Alaska

It’s time to consider finfish farming in Alaska • Alaska Beacon

Published

1 year ago

September 18, 2024

It’s time to consider finfish farming in Alaska • Alaska Beacon

In the heat of debate over salmon farming, Alaska banned all finfish farming, except for a very narrow window for goldfish and other pet store varieties. As Alaska seeks ways to diversify its economy, it is time to rethink the overreach of the ban. Here’s a modest proposal that could result in small-scale, affordable enterprises utilizing existing renewable resources.

How fish farming can be no threat

Under our proposal, no saltwater farming would be allowed, and the amended law would specifically prohibit rearing of Pacific and Atlantic salmon in fresh water. These measures should remove the concerns raised by commercial fishermen and environmental groups during the debate over salmon farming.

Also prevented would be the farming of commercial species such as halibut and black cod in upland tanks.

While arctic char is a distant cousin of salmon, farmed and wild caught char does not compete in the markets for salmon. Most of Canada’s production of char is consumed in country. Iceland is the leading producer of char, which is consumed mostly in northern Europe.

The Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch program promotes farmed Arctic char as an environmentally sustainable best choice for consumers, stating: “Arctic char use only a moderate amount of marine resources for feed” and that they “are farmed in land-based, closed systems that minimize the risk of escape into the wild.”

The farming of freshwater finfish, such as arctic char, sheefish, rainbow trout and even tilapia, in upland tanks or enclosed lakes or ponds could provide jobs and increase food security without harming the environment or threatening wild stocks. Unlike the drive to expand oil and gas production and large-scale mining working with multinational corporations which reap most of the benefits, freshwater fish farming could appeal more to smaller Alaska-owned businesses.

Alaska clearly has an abundance of freshwater resources, and experience in Alaska’s premier state hatchery and a Whitehorse fish farm show that arctic char and sheefish prefer cool rearing waters. In addition, arctic char and sheefish can be raised in high densities without experiencing significant problems with disease.

Icy Waters near Whitehorse has farmed arctic char for about three decades and has found the preferred water temperature is below 12 C (53.6 F) and the fish could survive and feed in water temperatures as low as 1 C (33.8 F). Icy Waters also experimented with keeping char in a lake over winter and found that the fish could survive under winter ice without feeding until spring.

The experience of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s William Jack Hernandez Sportfish Hatchery in Anchorage in raising char is like Icy Waters. Both facilities have found char:

are calm and non-aggressive;
prefer densities of 50-70 kilograms per cubic meter (110-154 pounds per cubic meter of water) and can survive in densities of more than 200 pounds per cubic meter of water (these are much higher than salmon);
can survive high density rearing, prefer cool waters and experience very low rates of disease (no medications or chemical treatments are used at either facility); and
the species have high fecundity (4-5,000 eggs/female in Alaska and up to 10,000 eggs in older females held in Icy Waters).

While there is less experience with sheefish, the Hernandez hatchery shows the species also can survive high-density rearing, prefers cool waters and experiences low rates of disease.

Arctic char is an important commercial and subsistence species across Siberia, Alaska, Canada, Iceland and Scandinavia. Estimated global production of farmed char ranges between 6,000-10,000 tons. Recent online U.S. prices for char range from $17 to $28 per pound.

Char and sheefish appear to be particularly suitable for farming in northwestern Alaska waters. These are stocks that have long been a mainstay in the diets of Native residents in the areas hit so hard with the disappearance of salmon. The farms could provide revenues for the stocking of local streams and lakes, in addition to producing high-quality sources of protein.

Release of stocks will require production of triploid fish, which are considered functionally sterile.

All freshwater finfish farming will require a lot of work because farms will require hatchery status as access to wild stocks will be difficult and state agencies aren’t geared to help assist smaller-scale startups. Aquaculture enterprises throughout the world all require government support and encouragement to thrive.

Other species might have more obstacles than char and sheefish because most will require warmer rearing waters and may have more problems with disease, rainbow trout as an example.

