Unalaska, AK – A new exhibit at the Museum of the Aleutians features work by local sculptor Karel Machalek. The show includes an array of large and small scale metal sculptures including abstract forms, maps, and human figures. On some pieces wires radiate from complicated metal forms, on others a Christ figure hangs high above the onlookers. Machalek says the pieces are partially inspired by the scraps of metal themselves.

Unalaska, AK – Today marks the 4th anniversary of the Selendang Ayu shipping accident in the Aleutian Islands. Six crew members died when the 738-foot freighter went ashore and spilled 60 thousand tons of soybeans and over 340 thousand gallons of heavy fuel oil. But what has been done to increase shipping safety in the region since then? One group says not enough. KUCB's Anne Hillman has more.

Unalaska, AK – The state's Marine Transportation Advisory Board is recommending increased ferry service to southwest Alaska from Homer to Unalaska. Southwest Alaska Municipal Conference leaders met with the board Monday morning. They urged the board to increase service to the region from once to twice a month during the summer. The ferry route, which stops in villages like Chignik and Sand Point, helps connect local villages and increase commerce in the region. The advisory board makes non-binding recommendations to the state and the Alaska Marine Highway System on issues related to the state ferry system. During the meeting board chair Cathie Roemmich wrote a recommendation that would help people in the southwest without cutting service to the southeast.

Unalaska, AK – The Marine Transportation Advisory Board plans on discussing ferry service to southwest Alaska and the Aleutian Islands during their meeting in Anchorage on Monday. The board will hear from the Southwest Alaska Municipal Conference, which wants more services in the region. Ferry system chief Jim Beedle said that would require cuts in other services, especially because the ferry system's budget is likely to remain the same in the coming year.

Unalaska, AK – Greenpeace USA launched a television ad in Anchorage and Seattle this week to draw attention to what it sees as overfishing of pollock in Alaska's waters. The organization wants to reduce the pollock quota by 50 percent. But NOAA scientists who study pollock say that cut is much larger than necessary. KUCB's Anne Hillman and KMXT's Jay Barrett have more.

Unalaska, AK – Unalaska's public safety employees union still has not fully agreed upon a contract with the City and is planning to take the City to court.

After more than two years of negotiations and mediation, the two parties met with an independent, mutually agreed-upon arbitrator in October for what was referred to as "binding arbitration." The arbitrator was to come to decisions over the largest contract disputes, which mostly concerned wage increases and administrative issues.

Unalaska, AK – Plaintiffs in the Exxon Valdez oil spill case are waiting for yet another court decision before receiving settlement checks from Exxon Mobile. Nineteen years after the worst oil spill in U.S. history, former Prince William Sound fish processor, Sea Hawk Seafoods of Valdez wants a new allocation plan. A federal court judge will make a decision on the case some time this week.

Unalaska, AK – The pollock fishery has closed for the year. All together the sectors caught 99 percent of the quota leaving only 8,100 metric tons of B-season quota on the table. NOAA Fisheries in-season manager Josh Keaton says this indicates good things about the fishery.
"We're with in 99 percent of the quota. In the past couple years they tended to leave a bit more on the table than they did this year."

Unalaska, AK – The city council decided to give residents $60 monthly utility bill rebates at their meeting on Friday. The rebate program will last 12 months and apply to the 381 residential meters that also qualify for the Power Cost Equalization program. The rebate program will cost the city about $275,000. Council member Dick Peck said this will help residents deal with the cost of living that has not gone down despite the decrease in international oil prices.