Author: Joe Viechnicki, KFSK

A week-long conference of harbor and port professionals opened Tuesday at the Sons of Norway Hall in Petersburg. More than 80 people are attending the annual conference of the Alaska Association of Harbormasters and Port Administrators.

Petersburg’s borough assembly Monday passed a resolution seeking enforceable protections against pollution from mines in British Columbia on rivers that flow into Southeast Alaska. Meanwhile, Alaska’s Lieutenant Governor says he is raising the issue with both provincial and federal governments.

This year marks the 75th anniversary of a dark chapter in American history, when 120,000 Japanese Americans from Alaska and western United States were imprisoned during World War Two. Families from Petersburg, Juneau and around Alaska were rounded up and moved to camps in the Lower 48 for several years. Some returned to their homes after the war. More than four decades later, our government apologized to the remaining victims and paid restitution.

A Ketchikan company has been awarded a $2.6-million sale of second-growth timber on an island in Southeast Alaska. The state of Alaska prepared and awarded the contract for logging on federal land on Kosciusko Island under an agreement with the federal government.

Off-road vehicle owners in Petersburg could drive them on streets on Mitkof Island if voters approve that measure October 3rd. The ballot measure would require a new borough registration sticker for all ATVs used on the island as well as a number of other requirements in response to safety concerns.