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Spring in the valley In this May 13 photo, the snowy Chugach Mountains stand over Vagt Lake near Moose Pass. Though ice is still breaking up on the high alpine lakes, the lower lakes in the valleys on the eastern Kenai Peninsula are ice-free, if cold. Vagt Lake, about a mile and a half down a trail that begins just off the Seward Highway near Moose Pass, is stocked with rainbow trout every year by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Coho salmon and Arctic grayling may also be available in the lake, according to Fish and Game. (Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

Photo: Spring in the valley

By ELIZABETH EARL Peninsula Clarion… Continue reading

Spring in the valley In this May 13 photo, the snowy Chugach Mountains stand over Vagt Lake near Moose Pass. Though ice is still breaking up on the high alpine lakes, the lower lakes in the valleys on the eastern Kenai Peninsula are ice-free, if cold. Vagt Lake, about a mile and a half down a trail that begins just off the Seward Highway near Moose Pass, is stocked with rainbow trout every year by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Coho salmon and Arctic grayling may also be available in the lake, according to Fish and Game. (Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

Borough wrestles with school funding, taxes

The Kenai Peninsula Borough is facing the same budget conundrum as the state, just on a smaller scale: residents want to maintain services but raising… Continue reading

From right, Alaska Department of Fish and Game geneticist Sam Rabung, Fish and Game Commissioner Sam Cotten, Alaska Department of Natural Resources Commissioner Andy Mack and Division of Parks and Outdoor Recreation Acting Director Matt Weideke listen to concerns from Homer and Tutka Bay residents about a permit that would authorize Cook Inlet Aquaculture Association to move its net pens in Tutka Bay from the lagoon to the head of the bay at a meeting at the Islands and Ocean Visitor Center on May 15 in Homer. (Photo/Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

Park users, commercial fishermen clash over Tutka Bay net pens

HOMER — The debate over whether a Cook Inlet hatchery operator can move some net pens out into a Homer-area bay is tangled up with… Continue reading

From right, Alaska Department of Fish and Game geneticist Sam Rabung, Fish and Game Commissioner Sam Cotten, Alaska Department of Natural Resources Commissioner Andy Mack and Division of Parks and Outdoor Recreation Acting Director Matt Weideke listen to concerns from Homer and Tutka Bay residents about a permit that would authorize Cook Inlet Aquaculture Association to move its net pens in Tutka Bay from the lagoon to the head of the bay at a meeting at the Islands and Ocean Visitor Center on May 15 in Homer. (Photo/Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)
A bufflehead duck flies between three drift boats of birders on Thursday, May 14, 2015 as the group tours the Kenai River during a long weekend of Kenai Birding Festival activities. (Clarion File Photo)

Birding festival takes flight May 18

Grab your binoculars, the annual Kenai Peninsula Birding Festival starts Thursday, May 18 and runs through Sunday, May 21 with different birding hot spots and… Continue reading

A bufflehead duck flies between three drift boats of birders on Thursday, May 14, 2015 as the group tours the Kenai River during a long weekend of Kenai Birding Festival activities. (Clarion File Photo)

Senate kills income tax

The Alaska Senate on Friday voted 15-4 to kill an income tax proposed by the House, all but ensuring the Alaska’s multibillion-dollar deficit will not… Continue reading

This graph, compiled by the Alaska Senate Majority, shows the state government’s spending by agency for fiscal year 2017. (Courtesy the Alaska Senate Majority) This graph, compiled by the Alaska Senate Majority, shows the state government’s spending by agency for fiscal year 2017. (Courtesy the Alaska Senate Majority)

How big can the Alaska health care bubble grow?

Alaska faces a paradox with its health care industry. In an economy sliding downhill, health care is the only sector still growing. With many jobs… Continue reading

This graph, compiled by the Alaska Senate Majority, shows the state government’s spending by agency for fiscal year 2017. (Courtesy the Alaska Senate Majority) This graph, compiled by the Alaska Senate Majority, shows the state government’s spending by agency for fiscal year 2017. (Courtesy the Alaska Senate Majority)
Nesting season on the Kenai A trumpeter swan sunbathes on an unnamed lake near Skilak Lake on Thursday on the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. Trumpeter swans, which mate for life, typically nest in marshes next to small lakes as early in the spring as thaw allows, according to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. They need between 140 and 54 ice-free days to complete a breeding cycle. The Kenai National Wildlife Refuge has a growing population of swans, with about 50 nesting pairs. (Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

Photo: Nesting season

A trumpeter swan sunbathes on an unnamed lake near Skilak Lake on Thursday on the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. Trumpeter swans, which mate for life,… Continue reading

Nesting season on the Kenai A trumpeter swan sunbathes on an unnamed lake near Skilak Lake on Thursday on the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. Trumpeter swans, which mate for life, typically nest in marshes next to small lakes as early in the spring as thaw allows, according to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. They need between 140 and 54 ice-free days to complete a breeding cycle. The Kenai National Wildlife Refuge has a growing population of swans, with about 50 nesting pairs. (Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)
A sockeye salmon makes its flight into the back of a truck on a set gillnet site on July 11, 2016 near Kenai, Alaska. (Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion, file)

While other species increase, salmon, herring landing values drop

The total value of commercial fisheries landings in Alaska didn’t change much between 2014 and 2015, but by species, salmon have been the millstone around… Continue reading

A sockeye salmon makes its flight into the back of a truck on a set gillnet site on July 11, 2016 near Kenai, Alaska. (Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion, file)
Mariano Gonzales discusses his show “Swimming Upstream” on May 4, 2017 at Kenai Fine Art Center in Kenai. The show will hang until May 27. (Kat Sorensen/Peninsula Clarion)

