Governor Bill Walker Monday requested an expedited review of a lawsuit challenging his veto of half the money for this year’s Permanent Fund Dividends.

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In a press release, Walker said, “Alaskans deserve a definite answer as we gear up for a legislative session in which bold action is required to finally fix our fiscal deficit.”

The lawsuit was filed September 16th by Anchorage Democratic Senator Bill Wielechowski and two retired lawmakers – Clem Tillion and Rick Halford.

Eligible Alaskans will receive $1,022 dollars for this year’s dividend.

The amount could have been around twice that prior to Governor Walker’s veto.

PFDs will be distributed starting October 6th.

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

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Caelus announces big oil find on North Slope

Liz Ruskin, Alaska Public Media – Washington D.C.

Caelus Energy says it’s made a major oil discovery on the North Slope, at Smith Bay. The company estimates the oil under its current state leases at 6 billion barrels and says the development could boost pipeline output by 40 percent.

Catholic Church announces Alaska’s next Archbishop

Josh Edge, Alaska Public Media – Anchorage

Pope Francis and the Catholic Church have named Alaska’s next Archbishop. Archbishop-elect Paul Etienne was introduced to the community Tuesday by outgoing-Archbishop Roger Schweitz at the Archdiocese of Anchorage.

Due to funding reductions, Alaska DOT cuts back on maintenance

Dan Bross, KUAC – Fairbanks

The Alaska Department of Transportation is cutting back more on maintenance due to state funding reductions.

Walker requests expedited review of Permanent Fund lawsuit

Josh Edge, Alaska Public Media – Anchorage

Governor Bill Walker Monday requested an expedited review of a lawsuit challenging his veto of half the money for this year’s Permanent Fund Dividends.

Chuitna mine application changes may muddy a lengthy process

Ellen Lockyer, Alaska Public Media – Anchorage

A proposed coal mine near the village of Tyonek could move a step closer depending on a draft environmental impact statement expected to be released this month by the US Army Corps of Engineers. Changes in a state application for the Chuitna mine could complicate an already lengthy process.

Alaska to receive federal grant to process over 1000 untested sexual assault kits

Wesley Early, Alaska Public Media – Anchorage

Governor Bill Walker announced today that Alaska will be receiving just over a million dollars in grant funding from the U.S. Department of Justice to process over 1,000 sexual assault kits currently in possession of Alaska State Troopers.

Outside health experts stress low infection risk from YKHC dental instruments

Anna Rose MacArthur, KYUK – Bethel

The Yukon Kuskokwim Health Corporation is testing patients for Hepatitis B, C, and HIV after partially sterilized dental instruments were used on patients. Out of the 191 patients seen during the nine-day period in question, up to 13 patients might have had contact with the instruments.

To cut costs, UAF merges Journalism and Communications majors

Dan Bross, KUAC – Fairbanks

One of numerous cost saving realignments within the University of Alaska system, the University of Alaska Fairbanks Journalism and Communications departments have merged.

Pieces of Me: Rescuing My Kidnapped Daughters

Lori Townsend, Alaska Public Media – Anchorage

Child abduction is a nightmare not many parents have had to deal with, but Anchorage author Lizbeth Meredith knows first hand how terrifying it is. In 1994, her former husband kidnapped their two young daughters and took them to Greece. It took two years to get them back.

Voters in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough on Tuesday overwhelmingly turned down a citizens’ ballot initiative banning the commercial growth and sale of cannabis in the Borough.

Unofficial election results show over 8,704 Borough voters voted against Proposition B-1, which would have banned retail marijuana businesses in areas outside of the Borough’s three cities. 7271 voters supported the ban.

Sarah Williams heads the Borough Assembly’s marijuana advisory committee.

“You know, it wasn’t even close,” Williams said. “We’re so excited that the voters of the Mat Su Borough voted for economic prosperity and really realizing that a regulated market is the best thing overall for jobs and economic development.”

Borough voters also approved a 5 % sales tax on marijuana products. A heavier than usual 23.6% turnout could have been attributed to the marijuana issue, but Borough mayor Vern Halter said a $22 million recreation bond also drew voters to the polls.

“I’m extremely excited about the rec bond passing, to fix up our swimming pools and our ice arena plus some of the work on the recreational trails,” Williams said. “It’s very exciting. And the way it passed, with the numbers, too. I guess, it didn’t surprise me that the NO vote on the marijuana passed, and that they will go ahead and let the state initiative go ahead. That didn’t surprise me. The numbers surprised me. It’s pretty strong numbers in my mind.”

