Alaska news

• B.C. mine officials announce new changes to mining code

  21-07-2016 23:54
  
  Two years after one of the worst mine disasters in Canada’s history, mine officials in British Columbia are rolling out new mining codes.
  The Mount Polley Mine tailings dam failed on Aug. 4, 2014, devastating areas downstream. (Photo courtesy Cariboo Regional District Emergency Operations Centre)They say the new codes will improve safety, prevent future disasters like the Mount Polley mine disaster in 2014, and increase transparency. B.C. officials announced the changes to the Canadian pro
  
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• Rain dampening McHugh Fire, officials say prospects are good

  21-07-2016 22:20
  
  The McHugh Fire as of about 6 pm on July 20, 2016. (Courtesy of Alaska Interagency Incident Management Team)UPDATE – July 21, 10 AM –  It’s raining in Anchorage, and fire officials say prospects are looking good for the 842-acre McHugh Fire in Chugach State Park.
  The five days of predicted rain are improving the situation and the current perimeter likely won’t change much, said Alaska Wildland Fire Program Manager Tom Kurth during a morning press briefing.
  “Fiv
  
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• Korean diplomat visits Nome, talks Arctic trade and tourism

  21-07-2016 21:59
  
  A diplomat from the Republic of Korea was in Nome last week. Ohkeum Kwon is Korea’s Deputy Consul General based in Anchorage.
  Port Director Joy Baker, Mayor Richard Beneville, Deputy Consul General Ohkeum Kwon, Chief of Police John Papasadora and Utility Manager John Handeland. (Photo courtesy of John Handeland)Nome Mayor Richard Beneville described her visit as a “courtesy call.”
  “As her role as the representative of the Republic of Korea in Alaska, she feels it importan
  
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• Tesoro settlement resolves alleged Clean Air Act violations

  21-07-2016 21:25
  
  As part of a settlement with the Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Justice, the Tesoro refinery in Nikiski will spend millions of dollars to reduce emissions that are potentially harmful to public health and the environment.Tesoro’s Kenai refinery in Nikiski.
  (Photo by Jenny Neyman – KBBI, Homer)In a settlement agreement announced Monday, Tesoro and Par Hawaii Refining will pay fines and institute mitigation measures totaling $425 million to address pollution problems
  
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• Without quorum, tribal delegates push AVCP demands to October

  21-07-2016 21:04
  
  Tribal delegates in Bethel this week tried to hold an emergency meeting of the Association of Village Council Presidents.
  Newly appointed meeting Chair Ivan M. Ivan at the Yupiit Piciryarait Cultural Center in Bethel.
  (Photo by Charles Enoch, KYUK – Bethel)They want the AVCP administration and executive board to provide answers on financial matters and respond to what some delegates see as a mismanagement of power and lack of transparency within the organization.
  AVCP administrat
  
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• Alaska Airlines Still Plays It Coy About Fate of Virgin America Brand - Skift

  21-07-2016 20:01
  
  Skift
  Alaska Airlines Still Plays It Coy About Fate of Virgin America Brand
  Skift
  Virgin America has built a reputation as an irreverent brand. Will it stick around? Alaska Airlines isn't sure yet. Virgin America. https://skift.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/ · Hotels Struggle to Exit the Analog Age Sponsored This content is created ...
  Hip Virgin America Brand Up In The Air After Acquisition By Alaska AirlinesOPB News
  Alaska Expects Virgin America Brand Decision By Early 2017Aviation Weeka
  
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• Researchers study webcams to look at human connection with bears

  21-07-2016 19:53
  
  It’s peak bear season at Katmai National Park. That means visitors to Brooks Camp are waiting their turn to get on crowded viewing platforms, while this season over 10 million viewers have watched the action via web-cam.
  Screenshot of the Katmai Bear cam footage (Image courtesy of Explore.org)These two different ways of interacting with brown bears are the subject of a new study. Researchers are looking at how humans connect with bears, and what that could mean for
  
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• The Essence of Alaska Lies Somewhere Between Myth and Reality - Smithsonian

  21-07-2016 18:56
  Smithsonian
  The Essence of Alaska Lies Somewhere Between Myth and Reality
  Smithsonian
  Nanook of the North Harpooner. Inupiaq culture has traveled from fur-clad hunters with stone-tipped harpoons to kids carrying iPhones—in just 200 years. (Public Domain). By Seth Kantner. Smithsonian Journeys Quarterly July 21, 2016 12:41PM. 0 0 0 0 0 ...
  
