Peninsula Clarion, February 09, 2014

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Older? Columnist contemplates the generation gap Community/C-1

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State Wrestlers advance to championship round Sports/B-1

CLARION P E N I N S U L A

FEBRUARY 9, 2014 Soldotna-Kenai, Alaska

Vol. 44, Issue 111

50 cents newsstands daily/$1.00 Sunday

Proposed amendment stirs debate By DAN BALMER Peninsula Clarion

Photo by Rashah McChesney/Peninsula Clarion

Alaska Board of Fisheries members John Jensen and Tom Kluberton hear committee testimony during the triennial Upper Cook Inlet meeting Thursday in Anchorage.

Permit stacking debated C

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Fish board to continue permit discussion today By Rashah McChesney Peninsula Clarion

ANCHORAGE — The Alaska Board of Fisheries on Saturday took up a proposal to eliminate permit stacking in Cook Inlet commercial fisheries. While the board ultimately voted the measure down, a board generated proposal that would limit the amount of gear a two-permit holder could have in the water is set to be taken up today. The board generated proposal would require a commercial setnet fisher — who can operate an aggregate length of set gillnets of 210 feet in length — to operate no more than 105 feet of gillnet at the 29 meshes deep, a reduction of 16 meshes in depth. During the last board cycle in 2011, the board allowed a

single person to operate two legal sets of set gillnet gear in the Upper Cook Inlet if that person owned two permits; prior to 2011 a person could own two but could only fish one of them. According to Commercial Fisheries Entry Commmission, or CFEC, data from 2012, there are 736 salmon set gillnet permits in Cook Inlet. Of those, just over 83 percent belong to Alaskans. “Family is significant here,” said Tom Kluberton, board member from Talkeetna. “I heard many four generations and three generations in this inlet. I’d say the predominant on this beach are family fishing site generations.” Kluberton said he was unwilling to support the elimination of permit stacking, in part because of fresh time and

gear restrictions on the fishery passed by the board earlier this week. “We’re going to put these people through one more hoop while they’re already having enough trouble dealing with low king salmon abundance, tumbling permit prices, high costs of living, beached completely in 2012 and now in addition to everything else they’re going to start juggling permits,” Kluberton said. While attendance to deliberations and committee meetings has steadily declined since the first days of testimony, at least fifty people moved into the room during the permit stacking discussion. The Kenai River Sportfishing Association, a prominent sportfishing advocacy group, submitted the original proposal. The proposal originally

called for the elimination of permit stacking in both the commercial drift and set gillnet fisheries, however, board members approved an amendment to leave the drift fishery untouched, focusing instead on the set gillnet fishery. According to the KRSA proposal, allowing permit stacking could introduce more setnet gear in the inlet by bringing long-time latent permits back into use in the fishery. According to CFEC data on the number of latent permits, 575 permits of the 736 in the fishery were used to record a landing in 2012 and the agency estimates a latency rate of about 22 percent. During his testimony, Kluberton said he did not believe latent permits were going to See PERMIT, page A-2

A ballot measure calling for a constitutional amendment to allow public funds to go to private schools has been a hotly contested issue in the state senate and has educators on the Kenai Peninsula pondering the implications to public education. Senate Joint Resolution 9 passed through the Senate Finance Committee Wednesday following two days of public hearings. The amended resolution, if it reaches the ballot, would allow the use of public money for private and religious school institutions. A companion measure, House Joint Reso-

lution 1, is being debated in that body. Dr. Steve Atwater, superintendent for the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District, said while the board has not officially taken a stance on SJR 9, he said he has some concerns regarding the implications the amendment would have on public schools. Details need to be flushed out — specifically the issues of public money for private education, he said. “I am not threatened by the bill as long as private schools are held to the same standards as public schools,” he said. “I worry (passage of bill) could further segregate those who can See AMEND, page A-2

Gov: Comments are not a threat By BECKY BOHRER Associated Press

JUNEAU — Gov. Sean Parnell said Friday that he wasn’t threatening the Ketchikan Gateway Borough when he said its lawsuit against the state over school funding could “shade or color” reaction to the community’s requests for state money to fund infrastructure projects. Parnell told The Associated Press that the comments he made to Ketchikan reporters about how he and lawmakers could view the borough’s capital appropriations requests weren’t intended to be retaliatory. The Republican governor said he simply gave an honest answer to the Ketchikan Daily News on Thursday when he said it could be hard for legislators to separate the lawsuit from borough budget requests.