The marijuana initiative, Prop B-1, was the subject of a lawsuit brought against the Borough by several potential marijuana growers. Last week, a state Superior court judge denied the plaintiffs an injunction against the ballot initiative.

Mayor Halter said he’s pleased with the unofficial results of the election.

“Maybe the marijuana drew people out,” Halter said. “I don’t know, but I hope that people came out to vote for the rec bond.. I guess you can tell I’m a big supporter of that rec bond. Little things matter, fixing things up that are worn out over the years. So I am pretty proud of that.”

In the Borough Assembly District 1 race, incumbent Jim Sykes led challenger Brian Endle by 140 votes.

District 2 incumbent Matthew Beck ran unopposed. The Borough school board district 2 race was won by Ray Michaelson with a slim 39 vote lead over challenger Susan Pougher. Donna Dearman and Yvonne Ruth ran unopposed for district 7 and district 5 school board seats.

More than 3400 absentee and questioned ballots remain to be counted. The Borough election will be certified on October 18.

Anchorage is one step closer to having its first legal pot shop.

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On Tuesday night, the Anchorage Assembly gave unanimous approval to Arctic Herbery, the first time a retail cannabis business has met both state and local requirements in Alaska’s largest city.

And to the surprise of many, the issue received no debate before passing 11 to 0. It was only at the meeting’s end that assembly member John Weddleton pointed out the significance.

“With breathtaking speed we blew by the notable first approval of a retail marijuana establishment in Anchorage,” Weddleton said to applause from members of the audience.

In recent weeks, the owner’s business plan has been vetted in sub-committees, leaving assembly members with a degree of familiarity on many of the specifics.

The shop’s owner, Bryant Thorp, said after the meeting that while he may get a slight bump in sales if he’s the first retail shop to open in Anchorage, he was also the test case for city regulators as they examined his license application under a microscope.

“I’ve taken a beating here and there, but it’s OK, I knew it was something that wasn’t going to be easy when I started,” Thorp said, who’s background is in real-estate and managing a post office. “But when I decided I wanted to do this I expected the worst, and I came prepared for it.”

Thorp’s business plan received criticism from some members of the community council in the Taku-Cambell area. As well as by local regulators over traffic: the small shop, which can only accommodate four patrons at any one time, has just five parking spaces, which caused some logistical concerns.

Arctic Herbery isn’t the state’s first business to get this far. Local governments in Fairbanks, the Kenai Peninsula, and southeast have been more expedient than Anchorage in deciding whether to allow cannabis businesses to move forward.

But no matter where in the state, everyone is still waiting for full approval of the testing facilities that’ll be able to certify cannabis products. Only two such facilities have met state and local requirements, and both are in Anchorage, but not yet ready to open. Until then, there’s not technically any legal pot for retail shops to legally sell.

Thorp said he’d been told by the testing facilities they expect to be up and running by the end of October, after which point he’s hoping to greet his first customers.

Shoppers in Juneau will continue to pay the same sales tax rates, for now. Local voters chose to renew the city’s 3 percent temporary sales tax through Proposition 2 in Tuesday night’s municipal election by a 3-1 margin, but shot down another question that asked to make it permanent.

Voters have renewed the temporary sales tax every four or five years since 1983, according to the city’s voter information pamphlet. City Manager Rorie Watt says it brings in about $25 million every year.

“So we use the sales tax for police, fire, road maintenance, libraries, parks and rec, city manager, everything,” Watt said.

The temporary sales tax is set to expire in 2022 if it’s not renewed again. The 3 percent is part of the city’s overall sales tax rate of 5 percent; there’s also a permanent 1 percent tax and another temporary 1 percent that is used for special projects, such as the Mendenhall Valley Library, building maintenance and sewer expansion. The 1 percent temporary tax is set to expire in 2018.

Voters also overwhelmingly backed a special 3 percent sales tax on marijuana products through Proposition 1. This brings the total marijuana tax to 8 percent — the same rate as alcohol. City staff forecast that the 3 percent increase will bring in an extra $65,000 to $175,000 a year. The money will go into the city’s general fund.

Alaska’s oldest Native organizations are working to attract younger members.

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That, subsistence and other issues are on the table at the Alaska Native Brotherhood and Sisterhood’s Grand Camp Convention Oct. 5-8 in Juneau.