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• Alaska delegation shows state pride at GOP convention with matching Fairbanks-made kuspuks - Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

  21-07-2016 10:10
  
  Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
  Alaska delegation shows state pride at GOP convention with matching Fairbanks-made kuspuks
  Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
  Alaska's delegates to the Republican National Convention in Cleveland are wearing blue and gold kuspuks made in Fairbanks. prev. next. ×. 9 remaining of 10. Welcome! We hope that you enjoy our free content. FAIRBANKS — Texans wore cowboy hats and ...and more »
  
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• McHugh Fire meeting attracts hundreds, fire at 842 acres

  21-07-2016 09:39
  
  The McHugh Fire as of about 6 pm on July 20, 2016. (Courtesy of Alaska Interagency Incident Management Team)As of Wednesday evening, the McHugh Fire was estimated at 842 acres, and 250 crew members from Alaska and the Lower 48 were working on stopping its growth.
  Local meteorologists told a crowd of nearly 200 community members gathered at South Anchorage High School that the good news is the weather is improving. By early Thursday the warm, dry spell should give way to light rain. Though they o
  
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• Day 3: Dispatches from Cleveland -- Alaska at the Republican National Convention - Alaska Dispatch News

  21-07-2016 07:37
  
  Alaska Dispatch News
  Day 3: Dispatches from Cleveland -- Alaska at the Republican National Convention
  Alaska Dispatch News
  ADN reporter Erica Martinson is in Cleveland covering Alaskans and Alaska issues at the Republican National Convention. VP nominee Mike Pence gets 'HUGE' reception. Updated, 9:20 p.m. (Alaska time). Republican vice presidential nominee Mike Pence ...
  Alaska News Nightly: Tuesday, July 19, 2016Alaska Public Radio Network
  Alaska contests delegation vote totals after Trum
  
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• An extreme triathlon is coming to Alaska next summer, and it's already sold out - Alaska Dispatch News

  21-07-2016 07:08
  
  Alaska Dispatch News
  An extreme triathlon is coming to Alaska next summer, and it's already sold out
  Alaska Dispatch News
  A triathlon that begins with a swim in Resurrection Bay and ends with not one but two runs up Mount Alyeska is coming to Alaska next summer. The Alaskaman Extreme Triathlon, an Ironman-length race from Seward to Bird Creek to Girdwood, will make its ...
  
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• Walker names ex-Sen. Hollis French to Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission - Alaska Dispatch News

  21-07-2016 04:56
  
  Alaska Dispatch News
  Walker names ex-Sen. Hollis French to Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission
  Alaska Dispatch News
  Former state Sen. Hollis French, D-Anchorage, was appointed to the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission by Gov. Bill Walker on July 20, 2016. (Richard Mauer / Alaska Dispatch News). Alaska Gov. Bill Walker announced Wednesday that he's ...
  Gov. Walker updates Alaska LNG projectKTUU.comall 10 news articles »
  
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• Team Alaska produces two All-Americans in national wrestling tourney - webcenter11

  21-07-2016 04:54
  
  Team Alaska produces two All-Americans in national wrestling tourney
  webcenter11
  FARGO, ND- The 49th state is being represented in Fargo, North Dakota at one of largest wrestling tournaments in the country. Team Alaska is in this week's ASICS/Vaughn USA Wrestling Cadet/Junior National Championships. They are coached by Lathrop's ...and more »
  
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• Laura and the Killed Men launch multistop Alaska tour - Alaska Dispatch News

  21-07-2016 04:49
  
  Alaska Dispatch News
  Laura and the Killed Men launch multistop Alaska tour
  Alaska Dispatch News
  From Boston to Pocatello, Idaho, to the infamous World's Fair Hotel in Chicago, the song titles dot a musical map through territory and time. The record, "Everchanging Trail," was the result of a 12,000-mile tour the Tuscon, Arizona-based band embarked ...and more »
  
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• Alaska News Nightly: Wednesday July 20, 2016 - Alaska Public Radio Network

  21-07-2016 03:47
  
  The Weather Channel
  Alaska News Nightly: Wednesday July 20, 2016
  Alaska Public Radio Network
  The five-day-old McHugh fire continues to burn in Chugach State Park in southeast Anchorage, and fire officials are calling in additional crews to battle the blaze. New study shows inconsistency among state child protection workers, lack of training.
  Alaska Wildfire Inching Toward Homes South of Anchorage | The Weather ChannelThe Weather Channel
  Officials say Alaska wildfire likely started by peopleFair
  
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• Alaska News Nightly: Wednesday July 20, 2016

  21-07-2016 03:43
  
  
  Stories are posted on the APRN news page. You can subscribe to APRN’s newsfeeds via email, podcast and RSS. Follow us on Facebook at alaskapublic.org and on Twitter @aprn
  Listen now
  Reinforcements called in to fight McHugh fire
  Graelyn Brashear, Alaska Public Media – Anchorage
  The five-day-old McHugh fire continues to burn in Chugach State Park in southeast Anchorage, and fire officials are calling in additional crews to battle t
  
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• Denali bear sightings lead to more closures by officials - Alaska Dispatch News

