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May 16, 2013
Thursday
Sitka Black-tailed Deer
At Cape Fox's overflow parking area, the photographer spotted five deer wandering around with what seemed to be no worries with chainsaws going, trees falling and with a backhoe taking down trees as well. Two of the deer finally just laid down, even as the people who were working around them would walk by. This buck just stayed put as people walked by. He got up a couple times scratched and stretched and laid back down..
Front Page Photo by JIM LEWIS ©2013
(Please respect the rights of photographers, never republish or copy
without permission and/or payment of required fees.)
Alaska: University of the Arctic report urges quick action on arctic policies By Marmian Grimes - Arctic nations should move quickly to adopt shipping rules, improve safeguards against oil spills and create environmental and safety standards in polar waters, according to a new report released from the University of the Arctic’s Institute for Applied Circumpolar Policy.
The report is the fifth produced by the IACP, a partnership among the University of Alaska Fairbanks, Dartmouth College and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. The institute promotes discussion of critical policy issues facing the circumpolar North as a result of climate change.
“The scientific evidence of climate change and global warming is now irrefutable and the pace of global warming, sea ice melt and permafrost thaw has accelerated,” the report notes. “The ‘new’ Arctic and its abundant energy and natural resources are now, more than ever, exposed to development. The Arctic is a region where Russia, Europe and North America, working with indigenous peoples and interested non-arctic states, have taken initial steps to make the Arctic a peaceful and stable region where productive, sustainable development is achievable. The compelling issue now is how to build, strengthen and sustain this cooperation.”
The IACP urged the Arctic Council to expand on the report’s recommendations at its May 15 meeting in Sweden. The council is an intergovernmental organization for the eight arctic countries: Canada, Denmark (including Greenland and the Faroe Islands), Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russian Federation, Sweden and the United States.
The report is the result of a February meeting in Washington D.C., which drew more than 40 leading arctic scholars, government officials, industry leaders and representatives for indigenous people. - More...
Thursday PM - May 16, 2013
Alaska Science: Predicting the future: where do climate projections come from? By Molly Rettig - In Alaska, our lives revolve around the weather. When it comes to predicting conditions like temperature, snow and rain, the best glimpse into the future comes from climate models.
But standard climate models are very broad—looking at how global climate will be affected by things like escalating carbon dioxide emissions.
In a land of permafrost, icefields, massive mountain ranges and rainforest, a more nuanced prediction is helpful. For example, will it get rainier in the North Slope over the next few decades? When might Southcentral’s epic snow dumps turn to rain?
Steph McAfee recently produced a dataset that imposes high-resolution data from weather stations onto global climate models of the future to try to predict Alaska’s climate with more precision. It gives detailed projections for snow in different regions of the state over the next century.
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“It brings the data to a spatial scale that is more accessible and useful,” says McAfee, a climatologist with the Scenarios Network for Alaska and Arctic Planning (SNAP), a climate change planning group at the University of Alaska Fairbanks.
The technique is called downscaling. Picture Alaska divided into a grid of big cells of data on future global climate (approximately 225 kilometers by 95 kilometers per cell). Each big cell represents a single value—for example, a predicted temperature rise of 1 degree Fahrenheit over 30 years. Then you overlay a much tighter grid (2 kilometer-by-2-kilometer cells) of real-world data on temperature and precipitation. Now apply the value from the big cell onto each unique smaller cell within it (i.e. add 1 degree). This is what today’s climate could look like in 30 years. - More...
Thursday PM - May 16, 2013
Alaska: Invasion Moves Northward - As the annual spring invasion of Ketchikan was underway, there were thousands of small birds observed in the area as their annual feeding frenzy was at its peak. Songs filled the air as many of these birds stopped briefly over a 2-3 week period during their annual migration through Ketchikan on their way to other breeding grounds.
Although the songs and frenzy has diminished in Ketchikan, songs still fill the air along their migratory paths as well as the feeding frenzy. The Upper Tanana Valley reports that it has been "hit" with sparrows EVERYWHERE with nothing like it ever seen in the past.
“There’s constant movement on the ground and the singing is insane. I have never seen anything like this EVER. ” says retired U.S. Fish and Wildlife biologist Bud Johnson of Tok, Alaska. “There are probably hundreds of thousands of sparrows just in Tok”.
With the late spring, a good portion of the Upper Tanana Valley is still covered in snow and migration has been delayed. Warming temperatures near the end of last week brought some melting and a big influx of birds Thursday night, May 9th. On Sunday, May 12th, a low pressure system moved in with rain and snow that continued through Monday and has essentially grounded the birds. - More...
Thursday PM - May 16, 2013
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Southeast Alaska: Yakutat’s TERN of Events receives More Kids in the Woods Funding - When kids come to the Tern Festival at Yakutat this month, they will be learning about birds from artists, naturalists, birders and biologists. They will also be getting outdoors and learning to love it. And that is exactly what the Forest Service and its partners want them to do.
The festival’s TERN of Events youth activities recently received a $9,000 grant from the Forest Service More Kids In the Woods program. Combined with $12,000 from partners, the funds will support educational leaders who will enhance festival offerings and expand instruction to young people about natural sources.