The Grand Camp Convention attracts 80 to 100 delegates and members from local chapters, also called camps.

Most are from Southeast, but camps are also in Washington, Oregon and Southcentral Alaska.

ANB and ANS Camp 70 in Juneau host this year’s event.

ANB chapter President Marcelo Quinto said the convention sets the regional, or Grand Camp’s, agendas.

“We are a civil rights organization, but we concentrate on our Native people both in Southeast and we try to assist whenever we can with the rest of our brothers and sisters throughout the state,” he said.

The Alaska Native Brotherhood and Sisterhood are each more than a hundred years old. And in recent decades, many of their programs have been taken over by tribal governments, Native corporations and other organizations.

That means the organizations are smaller than they once were. And their membership is older.

But ANB Grand Camp President Sasha Soboleff said that’s starting to change.

“The youth wave is coming and so we dedicated last year’s convention and this year’s convention to having a focused effort on the young people and how this organization can best respond with their leadership,” he said.

One is Yakutat youth leader Devlin Anderstrom, who will deliver the keynote address.

And Soboleff said in the past year, he’s installed 19 sets of local camp officers who were in their mid-20s or early 30s.

Convention delegates spend the four-day event hearing reports from other Native organizations.

They include the Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium, the Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska, and the Sealaska regional Native corporation.

They also elect officers and debate and vote on resolutions.

“We come together and talk over all of the ways the local camps are being affected by subsistence, by the economic decline that’s happening, by the impact of what (fisheries) have been going on in terms of subsistence and whether the commercialized part is doing any good, and putting the land that we occupy, whether or not it can be put into trust,” he said.

The Brotherhood and Sisterhood are also considering changes to their constitution.

They address membership, committee structure and other issues. One would create a new, joint executive committee with equal numbers of ANB and ANS members.

Quinto said the camps are trying to modernize.

“We are taking a look at our constitution this year to determine if it needs to be revised so it’s appropriate for this day and age,” he said.

Despite the names, the organizations don’t restrict their membership by race.

Soboleff said many camps have members who are not Alaska Natives.

“So there are lots of people who are welcome to come and who are actually active in our local camps and feel welcome to come down and witness and participate and see how this slice of the world works,” he said.

The convention also includes a culture night and a memorial service.

Yesterday, Kotzebue residents filed into the NorthWest Arctic Borough building to cast their vote during the municipal election. On the ballot was a local option vote to close the city-run liquor store as well as openings for Assembly and School Board seats.

According to unofficial tallies released last night, incumbent Larry Westlake, Sr., kept his seat on District 1, Seat C on the Assembly.

In District 2, Miles Cleveland, Sr., also kept his seat, beating Carolyn L. Ballot.

As the only candidate, Tanya Ballot kept Seat “E” on the Assembly for District 3, and Dood A. (Lincoln) Carr upset Pete Schaeffer for Seat “I” in District 4.

On the school board, incumbent Brad M. Reich took the position against Marvin J. Barr. Seat “E” was kept by Tillie M. Ticket, and the final seat on the school board was won by newcomer Joanne Harris (Sheldon) securing District 4 Seat “I”.

The unofficial results of the local option vote have not come in but are anticipated later today.

The polls have closed, but it’s still too close to call for half of Unalaska’s municipal races.

Tuesday’s election set a new record for voter turnout. But with about 80 absentee and questioned ballots outstanding, City Clerk Cat Hazen said several races could go to runoffs, including mayor and City Council Seat C.

“There’s a significant number of ballots that’ll be canvassed on Friday — certainly enough to make a difference in the final results,” said Hazen.

In the five-way race for mayor, incumbent Shirley Marquardt holds a strong lead with 39 percent of the vote. She needs more than 40 percent to win a fifth term in office, which means she could claim victory without a runoff if enough outstanding ballots go her way.

But if not, the race will come down to Marquardt and former mayor Frank Kelty, who earned second place with 29 percent of the vote. The runoff election, if necessary, would take place Nov. 1.

The other five-way contest for City Council Seat C could come down to a runoff as well. Incumbent Roger Rowland holds 38 percent of the vote. If he doesn’t earn more than 40 percent after canvassing, he’ll face second-place candidate Jeff Treannie, who took 25 percent of the vote.

Whether or not those highly contested seats go to runoffs, Unalaska resident Lori Gregory said she was glad to see so many names on the ballot.

