Walter Tellman, in yellow, watches with Frank Kelty as a city boom truck tries to lift an old skiff out of the river during Saturday's clean-up. (Annie Ropeik/KUCB)
The creek that runs through the heart of Unalaska can support thousands of salmon every year.
It’s also full of decades worth of junk. With salmon runs declining, locals have been leading the charge to clean up the Unalaska Lake and Iliuliuk River watershed.
KUCB’s Annie Ropeik was there on Saturday as they got started.
UniSea runs the biggest processing complex in Unalaska. (Annie Ropeik/KUCB)
Unalaska’s biggest seafood processor is getting ready to start a $100 million renovation for its docks and factories.
In late April, UniSea got the green light and the first of that funding from its Japanese parent company, Nissui. They’ve earmarked $21 million for a new cod and crab dock in Unalaska.
UniSea president Tom Enlow says their current dock predates the company itself, and is basically condemned.
Debris like this will be removed from the lower river on Saturday. (Annie Ropeik/KUCB)
Earlier this year, locals rejected a state-funded plan to restore the lower Iliuliuk River. Now, they’re mounting a clean-up on their own terms.
The Qawalangin Tribe, Unalaska Native Fishermen’s Association and others will pull an estimated five tons of debris out of the river on Saturday.
They’ll use heavy equipment and help from local divers to remove derelict skiffs and sunken trash from near the boat launch at the mouth of the creek.
UNFA and the tribe got a state permit for the project, and are contributing $15,000 each. The city, Ounalashka Corporation and other local companies are donating time and tools.
The Crystal Symphony docked at the Unalaska Marine Center at sunrise on Sunday. (Liam Andersen/KUCB)
Unalaska got its first taste of a record cruise ship season on Sunday.
Around a thousand tourists and crew disembarked from the Crystal Symphony to stretch their legs and do some exploring. And some were surprised by what they found.
The ship arrived in Unalaska around sunrise, after five days crossing the North Pacific.
The early risers went straight to the local cultural sites -- namely, the town’s two museums and the historic Russian Orthodox Church.
A diagram of the proposed upgrades includes wider crane rails (black dotted line), new piling and reshaping (blue shaded area) and larger vessels that might use the facility (outlined in water). (Courtesy: City of Unalaska)
Unalaska is preparing to spend tens of millions of dollars to upgrade the aging Port of Dutch Harbor. The hope is to serve bigger ships and more of them.
But the companies that use the dock right now aren’t so sure that big changes are needed.
They weighed in on the upgrades they do and don't want to see at a planning meeting on Wednesday night, as the city gets ready to remodel the port for the future.