  21-07-2016 03:38
  
  Alaska Dispatch News
  Denali bear sightings lead to more closures by officials
  Alaska Dispatch News
  A grizzly walks down the park road in Denali National Park and Preserve earlier this year. (Bob Hallinen / Alaska Dispatch News). Not so fast. Denali National Park and Preserve officials Wednesday put the brakes on their planned reopening of Savage ...and more »
  
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• New study shows inconsistency among state child protection workers, lack of training

  21-07-2016 03:04
  
  
  High rates of turnover are leading to inconsistency at the Office of Children’s Services, which operates the state’s foster care system. That’s according to a new study released last month focusing on surveys with the child protection agency’s frontline workers.
  Listen now
  For the past decade, there’s been a 30 percent staff turnover rate at OCS. University of Alaska Anchorage professor Diwakar Vadapalli, who heads the community oversight group Citizen Review Panel,
  
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• City pressure, fire dangers push homeless resources over capacity

  21-07-2016 02:53
  
  
  Anchorage’s homeless shelters and social services are drastically and unexpectedly overwhelmed as a consequence a shifting policy pushing people out of homeless camps.
  Listen now
  The Brother Francis Shelter in downtown Anchorage. (Photo courtesy of Catholic Social Services.)Summer is usually a relatively quiet time for direct service providers working with the city’s homeless population. Typically people are living in camps or doing seasonal work, according to Lisa Aquino, the e
  
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• Legislative working group could aim to resolve thorny problems

  21-07-2016 02:40
  
  
  Alaska’s Legislature has adjourned, but that doesn’t mean lawmakers’ work is done for the year. They’re considering bringing a small group of legislators together to work on agreements on major unresolved issues, which could set the foundation for another special session or the next regular session.
  Listen now
  Sen. Anna MacKinnon participates in a discussion during a Senate Resources Committee meeting, Feb. 5, 2014. (File Photo by Skip Gray/Gavel Alaska)Eagle River Republ
  
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• Houston asks Mat-Su for help running it’s fire department

  21-07-2016 02:28
  
  Houston, a community of about 2,000, is asking the Matanuska Susitna Borough to take over its fire and emergency operations.
  Houston mayor Virgie Thompson spoke to the Borough Assembly at a special meeting Tuesday night.
  Thompson said that Houston’s present fire chief, Tom Hood, abruptly left the post earlier this month, giving less than 48 hours notice.
  Houston does not have a police department, and it’s fire chief also heads the city’s emergency services response. Thompson sa
  
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• Hollis French appointed to AOGCC by Walker

  21-07-2016 02:21
  
  Governor Bill Walker has appointed Hollis French to the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission or AOGCC. French, a Democrat from Anchorage, served in the Alaska Senate for 12 years. Now he’ll oversee regulation of the state’s oil and gas industry.
  Listen now
  Lt. Governor candidate Hollis French at his home in West Anchorage (Photo courtesy of the Office of Gov. Bill Walker)The third seat on the AOGCC is designated to a member of the public who is familiar with oil and gas. French
  
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• Authorities investigate shooting death in Ivanof Bay

  21-07-2016 02:15
  
  A convoluted murder investigation is underway in the remote Alaska Peninsula village of Ivanof Bay.
  Authorities were still on-scene Wednesday afternoon in Ivanof Bay, where 31-year-old Joseph Peterson was shot and killed late Saturday or early Sunday.
  A helicopter from King Salmon and the Wildlife Trooper patrol vessel Cama’i were both dispatched after the shooting was reported around 1:40 a.m. on Sunday, July 17.
  A tribal council worker in neighboring Perryville told KDLG News he received
  
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• World Eskimo Indian Olympics to be first without beloved ‘Big Bob’

  21-07-2016 02:10
  
  
  Opening ceremonies for the World Eskimo Indian Olympics are tonight at 6 o’clock. Competitive events will begin at the Carlson Center this morning at 11. For 56 years, Fairbanks has hosted the event that draws Native athletes and dancers from across the state and even across the circumpolar north. This is the first year without a beloved champion for whom this year’s games are dedicated.
  Listen now
  The traditional call to the pullers of the blanket toss was often
  
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• Alaska GOP spokeswoman to leave job after November elections - Alaska Dispatch News

  21-07-2016 00:26
  
  Alaska GOP spokeswoman to leave job after November elections
  Alaska Dispatch News
  The spokeswoman for the Alaska Republican Party, Suzanne Downing, plans to leave her job after the November election, but will continue publishing her personal political news website, Must Read Alaska. Downing's husband, public broadcasting executive ...
  
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• Exposure: A Film About The Challenges of Skating in Alaska - Anchorage Press

  21-07-2016 00:20
  Exposure: A Film About The Challenges of Skating in Alaska
  Anchorage Press
  In 2006, Boarderline Alaska Snow and Skate went out of business, and along with it went the Alaska snow and skate scene, more or less. A community that relied on a summer camp, a snow and skate contest series, a skatepark and a yearly video that ...
  
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