Unalaska, AK – The city of Unalaska has accepted a $1.96 million settlement from the federal government over PCB contamination.
The settlement is the result of a five-year process that began when the city discovered that the site of the new powerhouse was contaminated with PCBs - or polychlorinated biphenyls. PCBs are toxic compounds that can cause liver damage, skin lesions, and cognitive impairment. The Environmental Protection Agency requires PCB-contaminated sites to be cleaned up if the compound is present in greater amounts than one part per million. Soil at the new powerhouse site contained concentrations up to 700 parts per million.
Unalaska, AK – The Ornithological Council has released a report on the rodent-eradication project on Rat Island, focusing on the number of bird deaths the occurred as a result.
The goal of the $3 million eradication project was to exterminate the invasive rat population, which had a negative impact on the seabirds that have traditionally migrated to the island. In the fall of 2008, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, with assistance from Nature Conservancy and Island Conservation, dropped rat poison onto the island via helicopter. The project worked. By 2009, the island was rat free.
Unalaska, AK – The City of Unalaska is in the process of setting a number of short-term and long-term goals. Mayor Shirley Marquardt joined KUCB's Alexandra Gutierrez on this week's edition of Speak Up, Unalaska! to talk about the Fiscal Year 2010 budget and the Comprehensive Plan. Listen here.
Unalaska, AK – Last night, the City of Unalaska established their goals for the Fiscal Year 2012 budget.
As in previous years, the city's top priority is making sure that the general fund does not run at a deficit. But there are two big differences to the city budget this year.
"There were only two changes to the goals from last year, and actually the last several years," says Mayor Shirley Marquardt. "The first one involves the possibility of one full-time equivalent new employee for the operations systems department. The second involves a 3% increase in the operating budget that was non-personnel - just for the nuts and bolts of the operating budget."
Unalaska, AK – Tonight, city council will be meeting to hammer out priorities for the coming year's budget.
The meeting will open with a work session where council will discuss financial goals for Fiscal Year 2012. A top objective is budgeting the general fund without a deficit, and maintaining city personnel at current numbers. According to a memo from City Manager Chris Hladick, the most complicated part of setting the budget will be determining the financing and timing of capital project involving the landfill, the water treatment plant, and the waste water treatment plant.
Unalaska, AK – A state employee for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game has been charged with the receipt of an "unlawful gratuity." Melanie Bakker, 26, allegedly received $100 after conducting a gear inspection of the F/V Northwestern.
According to court documents, Bakker had scheduled the inspection with Sig Hansen, the captain of the Northwestern, for Saturday, January 15. Fish and Game technicians regularly perform this type of gear inspection on weekends, and ADFG offers it as a courtesy. After the inspection occurred, the Deadliest Catch star offered to buy Bakker dinner. Bakker told police that she declined the invitation, but that Hansen then insisted that she take a gift of $100. Bakker did not take the money immediately, but accepted the gift after Hansen persisted. During the time of the inspection, she used a state vehicle and clocked in for one hour of work for the department.
Unalaska, AK – This weekend, the Raider basketball teams traveled across the Kenai Peninsula for a series of games.
On Thursday, the girls team matched up against Nikolaevsk, and defeated them 42 to 21 after breaking away in the second half. Asia Vernon was a top scorer, with 17 points.
The boys team then followed up on that victory by beating the Nikolaevsk Warriors 57 to 44. Andrew Seman scored a total of 23 points, while J.J. Fernandez brought in 15.
Unalaska, AK – Today the Pacific cod fishery closes to pot catcher processors, following Friday's closure for pot catcher vessels.
It's a quick end to the season for the pot cod vessel. The 27 pot catcher vessels that participated finished in three weeks, even though their quota had gone up 35% over last year. This year's quota was set at 8,685 metric tons, while the 2010 quota had been placed at 6,422 metric tons. Last year, the 24 boats that fished cod took the entire month to wrap up.
Unalaska, AK – Copper River Seafoods has expanded its operations out to Unalaska. The company has partnered with the Siu Alaska Corporation to form Bering Fisheries, a small plant that's hoping to stand out against the city's seafood processing giants. KUCB's Alexandra Gutierrez has more.