“I’ve seen a lot of elections here and lot of uncontested races, so I’m very grateful there are actually contested races this time,” Gregory said. “I see more and more as the years go by, and I’m just grateful.”

Two other races were also too close to call.

In the ballot referendum, 53 percent of Unalaskans voted to repeal the city’s ban on marijuana businesses, while 47 percent voted to keep the ban in place. The initiative needs a simple majority to pass, so Unalaska’s stance on commercial pot will be decided Friday after canvassing is finished.

The race for School Board Seat D will also be decided then. Incumbent Denise Rankin earned 55 percent of the vote to hold off challenger Harriet Berikoff — at least, for now. Berikoff took 47 percent of the vote, but she could win if enough outstanding ballots come back in her favor.

Meanwhile, four races ended Tuesday when the polls closed. Killian Baker failed to upset incumbent David Gregory, who won City Council Seat D with 68 percent of the vote. John Waldron was also re-elected to the City Council after running unopposed, as were Cherry Tan and Frank Kelty on the school board.

In all, Hazen said the record turnout brought about 700 Unalaskans to the polls, or about 36 percent of registered voters.

The outstanding absentee and questioned ballots will be canvassed at City Hall on Friday at 10 a.m. Election results will be certified at a City Council meeting next week, with any necessary run-off elections set for Nov. 1.

Governor Bill Walker is facing a major decision on one of Alaska’s oldest and controversial megaproject ideas: whether to extend Juneau’s main road 28 miles closer to Haines and Skagway.

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The route the state previously supported was estimated to cost $574 million, of which the state would pay 9 percent.

For Governor Walker, the question is whether this spot should be the road’s end. Walker shut down two megaprojects last year: the Knik Arm bridge and the Susitna-Watana dam. He says he weighed his options during a recent flight from South Korea.

The steep mountains that border Lynn Canal have prevented Juneau from being connected to other roads. In 2006, state and federal officials announced plans to design and build the road extension, which would take it to the Katzehin River.

But the Southeast Alaska Conservation Council, or SEACC, successfully sued to block the decision. A federal judge found that the state hadn’t considered reasonable alternatives.

Walker’s options were laid out in a state-funded analysis in 2014 put together by the Juneau-based consultants Milton Barker and the McDowell Group.

They range from doing nothing to building the road to Katzehin, to building a separate road extension on the Haines side of the Lynn Canal. Barker said the analysis isn’t the final word.

“I can explain how the benefit-cost ratios were derived and what they mean,” Barker said. “But how to weigh those in selecting projects for funding is a decision that rests with the state and federal government.”

Listing the pros and cons of the project are well-rehearsed for those who’ve been engaged in the battle over it through the decades. On the pro-side: The federal government is bearing the vast majority of the capital costs. And extending the road would cut hours in travel time to Haines and Skagway compared with current ferry travel.

But the anti-road side notes the road would cross a long series of avalanche chutes, which would block traffic in the winter and add high maintenance costs.

The 2014 analysis found that none of the options would bring the state more in user benefits than they would cost. It found the extension to Katzehin would only bring in 28 cents of benefits for every dollar of combined federal and state spending. If only the state spending is considered, it would bring 85 cents of user benefits for every dollar.

Economic consultant Gregg Erickson recalls telling Walker’s transition team in 2014 that the state could save money by killing megaprojects like the road.

“The one I focused on was to end those megaprojects that really don’t pencil out under any calculus in terms of the benefits they would provide to Alaska,” Erickson said.

Erickson remembers being asked at the transition team conference whether it would be politically difficult.

“My answer was, well, that’s what political courage is all about,” Erickson said. “And I recall Governor-Elect Walker nodding knowingly. “

Former state Transportation Commissioner Dick Knapp says the road extension will be worth it.

“There are a lot of socioeconomic benefits,” Knapp said. “And they include basically binding together the Southeast . By tying at least three communities together.”

Barker notes that the analysis he did with the McDowell Group didn’t consider other factors, such as the effects on economic development and the environment.

SEACC Deputy Director Emily Ferry says she’s concerned the road extension will crowd out funding for the Alaska Marine Highway System.

“Pretty much, that will be the one and only project we will get in the region,” Ferry said. “And there are a lot other needs. “

Ferry also questions whether the road extension would truly improve access.

