On Kenai, cracked K-Beach Road re-opens
Cook Inlet’s biggest recorded earthquake did little damage to infrastructure across Southcentral Alaska. And biggest damage has now been fixed up. Kalifornsky Beach Road re-opened to two-way traffic Wednesday morning.
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Marine Science Symposium – LIVEBLOG – Wednesday
3:30 p.m. -- Mark Brzezinski, the White House's point man for the Arctic, told participants at the Marine Science Symposium this afternoon that they're in a growth industry.
For one brief day, women run the U.S. Senate
In Washington, the side streets of Capitol Hill look suitable for running the Iditarod. But the U.S. Senate did meet this morning. For all of 10 minutes. Only the female senators from two northern states participated.
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Magnitude scale a poor measure of localized shaking
After an earthquake like the one that struck Cook Inlet on Sunday morning, everyone wants to know how big it was. Scientists use a magnitude scale to describe the size of an earthquake. But getting to that number is a complicated process. And it has some major limitations.
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Four homes lost to fire after Cook Inlet earthquake
A neighborhood in Kenai was evacuated after a fire and explosions caused by a natural gas leak following the magnitude 7.1 earthquake that hit Southcentral Alaska at 1:30 a.m. Sunday. Four homes were destroyed in the fire.
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Alaska soldiers talk Bergdahl, Serial podcast
But what Alaska soldiers who served with Bergdahl are saying about the case and podcast depends on who you ask.
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Murkowski sees departures, promotions of top staff
U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski today announced a slew of staff changes. Current and former employees say the timing of the multiple departures is coincidental. For those of you keeping score at home, sharpen your pencils: We'll take it from the top.
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Sen. Meyer: Savings can mitigate budget overhaul impacts
The Majority Caucus in the State Senate has one priority this year: restoring fiscal stability to Alaska. And Senate President Kevin Meyer, of Anchorage, says Permanent Fund earnings will have to be part of that mix.
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Top Army nominee says he’s not keen to cut Alaska troops
When Pentagon nominees comes before the Senate Armed Services Committee for a confirmation hearing, it’s a sure bet that Sen. Dan Sullivan will press them to rethink the announced cuts to JBER's 4-25th. Eric Fanning, nominated for Army secretary, offered little resistance.
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Supreme Court hears Alaska hovercraft case
The justices of the U.S. Supreme Court debated Wednesday morning whether the Park Service can impose its rules on rivers that flow through Alaska’s national parks and preserves.
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Rep. Tuck: Budget burden shouldn’t fall on middle class
Anchorage Rep. Chris Tuck is the minority leader in the state House. He questions whether the Governor’s budget proposal is fair for average Alaskans.
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Chenault: Balance budget with mix of cuts, new revenue
The Alaska Legislative session started today in Juneau. The Senate gaveled in at 11 a.m. and House speaker Mike Chenault started things off for the House at 1 p.m. Lawmakers have a lot of work ahead of them as they attempt to address the state’s massive budget deficit.
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Gov hopes nonpartisan politics will help cross party lines
Gov. Bill Walker is in Juneau preparing for tomorrow's start to the legislative session. Regardless of other considerations, the big challenge will be finding common ground with lawmakers over how to fix the state's large and growing budget deficit.
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Moose hunter’s land jurisdiction lawsuit goes to Supreme Court
A dispute between an Alaska boater and the National Park Service will be heard by the highest court in the country this week on Wednesday, Jan. 20. Lower courts have rejected Anchorage resident John Sturgeon’s suit challenging Park Service authority to regulate Alaska rivers, where they pass through federal conservation units.
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State, Native interests also ride on hovercraft case in Supreme Court
The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday will hear an Alaska case challenging the National Park Service's authority to ban hovercraft on navigable rivers. But the case has alarmed people with no interest in hovercraft, and it splits Alaska Native stakeholders.
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An obscure rule may be driving up Alaska health care costs
Buried deep in the October 2004 supplement of the Alaska Administrative Code are a few sentences a lot of Alaska health care experts are talking about right now. It's called the 80th percentile rule. It was adopted as a consumer protection measure, but insurers say it's encouraging excessive prices for specialty care.
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Amid icy trail conditions, mushers ready for K300
Twenty-five mushers, some local, some international – all prepared to race this evening along icy river trails — are in Bethel for the Kuskokwim 300. The race starts tonight at 6:30 p.m. It’s the longest of three races that’ll take place over the weekend.
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New tech and political clout put toward homeless campers
The Anchorage Mayor's office is throwing its weight behind initiatives to end homelessness, a problem the administration says has intensified in recent years. As social service providers gather data on homeless individuals, they're pairing new technology with an increased level of political support.
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Environmentalists say Tongass plan doesn’t act fast enough
A federal proposal to make Southeast Alaska’s logging industry sustainable while preserving old growth in the Tongass National Forest does too little, too slowly--according to one conservation group. The Oregon-based Geos Institute says the Tongass National Forest draft plan is out of step with a global agreement to reduce climate change.
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Exxon Valdez litigation ends, but spill’s legacy may be indefinite
Nearly three decades after the disastrous Exxon Valdez oil spill in 1989, the litigation for the remaining cash the state and federal governments could pursue from Exxon is at an end. But one biologist says the spill's after-effects may linger for centuries.
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