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Vol. 49, Issue 225
In the news Mueller to testify publicly before House committees July 17 WASHINGTON — Special counsel Robert Mueller has agreed to testify publicly before two House committees after Democrats issued subpoenas to compel him to appear, the chairmen of the two committees announced Tuesday. The testimony from the former FBI director before the House Judiciary and Intelligence committees is likely to be the most highly anticipated congressional hearing in years, particularly given Mueller’s resolute silence throughout his two-year investigation into Russian contacts with President Donald Trump’s campaign. Mueller never responded to angry, public attacks from Trump, nor did he ever personally join his prosecutors in court or make announcements of criminal charges from the team. His sole public statement came from the Justice Department podium last month as he announced his departure, when he sought to explain his decision to not indict Trump or to accuse him of criminal conduct. He also put lawmakers on notice that he did not ever intend to say more than what he put in the 448-page report. “We chose those words carefully and the work speaks for itself,” Mueller said May 29. “I would not provide information beyond what is already public in any appearance before Congress.” Those remarks did little to settle the demands for his testimony. The two committees continued negotiations that had already been going on for weeks, saying they still wanted to hear from Mueller no matter how reluctant he was. — Associated Press
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Anchor Point gravel pit gets OK By VICTORIA PETERSEN Peninsula Clarion
A controversial gravel pit permit was approved at Monday night’s Kenai Peninsula Borough Planning Commission meeting. The vote to approve or deny the permit was postponed at the June 10 meeting after hours of public comment, much of which was in opposition of Emmitt Trimble’s Beachcomber LLC gravel pit in Anchor Point. The vote was 8-2, with commissioners Paul Whitney and Paulette Carluccio voting against the permit. Trimble said he was happy with the commission’s
Kenai Peninsula Borough Planning Commission Chairman Blair Martin, center, Vice Chairman Robert Ruffner, left, and Parliamentarian Rick Foster facilitate discussions on the gravel pit permit application Monday. (Photo by Victoria Petersen/Peninsula Clarion)
decision. the outcome,” Trimble said. “We were pleased with Neighbors opposing the the process and pleased with gravel pit were not so hap-
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Wednesday, June 26, 2019 Kenai Peninsula, Alaska
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py. Hans Bilben, who lives nearly 100 feet above the proposed pit, said he was very disappointed with the outcome. “If ever a gravel pit should be denied, it would have been this one,” he said. He said he didn’t feel like the commissioners knew what they were voting on. “It seemed like commissioners weren’t up on code dealing with gravel pits,” Bilben said. The proposed pit has been the center of a yearlong controversy between Trimble and neighboring property owners, who say borough gravel pit regulaSee GRAVEL, page A2
Panel to discuss local food, climate connection By VICTORIA PETERSEN Peninsula Clarion
Residents interested in learning how their food choices affect the local environment can join the discussion during a Thursday potluck hosted by Cook InletKeeper. The event will feature local foods, and attendees are invited to bring a dish featur-
See FOOD, page A3
Crews work to keep fire from highway By BRIAN MAZUREK Peninsula Clarion
The Swan Lake Fire has reached 37,430 acres, according to a Tuesday update from the Alaska Interagency Incident Management Team. Firefighter crews focused Tuesday on establishing a control line north of the Sterling Highway to prevent the blaze from spreading closer to the road. A community meeting will be held Wednesday in the Sterling Community Center at 6 p.m. to update the public on the status of the fire, as well as on the current strategies being used to contain it. Caused by lightning on June 5, the blaze is located about 2 miles north of the Sterling Highway and 5 miles east of the community of Sterling in the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. See FIRE, page A3
The extent of the Swan Lake Fire as of Tuesday can be seen in this map provided by Kenai Peninsula Borough Office of Emergency Management. (Photo courtesy of Kenai Peninsula Borough Office of Emergency Management)
Bikers take a ride for suicide awareness By BRIAN MAZUREK Peninsula Clarion
On Sunday, dozens of bikers and other community members got together to ride through the town in solidarity and to raise awareness about suicide prevention. The first ever Ride for Sui-
cide Prevention and Awareness saw 38 motorcycles and more than 20 other vehicles drive from Soldotna to Nikiski and back again. The event was organized in just a few weeks by a group of five bikers who decided they wanted to make a difference in their com-
munity. Kyle Lee is one of those bikers, and he is all too familiar with the impact of suicide on the people left behind. Lee lost his best friend to suicide two years ago. That tragedy was compounded when he lost another close family friend
to suicide this past spring. After the friend’s funeral, Lee sat with his friends and fellow bikers Jeremy Gill, Brad Conklin and Jerry Winfrey at Ammo Can Coffee in Soldotna and asked a simple question: “What can we do to stop this?” The bikers had gotten to
know each other through Lee’s Let’s Go Ride Facebook page, a local group where motorcycle riders can coordinate going for rides together. So when they were figuring out how they could make an impact on the rising rates of suicide in the See RIDE, page A2
Protesters push to stop Pebble permitting Partly sunny, smoky 68/51 More weather on Page A2
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By BEN HOHENSTATT Juneau Empire
Six rallies around the state this week have one purpose — spurring Alaska’s U.S. senators and representative to stop Pebble Mine permitting. The U.S. House of Representative passed an amendment last week that would suspend funding for permitting for the Proposed Pebble Mine project near Bristol Bay, and a rally held outside Sen. Lisa Murkowski’s Juneau office Tuesday is part of a statewide push to get the Senate to do the same. “We need to send a message to the Trump administration, and we need to send them back to the drawing board,” said Lindsey Bloom, representative for Commercial Fisherman For Bristol Bay. Bloom said those who
Judy Cavanaugh stands with others at a rally against the Pebble Mine in front of Sen. Lisa Murkowski’s Juneau office Tuesday in Juneau. (Michael Penn/Juneau Empire)
oppose Pebble Mine are particularly hoping to prompt action from Murkowski, who previously wrote to the Corps
of Engineers requesting an extension for public comment period on the project’s Draft Environmental Impact Statement.
“We understand this is an extraordinary weight to put on one person, but that said her voice is powerful, and she speaks
for so many of us and the thousands of smaller voices across Alaska who are opposed to this project and concerned about the process we’ve been given,” Bloom said. “We are asking her to channel our voices, so that we can be heard in Washington, D.C. Unlike so many modern politicians, she is and can be truly beholden to the people of Alaska. We are fortunate to have a Senator who holds to her principles.” Murkowski’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Sullivan’s office also did not immediately respond. Mike Heatwole, spokesperson for Pebble Partnership, which was established in 2007 to design, permit, construct and operate the proposed mine, said encouraging the senators to act in a See MINE, page A3