“Driving through 36 avalanche chutes, five tunnels, and an incredibly dangerous road, doesn’t necessarily increase our access and it certainly does not make travel safer,” Ferry said.

The state-funded analysis found one alternative to doing nothing that would provide more user benefits than it would cost the state: extending the road a much shorter distance to Berners Bay. If federal money is included, the costs exceed the benefits.

Transportation Commissioner Marc Luiken said early last year the state risked reimbursing the federal government as much as $27 million. It’s not clear if Walker will announce a decision this year, but he’s actively considering it.

Senator Mike Dunleavy of Wasilla plans to introduce legislation that would restore the portion of Alaska Permanent Fund dividends vetoed by Gov. Bill Walker.

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Sen. Dunleavy says he hopes the issue gets immediate attention once the Legislature convenes in January. If it passes, Walker could veto it. But Dunleavy believes there could be sufficient support to override any veto.

Lawmakers earlier this year declined to hold a veto override session to consider reversing the cut.

This comes as a state court judge plans to hear a lawsuit from Sen. Bill Wielechowski and others challenging the reduction. The parties hope for a decision by early December. However, the matter still could be appealed.

Dunleavy’s Anchorage news conference was interrupted by two men angry about the dividend reduction. Walker has called the cut necessary as the state grapples with a deficit.

Dunleavy says Walker is trying to help the state but he disagrees with the approach Walker took.

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

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Mat-Su votes are in, ban on marijuana growth out

Ellen Lockyer, Alaska Public Media – Anchorage

Voters in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough on Tuesday overwhelmingly turned down a citizens’ ballot initiative banning the commercial growth and sale of cannabis in the Borough.

After vote, Anchorage could see first pot shop by late October

Zachariah Hughes, Alaska Public Media – Anchorage

The Anchorage Assembly gave unanimous approval a retail cannabis business, the first time a one has met both state and local requirements in Alaska’s largest city.

Fairbanks likely to have new mayor

Robyne, KUAC – Fairbanks

The City of Fairbanks likely has a new mayor.  City council member Jim Matherly has a substantial lead over incumbent John Eberhart, with Frank Turney a distant 3rd, but nearly 700 outstanding ballots remain to be counted.

Juneau access road proves to be point of contention among officials

Andrew Kitchenman, KTOO – Juneau

Governor Bill Walker is facing a major decision on one of Alaska’s oldest and controversial megaproject ideas: whether to extend Juneau’s main road 28 miles closer to Haines and Skagway.

Wasilla legislator plans bill to restore dividend amount

Associated Press

Senator Mike Dunleavy of Wasilla plans to introduce legislation that would restore the portion of Alaska Permanent Fund dividends vetoed by Gov. Bill Walker.

Snow Trac program issues final grants after being vetoed

Dan Bross, KUAC – Fairbanks

A vetoed state program that provides grants for trail grooming and safety projects has issued its’ final round of awards. $236,000 in grants to 17 organizations statewide for this coming winter were announced last week.

Fish and Game conservative in herring forecast

Dave Bendinger, KDLG – Dillingham

The forecast is out for next spring’s Togiak herring fishery, the largest of its kind in the state. The Department of Fish and Game is taking a conservative approach to managing the fishery since its budget to do so was zeroed out.

Online fundraiser nets nearly $50k for erosion control project at Delta-area park

Tim Ellis, KUAC – Fairbanks

Donors gave nearly $50,000 to an online fundraiser last month to help pay for a project to prevent the Tanana River from washing away the bank that runs along Big Delta State Historical Park near Delta Junction. Alaska State Parks will use the donations as a match for further fundraising to pay for a bank-stabilization project riverbank to prevent further erosion.

Brotherhood, Sisterhood prep for convention

Ed Schoenfeld, CoastAlaska – Juneau

Alaska’s oldest Native organizations are trying to attract younger members. That, subsistence and other issues are on the table at the Alaska Native Brotherhood and Sisterhood’s Grand Camp Convention this week in Juneau.

The City of Fairbanks likely has a new mayor.  City council member Jim Matherly has a substantial lead over incumbent John Eberhart, with Frank Turney a distant 3rd, but nearly 700 outstanding ballots remain to be counted. KUAC reporter Robyne watched the results come in last night and spoke with the candidates.

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The forecast is out for next spring’s Togiak herring fishery, the largest of its kind in the state. As KDLG’s Dave Bendinger reports, the Department of Fish and Game is taking a conservative approach to managing the fishery since its budget to do so was zeroed out.

