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State veterinarian worries deadly bird flu is on its way to Alaska

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State veterinarian worries deadly bird flu is on its way to Alaska


ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – State officers are involved a couple of lethal pressure of chicken flu that seems to be headed to Alaska.

Whereas chicken flu may be transmitted to people, the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention says the H5N1 pressure of chicken flu poses a low danger to the general public however has proved lethal to thousands and thousands of birds each wild and home.

“We’re seeing plenty of birds which can be getting sick and dying or having to be euthanized to go forward and attempt to management the unfold of this,” mentioned State Veterinarian Dr. Bob Gerlach.

The virus is primarily unfold by migrating waterfowl and whereas it hasn’t been detected in a wild chicken in Alaska but, Gerlach mentioned he’s assured it will likely be as extra geese, gulls, geese and shorebirds arrive day-after-day.

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Alaska doesn’t have plenty of industrial poultry operations of the sort which were devastated by the virus within the Decrease 48, however Gerlach mentioned yard hen homeowners are equally in danger. The USDA has put out steering for poultry homeowners which Gerlach mentioned contains tips about learn how to reduce publicity to wild birds or their droppings. That might embrace holding chickens in a lined enclosure as a substitute of letting them run free.

“We now have lots of people with yard flocks which have them open,” Gerlach mentioned. “And when you will have them open, then wild birds can are available in, then you will have that danger of … contaminating these birds with the virus.”

Gerlach mentioned if the virus spreads, it may trigger cancellations to occasions like 4-H exhibitions, and even the poultry show on the Alaska State Truthful.

“My massive concern is, if we have now so many outbreaks, particularly in home populations, yard flocks, are we going to permit the gala’s and the exhibitions to go forward and proceed,” Gerlach mentioned. “Numerous states, as quickly as they’ve had these detections have closed down all gala’s and all reveals and exhibitions. In order that’s what we’re actually involved with.”

Gerlach mentioned individuals who discover sick or dying birds of their flock ought to report them to their very own veterinarian, or the state veterinarian’s workplace.

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“Go forward and report it in order that we are able to go get a workforce on the market to go forward and choose samples and see if we have now an issue,” Gerlach mentioned.

Individuals who discover wild birds who’re sick or dying can e mail the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to report that.

And whereas the danger to people is low, Gerlach mentioned individuals who harvest wild birds ought to take precautions together with carrying gloves and ensuring the meat is completely cooked earlier than consuming.

Copyright 2022 KTUU. All rights reserved.



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Alaska

Alaska Airlines planes clip wings at Seattle-Tacoma airport, prompting FAA probe

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Alaska Airlines planes clip wings at Seattle-Tacoma airport, prompting FAA probe


The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is investigating after two Alaska Airlines planes clipped wings at a Seattle-Tacoma International Airport gate Saturday.

At about 12:15 p.m. local time, ground-service tugs were pushing back two aircraft from their gates when their winglets touched, an Alaska Airlines spokesperson told FOX Business.

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Alaska Airlines flights 1190 and 1094 clipped wings on Saturday.

Alaska Airlines flights 1190 and 1094 clipped wings Saturday. (LunatikMedic/Erik Luna / Fox News)

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There were no injuries, the spokesperson said.

Passengers on the two flights deplaned at the gate, were transferred to other aircraft and departed a short time later. 

Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-900ER on tarmac at SeaTac

An Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-900ER aircraft on the tarmac at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport in Seattle.  (David Ryder/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)

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“We sincerely apologize to our guests for the delay and inconvenience,” an Alaska Airlines spokesperson said.

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Alaska airlines flight operated by SkyWest in flight

The FAA said it is investigating the Alaska Airlines incident. (Kevin Carter/Getty Images / FOXBusiness)

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FAA air traffic control is not responsible for plane movements in the gate area, the agency wrote in a news release.



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As Alaska warms, Arctic geese are skipping their southern migration

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As Alaska warms, Arctic geese are skipping their southern migration


Out on Izembek Lagoon, the water was flat and clear. Alison Williams, a biologist with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, dipped her paddle in and steered her kayak toward the center of the lagoon, where the seagrass below runs thick.

“Everything below us is eelgrass,” she said. “It actually evolved on land and then evolved to go back into the water.”

The lagoon is the heart of the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge, a wide expanse of tundra and small lakes that stretches 310,000 acres across the Alaska peninsula, between the Pacific Ocean and the Bering Sea. It’s the smallest federal wildlife refuge in Alaska but one of the most important. It’s home to hundreds of thousands of birds: Pacific black brant, emperor geese, pintails and eiders.

This time of year, Izembek is famous as a stopover for migrating birds — a place to rest and refuel as hundreds of species move between their southern wintering grounds and the Arctic.

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Refuge manager Maria Fossado underscores how central this place is for migration.

“Wildlife are very smart, and they like to capitalize on use of energy,” she said. “Their focus is feeding, resting and capitalizing on when food is available.”

Theo Greenly / KSDP

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KSDP

Maria Fossado, left, and Alison Williams work for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. They have lived at the refuge’s headquarters in Cold Bay for nearly five years.

As the Arctic warms, some birds, like the Pacific black brant, are cutting their migrations short and spending the winter at the refuge. Williams says declining sea ice has made it easier to find the resources they need.

