U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

The Kenai Mountains-Turnagain Arm National Heritage Area estimates 32 Forest Service employees were laid off from the Chugach National Forest.

The Kenai National Wildlife Refuge’s manager is retiring. Andy Loranger has worked for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for more than 40 years, and nearly half of his career has been with the National Wildlife Refuge System in Alaska.

There are five species of loon in North America, and Alaska is home to all of them. But, they’re facing a number of human-caused threats – like lead poisoning and fishing line entanglement. A recent presentation in Soldotna highlighted these threats and what’s being done to protect Alaska’s loons.

Much of Alaska is only accessible by plane, so it’s no surprise that the state has the most pilots per capita in the country. But, some biologists in Alaska are also pilots who combine these two professions. Heather Wilson is a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service pilot-biologist who recently gave a presentation that was livestreamed in Soldotna.

Coho is one of several species of salmon native to the Kenai River watershed, but biologists still don’t know everything about their behavior. That’s why over the last three years, they’ve tracked them with tags that emit radio frequencies.

The Kenai National Wildlife Refuge is wrapping up a multimillion-dollar project to enhance salmon movement in streams and rivers. Partially funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the project will replace six fish passage culverts.

The bear was shot and taken last Tuesday from the Skilak Recreation Area in the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge.

A fish passage restoration project will soon bring improvements to the movement and health of a southern Kenai Peninsula salmon population. The Kenai Peninsula Borough and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recently entered into a partnership to complete the restoration work.

An Anchorage man bought a Soldotna property in 2021 and dug a ditch that state and federal agencies say disrupted salmon habitat near Soldotna Creek. Now, the EPA, Fish and Game and other agencies are going back and forth with the owner over how to properly restore the land.

The Kenai Watershed Forum is hosting its annual speaker series, highlighting local presenters involved with environmental, outdoor or recreational projects. Last week’s event featured Dom Watts, a biologist and pilot with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service who has been studying mountain goat populations on the Kenai Peninsula.