Recent News

More marine debris cleanup projects coming to Alaska through federal infrastructure law

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Plastic, wood, fishing nets and buoys are just some of the waste that washes up on even the most remote parts of Alaska’s coastline. Now, programs aimed at cleaning up that marine debris are getting a funding boost from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration – thanks to an influx of grant money from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and some …

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Midday Report May 18, 2023

House Majority Leader Rep. Dan Saddler (R-Eagle River) speaks with Minority Leader rep. Calvin Schrage (I-Anchorage) on the last day of the regular session on May 17, 2023. (Lex Treinen/Alaska Public Media)

On today’s Midday Report with host Terry Haines: The Alaska Legislature adjourned late Wednesday evening without passing a budget to fund the government. An estimated 150-mile-long run of broken ice running downriver jammed upstream of Ruby yesterday, but did not threaten any communities. And First Lady Jill Biden and Interior Secretary Deb Haaland visited Bethel yesterday. House Majority Leader Rep. …

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Midday Report May 17, 2023

Wrangell may have to buy a bus like this one, offered on Ebay.

On today’s Midday Report with host Terry Haines: The Senate failed to pass a budget yesterday, leaving a narrow window of time for a last-minute deal. Communities across Interior and Southwest Alaska are dealing with the effects of severe flooding. And the Wrangell School District wants to buy an old bus so they can throw it away. Wrangell may have …

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State files charges against vessel for illegal bottom trawling near Kodiak

The State of Alaska has filed criminal misdemeanor charges against a vessel operator caught illegally trawling near the south end of Kodiak Island, according to a press release filed by the U.S. Coast Guard.  The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office of Law Enforcement tipped the Coast Guard and Alaska Wildlife Troopers that a ship was allegedly using non-pelagic, or …

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New report details wide-ranging safety concerns at Valdez Marine Terminal, prompting calls for reform

The terminal of the Trans Alaska Pipeline system is at “risk of a serious accident or incident in the near future.” That’s a main takeaway of a sweeping 180-page report that was published in April, detailing wide-ranging safety concerns at the Valdez Marine Terminal, where North Slope crude is loaded onto ocean tankers. The Alyeska Pipeline Service Company says it’s …

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