Tilapia is a great partner for vertical aquaponics, or the growing of vegetables in water rather than soil. The combination of these two methods results in a mutually beneficial relationship where fish waste provides nutrients for the plants and the plants purify the water for the fish. The sale of tilapia could add an important source of revenue to the operation.

In the mid-1990s, a couple of young men approached an officer of the Alaskan Shellfish Growers Association and asked about Alaska’s ban on finfish farming as they had successfully raised tilapia in the basement of their Wasilla home. The officer told them changes in the law were unrealistic.

This may be the time to change the law, but it will require a lot of work in the deeply divided Legislature.

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Alaska

Alaska Airlines adding new daily flight between Bellingham, Portland | Cascadia Daily News

Published

2 hours ago

December 18, 2025

Press Room

Alaska Airlines adding new daily flight between Bellingham, Portland | Cascadia Daily News

Alaska Airlines is adding a daily flight between Bellingham International Airport and Portland International Airport starting next spring, the airline announced Dec. 18.

The flights will begin March 18, 2026 and will be offered during the year on the E175 jets. The announcement is part of a slew of expanded routes Alaska will begin offering in the new year across the Pacific Northwest, Wyoming and Boston.

“Anchorage and Portland are essential airports to our guests and us in our growing global network,” Kristen Amrine, vice president of revenue management and network planning for Alaska, said in the announcement. “Portland is not only a great city to visit, but we also offer convenient nonstop connections for those continuing their travel across our wide network.”

The Portland route is the first time in years the Bellingham airport has offered a flight outside of Seattle or its typical routes in California, Nevada and Arizona. In the last 10 years, Alaska and Allegiant Air ceased non-stop flights to Portland, Hawaii and Las Vegas.

Matthew Rodriguez, the aviation director for the Port of Bellingham, said Thursday his team is excited for the expanded route. The route will also allow Alaska to start data gathering to see if there’s market demand for more direct flights out of Bellingham.

The airline will be able to examine how many people from Bellingham are flying into Portland and then connecting to other flights, including popular destinations like Hawaii and San Diego.

“It’s going to help our community justify a direct flight, which, in my opinion, we have a data that already supports the direct flights, and we already had an incumbent carrier doing those direct flights,” he said. “So I don’t think it’s going to take very much additional data for Alaska to acknowledge that.”

Guests can already start booking the hour-long flight to Oregon on the Alaska Air website or app.

Intrepid airport enthusiasts have also noted Alaska is phasing out one of its nonstop flights between Bellingham and Seattle in early January.

In a statement, Alaska said the “flight adjustments are about putting more connecting flights from Bellingham through Portland to decrease some of the strain in Seattle.”

The phase-out allows for the Portland route to be brought online in time for spring travel.

Alaska is also adding a daily year-round flight between Paine Field in Everett and Portland in June.

This story was updated at 11:53 a.m. with additional comments from the Port of Bellingham.

Annie Todd is CDN’s criminal justice/enterprise reporter; reach her at annietodd@cascadiadaily.com; 360-922-3090 ext. 130.

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Alaska

Alaska is reporting 18 in-custody deaths so far this year, tying a grim record

Published

15 hours ago

December 18, 2025

Press Room

Alaska is reporting 18 in-custody deaths so far this year, tying a grim record

Barbed wire fencing surrounds Goose Creek Correctional Center on Tuesday, Aug. 29, 2023 outside of Wasilla. (Loren Holmes / ADN)

The Department of Corrections this week reported the 18th death of an inmate this year, tying the record for the highest number of annual in-custody deaths in at least the past decade.

Kane William Huff, who had been imprisoned at Goose Creek Correctional Center near Wasilla, died Dec. 11, according to a DOC statement. Huff, 46, was serving a sentence for a 2018 conviction on two counts of sexual abuse of a minor, according to online court records. DOC officials said he had been in custody since 2015.

