New Assistant Secretary for Energy Devoted to Solving Military Energy Problem
The Department of Defense spends $20 billion on fuel for the military every year. It accounts for 2.5 percent of the defense budget. Now the department has created a new position – The Assistant Secretary for Energy – devoted to solving the military’s energy problem. The new appointee, Sharon Burke, spent a few days touring Alaska this week, hoping the state could supply a fresh perspective.
Processor’s Trawl Fish Purchase Raises Sitka Ire
A Sitka-based seafood processor is taking heat from locals after purchasing trawl-caught fish. Silver Bay Seafoods bought rockfish from two trawlers delivering to the company’s plant in Sitka. Southeast waters are closed to trawling, and while nobody is disputing the legality of the catch, representatives of various fishing interests say the purchase undermines the ban.
Fairbanks Considers Wood Drying Kilns To Reduce Smoke Emissions
The Fairbanks North Star Borough is considering wood drying kilns to reduce smoke emissions from wood stoves and boilers. Dry wood burns cleaner and provides more heat. Borough Air Quality Manager Jim Connor says the current vision is to tap state and federal grant money to contract for the construction and operation of six kilns at three locations in the borough to serve local wood burners.
Alaska Cultural Connections: Experimental Learning Course Offers Southeast Living Perspective
A new experiential learning course is giving college students from across the country a different perspective on living in Southeast Alaska, largely from the vantage point of a kayak. The students earn college credit on the six week course.
EPA Holding Meetings on Bristol Bay Mine in Anchorage
Scientists are gathered at the Dena'ina Center in Anchorage this week for a three-day meeting on the Bristol Bay Watershed Assessment, which reviews possible mining impacts on Salmon in Bristol Bay. The 12 scientists nominated to the panel faced a crowd of stakeholders Monday in the Tikahtnu Ballroom.