The partners include: Yakutat Healthy Community Coalition, Alaska Native Brotherhood/Alaska Native Sisterhood Camp 13-Yakutat, Alaska Department of Fish and Game, National Park Service, Yakutat Police Department, Yakutat Coastal Center, Yakutat Chamber of Commerce, Yak-tat Kwaan Inc., Yakutat Tlingit Tribe, and the Yakutat School District.
“The Tern Festival is an amazing event,” said Teresa Hunt, Yakutat Ranger District Resource Assistant. “The Forest Service and partners contribute their time, energy, and resources to help connect kids and families with the natural world. Education of the local community, particularly youth, and stimulating ecotourism in the Yakutat area are two key objectives of the festival.”
The third annual Tern Festival (May 30 to June 2, 2013) features credited naturalists, birders, biologists, and/or artists leading youth art activities, seminars, and field trips. One of the largest and southernmost known breeding colonies of Aleutian Terns exists in Yakutat.The area is currently at the forefront of Aleutian Tern research, including studies on population trends, nesting ecology, and migration patterns. - More...
Thursday PM - May 16, 2013
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 SEAPA Study – Waste of Ratepayers’ Money By Bob Sivertsen -
The Southeast Alaska Power Agency (SEAPA) is a nonprofit wholesale power provider, not a monopoly as recently alleged. As a nonprofit, revenues are invested back into the Agency's operations and maintenance, and most years, rebates are given back to the member communities, all of which benefit our communities. Revenues are not pocketed by owners or stockholders. Working through contracts with the member communities, including the Power Sales Agreement, is a standard part of a sound business plan, which is evidenced by the Agency’s delivery of reliable wholesale power to the communities of Ketchikan, Petersburg, and Wrangell at the low rate of 6.8 cents/kWh for over 15 years. Our stable wholesale power rate is the lowest in the State of Alaska and has significantly benefited this region. This is "unique" considering costs for almost everything else have gone up significantly over the same period of time. - More...
Thursday PM - May 16, 2013
Management Slate v Independent By Myrna Gardner -
For the first time in my life, I decided to run as an Independent candidate for the Sealaska Board. The challenges Independents face are many. There are only 44 days from the date the proxy is issued before the Annual meeting. The Corporation uses shareholder money to send board slate out to informational meetings. The meetings are scheduled one right after the other and unless you have an endless pit of money, it is expense to attend on your own dime. - More...
Thursday PM - May 16, 2013
Sealaska Corporation and the New Tlingit Nobility By Clarice Johnson -
I am a Sealaska shareholder. I grew up commercially fishing with my father, Moses Johnson, who taught us if we wanted the land to care for us, we needed to care for the land. - More...
Thursday PM - May 16, 2013
Kayhi 1963 Reunion? By Barb Burgett Johnson-
Does anyone know of plans for a (gulp) 50th reunion for Kayhi '63, &/or can give me a contact name? I understand they're normally around July 4th, or the preceding weekend. - More...
Thursday PM - May 16, 2013
RE: Trolls & Fraudsters By Edwin Irizarry -
After reading Mr. Hanger's initial letter on guns and the rebuttals that followed, I could not resist. I would like to address some statements that Mr. Hanger made and ask him some questions. I am not going to write about who I am or what great deeds I may have or not have done. Those who know me here in Ketchikan truly know my history. - More...
Thursday PM - May 16, 2013
The Whisper App and your kids By Jessica Travis -
I am appalled at the recent talk about the "whisper app" and what's even more disconcerting is what our youth, right here in Ketchikan are using this app for bullying. These things may be hidden under the guise of "anonymous" - but the words and photos being posted are not. Parents, you should be outraged! Take a look at this app. Search your child's phone and/or other devices for this app and see what they are posting. Some of the things that I have seen posted since I found out about this: - More...
Monday PM - May 13, 2013
Speed Limits North and South of Ketchikan By Marlene Steiner -
I would like to know why that the State of Alaska DOT has different speed limits, one going to Beaver Falls and two going to the end of the road out north. - More...
Monday PM - May 13, 2013
S.340 Transfers Public Wildlife Habitat to Private Ownership By Bruce Baker -
Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski’s S.340 would transfer some of the highest quality old-growth wildlife habitat on the Tongass National Forest to Sealaska Corporation for clear-cut logging. The bill is not necessary to fulfill Sealaska’s land selection entitlement under the 1971 Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA). It is a poor conservation tradeoff, and it is certainly NOT in the public interest. - More...
Monday PM - May 13, 2013
RE: Trolls & Fraudsters By Douglas J. Thompson -
Well you had me going there Mr. Hanger. I thought you were trying to convey a true and cogent point of view. It wasn't until your second letter that I realized you were doing a parody of the gun control position. When I realized you had not included or responded to one legal or historical fact, failed to address any opposing argument, arbitrarily threw out the Amendments and by extension the whole Constitution with its rule of law, filled your letters with disinformation, went off on irrelevant tangents, then the Bush/Obhama tactic of labeling any opposition as "terrorist" that I caught on. By the way thanks for the great compliment of calling me a "traitor" and "terrorist". That stands me in great company as George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and all the other founding fathers. The Sons of Liberty were called terrorists in their time also. Trouble is it is hard to take a compliment that is given in context of a greater jest. - More...
Monday PM - May 13, 2013
RE: Trolls & Fraudsters By LCDR James Thompson USN -
Mr Hanger, in response to your letter implying I'm a troll or a fraudster several points of rebuttal are in order; - More...
Monday PM - May 13, 2013
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