Unalaska, AK – Unalaska resident and former UCB intern Monica Southworth is spending this month in Senegal as part of her French studies at St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN. She arrived in the small, Francophone West African nation on New Year's Day and will stay until February 8. Southworth grew up in Unalaska and will graduate this May. In the summer she plans to travel Tanzania to dig wells in a rural village with her boyfriend, Logan. KUCB's Anne Hillman spoke with her about some of her experiences in Senegal.

Unalaska, AK – As the Marine Stewardship Council is moving toward the re-certification of the pollock fishery as sustainable, Seafood Watch has downgraded its categorization of the fish from "Best Choice" to "Good Alternative."

The Marine Stewardship Council is the highest regarded independent certifier for sustainable fisheries. It was recently ranked the best seafood sustainability certifier by a World Wildlife Fund assessment. Pollock was first certified by MSC five years ago. Last week, independent evaluators said it qualifies for re-certification. Pat Shanahan, the program director for Genuine Alaska Pollock Producers, said the certification is additional evidence of the health of the fishery and having it improves sales.

Unalaska, AK – Results from the local 2009 Christmas Bird Count are in. Local bird watchers saw about 7,270 individual birds from 51 different species. Included in the count were 1,368 Emperor Geese, 125 Steller Eiders, 505 bald eagles, and 2 Eurasian Wigeons.

"It's kind of citizen science at its best," said Suzi Golodoff, who helped coordinate the count. "It's just a heck of a lot of fun to do every winter but it's also very vital data."

Unalaska, AK – Firefighters responded to a blaze at Peking Restaurant around 4:40 this morning and successfully extinguished it. No one was injured. Public safety received the call at 4:35 am. Police arrived first at the scene to ensure that the four residents who live in the apartment above the restaurant were safely cleared from the building. They also blocked off the roads from traffic. Sixteen fire fighters soon arrived at the building. Fire Chief Brian Long said the fire started in Peking Restaurant and spread to the walls and ceiling. He describes the fire as free burning with open flames that affected the structure of the building.

Unalaska, AK – The local Eastern Aleutian District tanner crab fishery opened on Friday. Eight boats are trying to catch the 74,000 pounds available in Unalaska and Kalekta Bay and the 45,000 pounds in Akutan Bay. The Makushin and Skan Bay area is closed to fishing this year. Assistant Area Management Shellfish Biologist Jeanette Alas said that it is not atypical for one section to be closed. Each year the Alaska Department of Fish & Game surveys all of the sections to see if they should be fished.

Unalaska, AK – The city may have to pull up to $23 million out of savings to complete necessary projects during the next fiscal year. They currently have about $90 million in savings, though much of it is already designated for major projects. The city saved up the money by budgeting conservatively, even in years of high revenues.

One of the largest money draws is the new Carl E. Moses Boat Harbor. Constructing the uplands and the inner harbor will cost around $27 million. The city currently has $12 million in state and city funds, but it is unclear where the rest will come from. City Manager Chris Hladick said the costs for the project have steadily risen.

Unalaska, AK – The proposed ArcticLink fiber optic cable from Japan to the United Kingdom would bring faster internet to Unalaska and Prudhoe Bay but not to other parts of western Alaska. The Kodiak Kenai Cable Company announced a plan to build a fiber optic express highway that connects Europe and Asia by passing through the Northwest Passage.

The route will go from Japan through the North Pacific, stop in Unalaska, go up the western coast of Alaska to Prudhoe Bay, then through the Northwest Passage, south of Greenland, to connect to London. The company's technical consultant, Ik Icard, said it's actually the shortest route between the edges of the continents.

Unalaska, AK – More than 10,000 gallons of diesel fuel and contaminated water have already been collected from the oil spill site in Adak. Two clean-up crews are working to recover the 142,800 gallons of diesel that spilled from a storage tank as it was being filled at Adak Petroleum on Monday. Most of the fuel was absorbed into the land.

Unified Command spokesperson Sara Francis said the clean-up crews are focusing on cleaning the water first. They've already removed most of the fuel that entered the small boat harbor. The weather is also working in their favor. Rain is flushing the oil toward collection points and the waves are making it easier to clean up.

Unalaska, AK – Three local organizations are participating in this year's "Pick. Click. Give." program through the Permanent Fund Dividend. The program allows people to donate to non-profits around the state when they file electronically for their PFDs. Locally, Unalaskans against Sexual Assault and Family Violence, or USAFV, the Museum of the Aleutians, and Unalaska Community Broadcasting are all participating in the program.