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Homer has a new mayor and two new city council members, according to unofficial Homer municipal election results, but voters rejected Proposition 1, saying no to a new police station.

Homer City Council Member Bryan Zak won the mayoral race, defeating fellow City Council Member David Lewis by just 74 votes.

Zak spent Tuesday afternoon waving an election sign with his supporters in front of WKFL Park in Homer.

“I never quit campaigning. I never quit running the race, right up until the end,” said Zak.

Zak says he’s ready to serve as Homer City Mayor.

“Already this morning, I called over to City Hall and talked to the City Manager and let her know that I’m in it with her and with the city council, building a team as we move forward together,” Zak said.

Voters formed long lines Tuesday evening while waiting at Cowles Council Chambers to cast their ballots.

Voter turnout was 32 percent in this year’s municipal election, which is higher than the average turnout for the past four years, which was about 26 percent.

Shelly Erickson and Tom Stroozas were elected to Homer City Council.

Erickson received 922 votes, while Stroozas took 639 votes. Candidate Kimberly Ketter came in third with 181 votes.

Newly elected City Council Member Erickson said she’s already thinking more about the issues before the council, especially finances.

“The first thing that’s going to be in our face is going to be the budget. That’s probably going to be our first priority,” Erickson said.

Stroozas will be looking for ways to increase the efficiency of city services As a member of the City Council, he said.

“The main focus is to make sure that the city is doing everything the city needs to do in an efficient and cost-effective manner,” Stroozas said. “All I can say is that I will do my very very best and give 110 percent or more to do the job as it needs to be done.”

Perhaps one of the most controversial aspects of this year’s municipal election was Homer Ballot Proposition 1.

Voters narrowly rejected Prop 1, with 53 percent voting no.

The bond proposition would have authorized the city to borrow up to $12 million dollars to build a new police station in Homer, financed by a six-month seasonal sales tax.

The Canvass Board will meet Friday, Oct., to count approximately 300 questioned, special needs and absentee ballots.

It’s possible the outcome of the mayoral race and Homer Ballot Proposition 1 may change after these votes are counted, Homer City Clerk Jo Johnson said.

The election will be certified on October 10 at the regular Homer City Council meeting, where the new mayor and city council members are scheduled to be sworn in.

FEMA will be stepping in to fund landslide mapping in Sitka. The Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys, who will be leading the research project,  announced the news on Tuesday.

Deanne Stevens, a chief geologist for DGGS, said the agency has been given $110,000 for two years of research through a program called “FEMA RiskMap.” The goal is to create a comprehensive map of landslide risk in the Sitka area.

Sitka was given a competitive edge for this funding through new LIDAR data, collected by DGGS this summer in partnership with the National Park Service and U.S. Army’s Corp of Engineers Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory. The dataset – which mapped Sitka’s topography with a laser beam – will provide a useful foundation for the team’s work.

“I’m very pleased we’ll be able to help out the people in Sitka with this. They’ve been so responsive and so accommodating and so helpful in the immediate response work that we did there and the field work we’ve done since then,” said Stevens. “We really look forward to working with them more and giving them what they need to have a safe community to move forward and start planning for the future.”

The LIDAR data has been released and is currently available online at CRREL’s Geospatial Repository and Data Management System (GRID) site, and will soon be accessible on DGGS’s Elevation Datasets in Alaska interactive map.

In addition to the LIDAR data, the research team will analyze already existing geologic data and modeling algorithms for landslide hazard.

The research project officially began on Saturday, October 1st and the final report is due in September of 2018. But, Stevens adds, the data will be made available to the public as it’s collected. “There won’t be any delay in sharing this information with the community and emergency responders,” Stevens said.

FEMA was already working to develop a multi-hazard risk report for the Sitka area when the Kramer Avenue landslide occurred. The slide, triggered last August by heavy rainfall, tore through a subdivision and took the lives of three men.

Since then, the city has contracted with the Seattle-based Geotechnical Firm Shannon & Wilson to develop a comprehensive landslide map and recommendations for mitigation in the South Kramer Avenue and the Gavan Hill area. That South Kramer report was published in February and the Gavan Hill report is due out in December. Preliminary research has suggested that Keet Goshi Heen Elementary School is in an area at moderate risk for landslides.

