News

Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation file photo An Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation staff member secures a chain to an unearthed 40-foot pipe used at the Arness Septage Site. The pipe was installed on the land previous to a 1979 permit seeking to expand the facility, including a 21-tank system, to hold petroleum products, drilling muds and other sludge. That permit was not approved, but in the late 1980s, DEC excavated more than 4,200 gallons of oily waste at the site in addition to hundreds of barrels containing various oil industry wastes.

Company seeks private wells for Nikiski water testing

Darcy McCaughey and her family live in the middle of an area in Nikiski that will soon be the subject of a groundwater modeling study.… Continue reading

  • Nov 6, 2014
  • By Rashah McChesney
Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation file photo An Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation staff member secures a chain to an unearthed 40-foot pipe used at the Arness Septage Site. The pipe was installed on the land previous to a 1979 permit seeking to expand the facility, including a 21-tank system, to hold petroleum products, drilling muds and other sludge. That permit was not approved, but in the late 1980s, DEC excavated more than 4,200 gallons of oily waste at the site in addition to hundreds of barrels containing various oil industry wastes.

Kenai man pleads guilty to manslaughter in 2010 crash

HOMER — More than four years after a 2010 Memorial Day weekend car crash killed a Washington, D.C., woman, a Kenai man last week pleaded… Continue reading

Photo courtesy Soldotna Police Department A razor blade and screw was found in this box of Nerds candy by the parent of a 13-year-old Soldotna teen on Halloween night. Police are investigating how the metal got into the packaging. Police believe the candy was obtained near the 200 and 300 block between Central Peninsula Hospital and Soldotna High School.

Not a treat

Soldotna police are warning parents to pay close attention to their kid’s Halloween candy after a Soldotna teen found a razor blade and small screw… Continue reading

  • Nov 6, 2014
  • By DAN BALMER
Photo courtesy Soldotna Police Department A razor blade and screw was found in this box of Nerds candy by the parent of a 13-year-old Soldotna teen on Halloween night. Police are investigating how the metal got into the packaging. Police believe the candy was obtained near the 200 and 300 block between Central Peninsula Hospital and Soldotna High School.

Parking citation added to clear Kenai streets

Since the beginning of October Kenai police have left warnings to residents who park on the street overnight to make way for plow vehicles.While the… Continue reading

  • Nov 6, 2014
  • By DAN BALMER

Kenai man pleads guilty to manslaughter in 2010 crash

More than four years after a 2010 Memorial Day weekend car crash killed a Washington, D.C., woman, a Kenai man last week pleaded guilty to… Continue reading

  • Nov 6, 2014
  • By MICHAEL ARMSTRONG Morris News Service-Alaska
A razor blade and screw was found in this box of Nerds candy by the parent of a 13-year-old Soldotna teen on Halloween night. Police are investigating how the metal got into the packaging. Police believe the candy was obtained near the 200 and 300 block between Central Peninsula Hospital and Soldotna High School.

Not a treat

Soldotna police are warning parents to pay close attention to their kid’s Halloween candy after a Soldotna teen found a razor blade and small screw… Continue reading

  • Nov 6, 2014
  • By DAN BALMER
A razor blade and screw was found in this box of Nerds candy by the parent of a 13-year-old Soldotna teen on Halloween night. Police are investigating how the metal got into the packaging. Police believe the candy was obtained near the 200 and 300 block between Central Peninsula Hospital and Soldotna High School.

Soldotna mulls home rule question as Feb. vote looms

In four months, Soldotna residents will decide how much autonomy they want for their city. A special election is scheduled for Feb. 3, 2015, for… Continue reading

  • Nov 5, 2014
  • By Kelly Sullivan
Photo by Rashah McChesney/Peninsula Clarion Several bags containing a cement mixture being pumped out of the nearby woods line an area at a Baker Hughes facility, on Wednesday November 5, 2014 in Nikiski, Alaska. The company is working to clean up several thousand pounds of concrete material it dumped into the woods over the course of several weeks.

Baker Hughes Nikiski spill cleanup nears completion

Between the intermittent noise of an industrial truck-mounted vacuum running for several hours a day, a cleanup crew in hazmat suits moving the through the… Continue reading

  • Nov 5, 2014
  • By Rashah McChesney
Photo by Rashah McChesney/Peninsula Clarion Several bags containing a cement mixture being pumped out of the nearby woods line an area at a Baker Hughes facility, on Wednesday November 5, 2014 in Nikiski, Alaska. The company is working to clean up several thousand pounds of concrete material it dumped into the woods over the course of several weeks.
Photo by Dan Balmer/Peninsula Clarion Voters cast their ballots at the Sterling Community Center Tuesday.