Huff was found unresponsive in the prison’s infirmary, where he had been housed, said Department of Public Safety spokesman Austin McDaniel. Alaska State Troopers, who handle in-custody death investigations, have closed their investigation and are awaiting autopsy results from the State Medical Examiner Office, McDaniel said. Troopers don’t believe Huff died by suicide or that foul play was involved, he said.

The last time as many people died in state custody was in 2022, when a record seven inmates also died by suicide, according to a department snapshot of deaths since 2015.

The Department of Corrections began consistently keeping inmate death statistics in 2001, said spokesperson Betsy Holley. The department also posts data showing in-custody deaths since 2015. That year, 15 people died while in DOC custody.

The state’s official count for 2025 doesn’t include the death of 36-year-old William Farmer, who died in a hospital in January after he was severely beaten by his cellmate at the Anchorage Correctional Complex the month before.

An upward trend of in-custody deaths in the past several years has alarmed some prisoner rights advocates and prompted state lawmakers to ask Department of Corrections officials to address the deaths in multiple hearings this year. The department has also found itself under fire for inmate suicides.

This year, at least four inmates have died of natural or expected causes, such as disease or a medical event, while at least five have died by suicide, according to information provided by Alaska State Troopers.

Officials have also said that a Spring Creek Correctional Center prisoner died of an overdose in April.

Another inmate, 53-year-old Jeffrey Foreman, died in July after being restrained by guards after an altercation with his cellmate at the Anchorage Correctional Complex.

[Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly described the year the Department of Corrections started consistently keeping inmate death statistics. It was 2001, not 2015.]

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Alaska

Hawaiian, Alaska airlines to use locally made biofuel | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Published

1 day ago

December 17, 2025

Press Room

Hawaiian, Alaska airlines to use locally made biofuel | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Hawaiian Airlines and Alaska Airlines expect to begin running some of their planes partly on biofuel produced in Hawaii early next year.

The sister airlines owned by Alaska Air Group also plan to invest in a joint venture between several companies including fuel refinery operator Par Hawaii trying to establish Camelina sativa, also known as false flax, as a major crop in the state for producing
sustainable aviation fuel and feed for cattle and chickens.

Hawaiian and Alaska, which are publicly announcing the plans today, say the related ventures will expand their use of sustainable aviation fuel that reduces greenhouse gas emissions and helps the state meet a goal to have 100% of energy generation from renewable sources by 2045.

“As Hawaii’s airline, we have a responsibility to reduce our environmental impact while continuing to provide essential air service that connects our communities and strengthens our economy,” Alanna James, sustainability innovation director at Hawaiian and Alaska, said in a statement. “Our company has a long-term strategy to reach net zero carbon emissions, and sustainable aviation fuel is essential for us to get there.”

Hawaiian began working with Par
Hawaii in 2022 to study the commercial viability of locally produced sustainable aviation fuel, or SAF. That work became integrated with Alaska when Alaska Air Group completed its $1.9 billion acquisition of Hawaiian in September 2024.

Meanwhile, Par Hawaii, a subsidiary of Houston-based Par Pacific Holdings Inc., has been working over the past few years to convert part of its Kapolei fuel refinery to produce a variety of renewable fuels to be used for electricity generation as well as for air, ground and marine transportation.

Par Hawaii initially invested $90 million to develop the facility, and in October sold a 36.5% stake in the project to a joint venture between two Japanese companies, Mitsubishi
Corp. and ENEOS Corp., for $100 million.

The project will be the largest renewable fuels manufacturing facility in the state, with a capacity to produce about 61 million gallons of fuel annually ideally from locally grown oil-producing crops but also from imported plant and waste oils.

Par Hawaii’s renewable fuel production plant is designed to make up to 60% SAF, and is expected to begin operations and deliver its first fuel to Hawaiian and Alaska sometime between January and March.

However, almost all off the fuel produced at the facility initially will be renewable diesel that Par Hawaii plans to sell on the West Coast of the mainland.