City Administrator Mark Gorman says the mapping will inform how Sitka develops moderate and high risk zones and how properties in those zones are managed. FEMA will be holding a meeting in May of next year for citizens to meet the scientists and see the maps.

ConocoPhillips Alaska has announced plans for a new drilling rig on the North Slope that will more than double the area it can develop from a single drill site.

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The company is calling it a “potential breakthrough” and said the rig will increase production by making development possible in areas that are currently hard to reach.

It will allow Conoco to access an undeveloped field, Fiord West, from existing infrastructure. Fiord West was discovered in 1996.

Conoco spokeswoman Natalie Lowman said the state would not have extended the company’s Fiord West leases without the contract for the new rig.

“In order to retain our leases, such as those around Fiord West, we have to be able to develop them, and the [Extended Reach Drilling] rig allows us to do that,” Lowman said in an email.

Gov. Bill Walker said in a statement, “I applaud ConocoPhillips and Doyon for their work to spur production during fiscally challenging times. This is welcome news, as it fulfills lease terms for Fiord West.”

ConocoPhillips signed a contract with Doyon Drilling, which is under the Fairbanks-based regional Native corporation, to build the new rig.

It will arrive in Alaska in 2020.

Lowman said under the terms of the contract with Doyon, the company can’t release the rig’s total cost.

Fourteen U.S. senators sent a letter to President Obama today, asking him to keep drill rigs out of federal waters in the Arctic forever.

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In recent months, environmentalists have been asking Obama to remove the Arctic from the five-year oil and gas leasing plan for federal waters. Today’s letter, though, asks the president to use a section of the Outer Continental Shelf Leasing Act to permanently exclude the Arctic, and also the Atlantic, from oil and gas leasing. No Republicans signed the letter. Vermont Independent Bernie Sanders is the only non-Democrat on the list.

A coalition of industry groups and Alaska unions has been campaigning to keep the Arctic in the five-year leasing plan, which the Interior Department is expected to release in November.

Whatever the feds decide about Arctic leasing, it will not directly affect the Smith Bay oil find Caelus Energy announced this week. That site is close to land, in state waters. Federal waters begin three nautical miles from the shore.

To cut? Or tax? That is the conundrum state lawmakers are facing in the midst of a multi-billion dollar budget shortfall. There are options on the table, but consensus on a fix remains elusive.

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A recent study looked at how different scenarios would affect Alaska’s short-term economy.

“They are all gonna have negative consequences on the economy,” Mouhcine Guettabi, an assistant professor of economics at the Institute of Social and Economic Research, said. “I don’t think that there is any way to avoid that.”

He’s spoke at the Fiscally Alaskan summit hosted by Alaska Common Ground.

Guettabi’s study looks at some of the fiscal options available to close Alaska’s budget gap and analyzes how each one could affect the statewide economy in the next year or two.

The options are broken down into two categories – cuts and taxes.

He says the option with the largest impact by far, is cutting the state workforce.

“The reason those numbers are so big is because we’re starting by removing jobs directly from the economy,” Guettabi said. “And then you’re losing more jobs because those people are spending less money by eating out, by conducting their daily businesses.”

“In every other option, there are no direct job losses.”

Guettabi says the state would need to cut between 1,400 and 1,600 jobs from its workforce to reduce the state deficit by $100 million.

Among the tax options, reductions to the Permanent Fund Dividend carry the largest impact – particularly among lower-income households.

“The PFD represents a larger share of a lower-income person than it does a higher-income person,” Guettabi said. “And lower-income individuals, typically speaking, tend to spend more of their income, right? And so you’re taking a larger chunk of those people’s incomes and they tend to spend a lot of it.”

“So you’re basically affecting the economy quite a bit because you’re taking more money out of the economy when you impose a PFD cut.”

According to Guettabi’s estimates, every $100 million injected into the state economy by the PFD supports between 560 and 900 jobs.

These projections were made prior to this year’s PFD cut, but he says if the $666.35 million cut from this year’s PFD were distributed, it could mean the equivalent of more than 3,600 jobs over the next year and a half. He says that could take the form of new jobs, more hours for existing employees, or increases in benefits.

The exact economic impact of the PFD varies, depending on how much of it is injected directly into Alaska’s economy, instead of online purchases or other spending outside the state.

And Guettabi says no matter which options are ultimately chosen to close Alaska’s budget gap, the effects will be felt much differently depending on what part of the state you’re in.