“It used to be, in the ’80s, a couple thousand. Increasingly, more of them are staying all winter long. Fifty to sixty thousand — the thought is, the lagoon is freezing over less, we’re getting less ice, and so the brant can access the eelgrass,” she said.

The lagoon is Izembek’s crown jewel. It hosts one of the largest eelgrass beds in the world. So why fly 2,800 miles to winter in Mexico when it’s plenty warm here?

“It might freeze up and then melt a couple times during the winter now, which is part of why people think that the brant are staying over more during the winter,” Williams said.

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But overwintering has its costs. Brant don’t have to fly as far — but surviving an Alaska winter takes more energy than it does in a warmer place. Williams calls it a game of trade-offs.

A study published in March the journal Movement Ecology looked at brant over a 10-year period. It found the benefits mostly cancel out: the energy saved on the commute is about the same as the energy spent making it through the colder winters.

The lagoon supports a variety of wildlife, including brown bear, wolves, walrus, sea lions and hundreds of species of birds.

Theo Greenly / KSDP

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The lagoon supports a variety of wildlife, including brown bear, wolves, walrus, sea lions and hundreds of species of birds.

A fragile habitat holds on — for now

Beneath Williams’ kayak, there was a sprawling underwater meadow — the eelgrass beds that fuel the entire ecosystem.

“There’s a lot of things that live in the eelgrass,” Williams added. “It’s good habitat for a huge array of things.”

Tiny snails and clams burrow into it. Fish shelter inside it. And birds like the black brant depend on it for the energy to migrate — or overwinter.

The U.S. Geological Survey surveyed the eelgrass cover at Izembek in 2016 and 2020.

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“There was some loss of eelgrass in the central part of the lagoon, where we are now,” Williams said. “And then a couple areas where we actually gained a little bit.”

Overall, the survey found a slight decline — far less than the global average. Worldwide, scientists estimate that about 30% of eelgrass habitat has vanished, hit hard by warming waters, pollution and invasive species.

Izembek remains one of the largest intact strongholds for this vital ecosystem. But in a warming world, even the most remote places are changing.



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Amid budget struggle, Alaska has little money for new construction or renovation

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Amid budget struggle, Alaska has little money for new construction or renovation


Rep. Jeremy Bynum, R-Ketchikan, speaks to Rep. Calvin Schrage, I-Anchorage, during a vote on amendments to the state’s capital budget on Monday, May 12, 2025. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)

The Alaska House of Representatives, following in the path of the state Senate, has approved a small construction and renovation budget for the fiscal year that starts July 1.

The vote on Senate Bill 57, the annual infrastructure bill — formally known as the capital budget — was 21-19, along caucus lines.

When oil prices and production are high, the Alaska Legislature pours hundreds of millions of dollars into new construction and maintenance projects. This spring, with the Legislature anticipating low oil prices and reduced federal funding, the House version of the capital budget proposes to spend just $167.9 million in general-purpose dollars.

In comparison, the capital budget two years ago spent more than three-quarters of a billion dollars. The newly approved capital budget isn’t the smallest in recent history — in 2016, legislators approved just $107 million — but spending is very limited by historical standards, noted Rep. Calvin Schrage, I-Anchorage, who oversaw the budget on the House Finance Committee.

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“This was not a fun or easy year to be the capital budget co-chair,” Schrage said, “due to our state’s dire fiscal picture. We had to say no — or at least not now — to a lot of good projects that would have benefited Alaskans. That said, we were still able to make some meaningful investments.”

A significant amount of the capital budget is being set aside for matching funds needed to unlock federal grants. For example, it allocates $57.2 million in general-purpose money to the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities, which gives the state access to more than $2 billion in transportation funding once federal money is considered.

It isn’t yet clear how federal budget cuts will affect that figure. The budget is set based on what is known as of today.

With general-purpose revenue limited, the House and Senate finance committees were mostly limited to assigning money to deferred maintenance projects at state facilities spread across Alaska.

For example, the Senate added $19 million to the major maintenance list at public schools. The House added another $19 million on top of that, enough to cover the top nine projects on the list.

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“We basically had an agreement going in; we got half, they got half,” said Sen. Bert Stedman, R-Sitka and Senate Finance Committee co-chair.

When it came to discretionary funding, requests from individual legislators for things like playgrounds or streetlights, the House and Senate were again treated equally.

“Everybody got nothing,” Stedman said.

Budget documents show few exceptions to Stedman’s comment.

One of the few budget additions made by the House was $500,000 for a Blood Bank of Alaska testing lab. Gov. Mike Dunleavy requested the money, the Senate rejected it, but the House added it back in.

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In many places, the budget attempted to use other sources of money instead of general-purpose dollars that primarily come from Permanent Fund earnings, oil taxes and royalties.

For example, Dunleavy requested $7 million for a time and attendance system to be used by state employees. The Senate cut that request to $4 million, and instead of using general-purpose dollars, lawmakers took additional money from the accounts of the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority. The House approved that change.

Of the budget overall, Schrage said lawmakers tried to deny projects equally, without regard to party or district.

“I know that this won’t make everyone happy, but we’ve done the best that we can,” he said.

The budget will return to the Senate for a concurrence vote, then advance to Dunleavy, who has line-item veto power and may eliminate individual budget items but cannot add new ones.

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Originally published by the Alaska Beacon, an independent, nonpartisan news organization that covers Alaska state government.





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