Still, Par Hawaii President Eric Wright said in a statement that the company didn’t think progress to produce SAF would be as quick after the 2022 study began with Hawaiian.

“With renewable fuel
production coming online in early 2026, it’s exciting to see the results of our team’s hard work,” he said. “These fuels will have up to 80% lower carbon emissions compared to conventional fuels. This would not have been possible without a shared vision for our islands and our great teamwork.”

When renewable fuel production begins early next year, the feedstock will be from canola oil along with used cooking oil and rendered animal fat imported from Canada, according to Par Hawaii.

Hawaiian and Alaska, the latter of which set an ambitious goal in 2021 to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2040, already use some SAF, but not any produced in Hawaii.

SAF is a “drop-in” fuel, meaning it works with existing airplane engines and fuel infrastructure. Current use, however, is limited to a maximum 50% blend with conventional jet fuel made from petroleum, and 100% SAF use may be several years away.

To make SAF in Hawaii
using local feedstock, Honolulu-based natural resources conservation firm Pono
Pacific is leading work to establish Camelina as a major crop from which oil can be extracted for Par Hawaii’s renewable fuel production facility.

Pono Pacific in 2023 collaborated with the Hawai‘i Agriculture Research Center to test 50 non-GMO Camelina varieties to see what would grow best in different conditions around the state.

According to the announcement by Hawaiian and Alaska, Camelina crop trials were conducted by Pono Pacific on four islands in partnership with Aloun Farms, Maui crop producer Mahi Pono and Meadow Gold Dairy. Pono Pacific also has worked with Hawaii cattle and livestock operators to explore the use of Camelina seedcake after oil extraction as animal feed.

Early next year, Pono
Pacific plans to accelerate its work on Camelina, which the company said can reach maturity in eight to nine weeks, is pest-resistant and can be grown in rotation with food crops.

“Camelina represents
a rare opportunity for Hawaii to build a true circular-economy model around
renewable fuels,” Chris
Bennett, Pono Pacific vice president of sustainable energy solutions, said in a statement.

“We will explore food crops that can be grown alongside Camelina to increase food security as well,” Bennett added. “It’s a win for our economy, a win for local agriculture, and a win for the environment — an example of how Hawaii can lead the way in innovative, homegrown climate solutions.”

Regardless of whether Pono Pacific’s expectations for Camelina are realized, Hawaiian and Alaska are slated to become the first customers of locally
produced SAF under their
arrangement with Par
Hawaii.

How much SAF the two airlines have committed to use is not being disclosed. James described the initial amount as “relatively small.” She also noted that SAF is two to three times more expensive than regular jet fuel, and that the supply is
limited.

The two airlines consume more than 200 million gallons of jet fuel in Hawaii annually, with transpacific flights representing the vast majority of that use.

James said there will need to be strong collaboration across airlines, fuel and feedstock producers, investors, government and others along with supportive policies that include state incentives to grow the SAF industry and reach decarbonization goals.

The Hawaii Department of Transportation in October finalized a plan to largely eliminate greenhouse gas emissions from ground, air and ocean transportation vehicles in the state by 2045, and acknowledges that achieving the goal will result in higher costs for industries and consumers.

HDOT’s plan includes a priority to establish state tax credits to incentivize the import, production and use of SAF for long-haul and interisland flights.

The report notes that other states have credits ranging from 75 cents to $1.50 per gallon.

“For SAF to be deployed in Hawaii at the scale needed to achieve significant strides towards decarbonization, similar policies are essential,” the report states.

HDOT’s goal is to reach 50% SAF use by 2035, followed by 75% in 2040 and 100% by 2045.

Ed Sniffen, HDOT director, said in a statement that the agency applauds Hawaiian and Alaska airlines, Par
Hawaii and Pono Pacific for achieving what he described as an “important step to establish a locally based, lower-emissions supply chain for aviation fuel that supports our state’s clean energy goals.”

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