“Some economies are very, very dependent on oil and gas jobs or state government jobs,” Guettabi said. “And when you do that, have very different multiplier effects, right?”

“And so, we have some communities whose whole economy rests on the health of state and local government, for example. and if those sectors were to take a big hit, then the retail sector would be much more affected than, for example, in Anchorage.”

Guettabi says weighing the pros and cons of cuts versus taxes, and the impacts each will have on different regions should be considered as the state works to close its budget gap:

“And that’s probably more of a political question than an economics question,” he said.

Guettabi stresses that this study only looks at the short-term impacts of the various scenarios before people and businesses have a chance to adapt to the new fiscal landscape.

The historic Iditarod Trail took center stage during a meeting held by the Army Corps of Engineers Tuesday on the proposed Donlin Gold mine. The route has been changed, but not far enough to suit some longtime mushers.

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The Iditarod Trail is a National Historic Trail; there is no getting around that. After Donlin Gold’s original proposal for a natural gas pipeline through Rainy Pass raised a storm of objections from some in the dog mushing community, the route of the proposed buried gas line from Cook Inlet now swings north over the Alaska Range through Jones Pass.

This route was used to avoid Rainy Pass, but it does not go far enough, according to Dan Seavey, one of the pioneer mushers who created the last Great Race and worked hard to get the trail its National Historic Trail designation. He notes that the gas line would still follow the trail route from Skwentna to Finger Lake.

“I don’t see any mitigation. I see selecting an alternate to the historic trail,” Seavey said.

Many other mushers weren’t at the meeting, because there is a gag order on those who plan to run the race. Donlin is a major sponsor of the Iditarod.

The Army Corps of Engineers is trying to find ways to mitigate the problem posed by the gas line and other parts of the huge mine project. Sheila Newman, with the Alaska district of the Army Corps, thinks that with enough people at the table, a solution can be found. She hopes that the Seavey family will continue to be involved.

“It was good he was here to talk about what his concerns are and continue the conversation about, you know, what, if anything, can be done to help address some of them,” she said.

Donlin points to community archeological projects like the one recently conducted at Crooked Creek, the nearest village to the mine site, as a method to help mitigate problems. But as far as moving the pipeline right-of-way off the trail route, Enric Fernadez, senior environmental coordinator for Donlin Gold, says the reason it runs along the Iditarod Trail to the Alaska Rage is due to the geography of the region.

“It offers the best geo-technical conditions to place a pipeline, which is coincidentally the reason why the Iditarod Trail is there,” Fernadez said.

There are those who say the company needs to build connections between its proposed gas line and nearby villages.  David Gililak Sr. from Akiak says he doesn’t see any reason to build it if it does not improve the infrastructure to the point that affordable natural gas will be available to local residents.

“They shouldn’t actually build a pipeline if it’s not going to benefit Calista region, because we’re the most economically, electrically, socially depressed region in the state,” he said.

Calista Corporation owns the subsurface rights for the proposed mine site. June McAtee, Vice President of Lands and Shareholder Services for Calista, says the Donlin Gold project is not a social service, but it would provide an economic boost to the region, and Donlin’s proposed pipeline would bring affordable natural gas that much closer to the Yukon Kuskokwim Delta.

“The prices of fuel and power and everything else in the region are very high, and there’s no way they’re ever going to come down unless you build something. That’s where we’re coming from, and we think this project has the potential to help us get things built in the region.”

But even if all these issues are resolved, some village residents worry that the pipeline will open remote areas to outside hunters. David Gililak Sr. says the temporary road used to build the gas line won’t stay temporary, even if the company tries to close it, and that would have consequences for Akiak.

“They will be coming in from all over the world. It is a whole lot cheaper to drive than to fly,” Gililak Sr. said. “I mean we’ll have a lot of traffic in that area, eventually to the point where the state will have to call it a road.”

The Army Corps of Engineers plans to hold another meeting on the issue in Bethel by the end of the month or early November.

Bed bugs have been found at some University of Alaska Fairbanks residences. According to a letter to the UAF issued Wednesday by vice chancellors, bed bugs have been confirmed in several apartments in Harwood Hall, and in single units at Garden Apartments and Hess Village. It’s believed that the bugs were introduced via furniture brought in from off campus. The university has hired an exterminator to treat the affected buildings, and to inspect and potentially preventatively treat other campus housing. The UAF letter said exterminators will inform residents of effected buildings about safety precautions.

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