He made similar comments to KRBD radio. Parnell said that when he was drafting his budget request for next fiscal year, the prospect of a lawsuit was pending and he did not hold it against Ketchikan, “and wouldn’t. That’s just not who I am.” “Fairness and equity is a given. It’s just that, there are 60 others who will be making those kinds of decisions as well,” he said, referring to the Legislature’s 60 members. The lawsuit seeks to strike down required local contributions to school districts, which the borough contends are unconstitutional and result in incorporated areas being treated differently than unincorporated areas, which do not have to contribute. A state representative from See GOV, page A-2

Flint Hills refinery closure puts fuel market in flux By TIM BRADNER Morris News Service-Alaska Alaska Journal of Commerce

Flint Hills Resources will cease refining operations at its North Pole refinery near Fairbanks this spring, the company announced Feb. 4 in a press release. The extraction unit at the refinery will be shut down on May 1, ending gasoline production. Crude Oil Processing Unit No. 2 will shut down shortly thereafter, depending on op-

erational requirements, but no later than June 1, according to the company. Flint Hills will continue marketing activities in Interior Alaska, the company said. The closure of Unit No. 2 will end production of jet fuel and all other refined products. The company will continue to market fuels through its terminals in Anchorage and Fairbanks. Supply for those terminals will come from other sources, Flint Hills announced. The loss of refinery jobs will

Alaska. “This has been a difficult decision made after a long, thorough and deliberative process,” said Mike Brose, a company vice president and the refinery manager. The refinery has faced difficult economic conditions in recent years, mainly the loss of jet fuel sales to air carriers in Anchorage due to fuel imports and less demand. However, Brose said the financial liability of soil and groundwater contamination left by previous

owners were a major factor in the decision. “Our company has spent an enormous amount of money and resources addressing soil and groundwater contamination that was caused when Williams owned the refinery and the State of Alaska owned the land underneath it,” Brose said in the press release. “So far, neither Williams nor the State of Alaska have accepted any responsibility for the cleanup. With the already extremely difficult refining

market conditions, the added burden of excessive costs and uncertainties over future cleanup responsibilities make continued refining operations impossible.” Gov. Sean Parnell said he spoke with top company officials Feb. 4, the day the closure was announced. “I was told market forces were the major factor, but that contamination issues that seemed unresolvable played a big part. It was an accumulation See FLUX, page A-5

LNG project would boost Alaska job market

Today’s Clarion Obituaries..................... A-3 Opinion......................... A-4 Alaska........................... A-5 Nation........................... A-6 World............................ A-8 Police/courts............... A-10 Sports........................... B-1 Community................... C-1 Weddings...................... C-1 Dear Abby..................... C-2 Crossword..................... C-2 Horoscope.................... C-2 Classifieds................... C-3 Mini Page.................... C-10 TV...................... Clarion TV

have an impact on Fairbanks. Flint Hills now employs 126 in Alaska and after the closure 35 will remain in Fairbanks and 10 in Anchorage to work at the company’s fuel terminal, Flint Hills spokesman Jeff Cook said. There will be major changes in Interior fuel markets, the refinery has been a major supplier of gasoline, jet fuel, diesel and other products, including to major military installations. Those fuels will have to be supplied from Southcentral

Clear and cold 20/-6 For complete weather, see page A-14 Check us out online at www.peninsulaclarion.com To subscribe, call 283-3584.

By KATIE MORITZ Morris News Service-Alaska Juneau Empire

Alaska’s proposed liquefied natural gas line project would add between 9,000 and 15,000 jobs to the state market, said Dianne Blumer, state Department of Labor and Workforce Development commissioner, at a Thursday meeting. Blumer was the guest speaker at the Juneau Chamber of Commerce’s weekly luncheon at the

‘It’s a big order for how we’re going to fill that labor force and how we’re going to train them.’ — Commissioner Dianne Blumer Hangar on the Wharf. She gave a rundown of her department’s functions and highlighted some statistics surrounding recent developments. The DOL is concerned about C

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providing the pipeline project with ample workers, she said. “It’s a big order for how we’re going to fill that labor force and how we’re going to train them,” Blumer said.

She also reported Alaska’s workplace safety. Workplace deaths have decreased steadily over the past few decades, Blumer said. In 2012, 30 workers died on the job, she said, eight less than the year before. She said Alaska is one of 17 states to have recovered all jobs lost during the recession. Juneau’s workforce is made up of 17,825 people, she said. Currently, Alaska’s unemployment rate is 6.4 percent; Juneau’s is See JOBS, page A-2


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