‘Swimming Upstream’ on display until May 27

Be careful with what you touch at the Kenai Fine Art Center this month— you may get shot by Mariano Gonzales’ piece “Don’t Touch My… Continue reading

Mariano Gonzales discusses his show “Swimming Upstream” on May 4, 2017 at Kenai Fine Art Center in Kenai. The show will hang until May 27. (Kat Sorensen/Peninsula Clarion)
Participants in a streambank rehabilitation workshop at the Donald E. Giman River Center unwrap bundles of felt willow to install as reinforcement along a damaged section of the Kenai River’s bank Wednesday, May 10, 2017 in Soldotna, Alaska. The free two-day annual workshop, hosted by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, teaches people how to properly repair damaged fish habitat along streams in Alaska. (Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion) Participants in a streambank rehabilitation workshop at the Donald E. Giman River Center unwrap bundles of felt willow to install as reinforcement along a damaged section of the Kenai River’s bank Wednesday in Soldotna. The free two-day annual workshop, hosted by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, teaches people how to properly repair damaged fish habitat along streams in Alaska. (Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

Kenai Peninsula residents get hands-on with streambank restoration

A sunny, warm Wednesday in Soldotna found about 40 people busily digging trenches and mounting willow boughs into the banks of the Kenai River, all… Continue reading

Participants in a streambank rehabilitation workshop at the Donald E. Giman River Center unwrap bundles of felt willow to install as reinforcement along a damaged section of the Kenai River’s bank Wednesday, May 10, 2017 in Soldotna, Alaska. The free two-day annual workshop, hosted by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, teaches people how to properly repair damaged fish habitat along streams in Alaska. (Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion) Participants in a streambank rehabilitation workshop at the Donald E. Giman River Center unwrap bundles of felt willow to install as reinforcement along a damaged section of the Kenai River’s bank Wednesday in Soldotna. The free two-day annual workshop, hosted by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, teaches people how to properly repair damaged fish habitat along streams in Alaska. (Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

Anchor Point, Kasilof to have field assessments this year

Borough assessors will be scoping out properties in the Anchor Point, Deep Creek, Ninilchik, Clam Gulch and Kasilof areas this year. The Kenai Peninsula Borough… Continue reading

Senate budget cuts holes in public health service

The state’s public health division has been whittled down significantly over the past several years and is facing more cuts this year. The Alaska Department… Continue reading

Brooke Kent, a Cook Inlet Academy graduate, plays and sings the song “Soar” by Meredith Andrews at the school’s graduation ceremony Sunday, May 7, 2017 in Soldotna, Alaska. (Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion) Brooke Kent, a Cook Inlet Academy graduate, plays and sings the song “Soar” by Meredith Andrews at the school’s graduation ceremony Sunday in Soldotna. (Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

Cook Inlet Academy graduates take off

Cook Inlet Academy’s graduating class may be small, but the students have been busy. With years of soccer and community service under their belts, they’ll… Continue reading

Brooke Kent, a Cook Inlet Academy graduate, plays and sings the song “Soar” by Meredith Andrews at the school’s graduation ceremony Sunday, May 7, 2017 in Soldotna, Alaska. (Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion) Brooke Kent, a Cook Inlet Academy graduate, plays and sings the song “Soar” by Meredith Andrews at the school’s graduation ceremony Sunday in Soldotna. (Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

Assembly passes rules for attending meetings by phone

Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly members may be blocked from participating in meeting telephonically in the future if the other members decide it’s not merited. The… Continue reading

Assembly again denies K-Beach flooding land deal

Editor's note: This article has been corrected to show that the initial land trade proposed in 2014 would have traded a borough-owned parcel on the… Continue reading

Quilters work on quilts for charity at the Funny River Community Center on Thursday, April 27, 2017 in Funny River, Alaska. (Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

State cuts ripple through borough budget

Quilts covered the walls at the Funny River Community Center, the result of hours of work by charity-minded community members. But on a Thursday afternoon,… Continue reading

Quilters work on quilts for charity at the Funny River Community Center on Thursday, April 27, 2017 in Funny River, Alaska. (Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)
This photo taken July 3, 2015 shows cars lined up on the Seward Highway along the Turnagain Arm in after a fatal accident in which a trooper vehicle struck and killed a motorcyclist it was pursuing closed the highway for several hours. Troopers have reduced their coverage of a stretch from about mile 75 of that highway to south of McHugh Creek due to budget cuts. (Ben Boettger/Peninsula Clarion)

Agencies struggle to fill Seward Highway gap left by trooper withdrawal

Drivers on the Seward Highway between McHugh Creek and the Turnagain Pass are facing a potential law enforcement coverage gap as Alaska State Troopers withdraw… Continue reading

This photo taken July 3, 2015 shows cars lined up on the Seward Highway along the Turnagain Arm in after a fatal accident in which a trooper vehicle struck and killed a motorcyclist it was pursuing closed the highway for several hours. Troopers have reduced their coverage of a stretch from about mile 75 of that highway to south of McHugh Creek due to budget cuts. (Ben Boettger/Peninsula Clarion)

Borough commits to school funding

The Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly committed to spending at least $48.3 million on education in fiscal year 2018, a slight increase from fiscal year 2017.… Continue reading

Homer man arrested after Seward Highway car chase

A Homer man is in custody after leading Alaska State Troopers on a long chase Sunday along the Seward Highway near the Hope Junction. Troopers… Continue reading

Borough’s health care costs decreased in 2016

After years of escalation, the Kenai Peninsula Borough saw a decrease in its employee health care costs in 2016. Across all departments, the borough is… Continue reading