Races motivate peninsula voters

Editor's note: This story has been changed to correctly attribute a quote. For the first time in his life, Ben Heaverley voted in Soldotna on… Continue reading

  • Nov 5, 2014
  • By RASHAH McCHESNEY, DAN BALMER, KELLY SULLIVAN and BEN BOETTGER
Photo by Dan Balmer/Peninsula Clarion Voters cast their ballots at the Sterling Community Center Tuesday.

Young fends off Dunbar for House seat

ANCHORAGE (AP) — U.S. Rep. Don Young will remain as longest-serving Republican in the House. Young defeated his upstart opponent, Forrest Dunbar, on Tuesday to… Continue reading

  • Nov 5, 2014

Olson defeats Thornton in District 30 race

Rep. Kurt Olson, R-Soldotna has been re-elected for a sixth term in the Alaska State House. Representing District 30, Olson received 3,869 votes, winning 74… Continue reading

  • Nov 5, 2014
  • By Kelly Sullivan

Sullivan holds election day lead over Begich

ANCHORAGE — Republican U.S. Senate candidate Dan Sullivan held an early lead over Democratic Sen. Mark Begich Tuesday night in Alaska’s hotly contested race. Tens… Continue reading

  • Nov 5, 2014
  • By Becky Bohrer

Race for governor too close to call

ANCHORAGE (AP) — Independent candidate Bill Walker held a razor thin lead over Republican incumbent Sean Parnell, but the Alaska governor’s race remained too close… Continue reading

  • Nov 5, 2014
  • By Rachel D'oro

Micciche reclaims District O

Sen. Peter Micciche received his ticket back to Juneau Tuesday. Three out of every four voters in Senate District O favored Micciche, R-Soldotna, over his… Continue reading

  • Nov 5, 2014
  • By DAN BALMER

Chenault wins District 29 by a landslide

Mike Chenault has been a state representative in Alaska for 14 years and, for the third time since 2010, he successfully defended his seat against… Continue reading

  • Nov 5, 2014
  • By Rashah McChesney

Voters approve ballot initiatives on marijuana, minimum wage, Bristol Bay mining

ANCHORAGE — A measure to legalize recreational use of marijuana in Alaska was maintaining a steady lead in early returns Tuesday night.With nearly two-thirds of… Continue reading

  • Nov 5, 2014
  • By Dan Joling
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky., joined by his wife, former Labor Secretary Elaine Chao, celebrates with his supporters at an election night party in Louisville, Ky.,Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2014. McConnell won a sixth term in Washington, with his eyes on the larger prize of GOP control of the Senate. The Kentucky Senate race, with McConnell, a 30-year incumbent, fighting off a spirited challenge from Democrat Alison Lundergan Grimes, has been among the most combative and closely watched contests that could determine the balance of power in Congress. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

GOP takeover: Republicans surge to Senate control

WASHINGTON — Riding a powerful wave of voter discontent, resurgent Republicans captured control of the Senate and tightened their grip on the House Tuesday night… Continue reading

  • Nov 4, 2014
  • By DAVID ESPO
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky., joined by his wife, former Labor Secretary Elaine Chao, celebrates with his supporters at an election night party in Louisville, Ky.,Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2014. McConnell won a sixth term in Washington, with his eyes on the larger prize of GOP control of the Senate. The Kentucky Senate race, with McConnell, a 30-year incumbent, fighting off a spirited challenge from Democrat Alison Lundergan Grimes, has been among the most combative and closely watched contests that could determine the balance of power in Congress. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Buccaneer sells assets; wants $20M from state

Bankrupt Buccaneer Energy Ltd. is demanding more than $20 million from the State of Alaska, days after appearing to sell its remaining assets.The Australia-based independent… Continue reading

  • Nov 4, 2014
  • By ELWOOD BREHMER

Intersection causes road block for daycare permit

Soldotna resident Robyn Schneider has been trying to get a conditional use permit from the city to open a daycare facility since July 6. Throughout… Continue reading

  • Nov 3, 2014
  • By Kelly Sullivan
Two Nikiski candidates running for District 29

Two Nikiski candidates running for District 29

Editor’s note: This is the third in a series of stories looking at area candidates for the Alaska Legislature.   Political newcomer Rocky Knudsen, a… Continue reading

  • Aug 3, 2014
  • By KAYLEE OSOWSKI
Two Nikiski candidates running for District 29