Alaska News Nightly - September 18, 2025

Podcast: Alaska News Nightly – Alaska Public Media
Host: Casey Grove
Date: September 18, 2025

Overview

This episode of Alaska News Nightly focuses on several pivotal events and issues across Alaska, featuring stories on landslide risks and mapping, the ongoing legal battle over the state’s food assistance backlog, an unprecedented tuna fishing season in Sitka, excitement around the annual Fat Bear Week, and a spotlight on Anchorage’s history through photography. The episode blends community voices, expert insights, and on-the-ground reporting to illuminate both the challenges and the resilience of Alaskans.

Key Topics and Insights

1. Governor Dunleavy's Department of Agriculture Proposal (00:37)

• Governor Dunleavy persists in his executive order to create a state Department of Agriculture, despite legislative resistance and the threat of lawsuit (up to $100,000 allocated for legal challenges).
• Alaska is one of only two states without a cabinet-level Department of Agriculture.
• Legislature favors establishing the department through law, not unilateral executive action.
• Disagreement hinges on the use of executive orders during special sessions and their constitutionality.

2. Juneau Landslide: Community Response and Historical Context (02:36)

Incident Recap:

• Heavy rain and wind caused a landslide near Strasbaugh Apartments on Gastineau Avenue, narrowly sparing homes and residents.

• Residents, including Monica Johnson and Dave Bonilla, expressed both relief and anxiety after the event, noting frequent evacuations.

  “All of this, this has happened to us several times and anything can come down like those two trees on the side. They kind of creep me out because if those were to fall, they could, you know, smash right into our building.”
  — Monica Johnson, 04:26

Historical Perspective:

• Gastineau Avenue is in a severe landslide hazard zone, with notable past events in 2022, 1936 (15 killed), and 1920 (16 buildings destroyed, four dead).

City Response:

• Emergency Programs Manager Ryan O'Shaughnessy led damage assessments and evacuations.

• Minimal property damage this time; city relies on immediate risk assessment as there is no reliable landslide prediction yet.

  “Very, very little, if any damage to the building at all.”
  — Ryan O'Shaughnessy, 05:28

3. Alaska's First Comprehensive Landslide Inventory (06:18)

Project Highlights:

• Geologist Gillian Nicolazzo spearheaded creation of the state’s first landslide database, using over 1,000 reports from as early as the 1950s.

• The online map marks thousands of past slides, helping identify high-risk slope and soil types.

  “First step was to go through basically any published report that looked like it might have a landslide.”
  — Gillian Nicolazzo, 06:27

• Gaps remain, particularly in the North Slope, due to a lack of mapping, not absence of slides.

  “It’s not that there aren’t any up there, it’s just that they haven’t been mapped yet.”
  — Gillian Nicolazzo, 08:01

• The new inventory contributes to the National Landslide Inventory, closing a significant Alaska-sized data gap.

4. Legal Battle Over State SNAP (Food Assistance) Backlog (09:42)

Current Situation:

• Ongoing class action lawsuit challenges Alaska’s failure to process Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) applications on time.

• Plaintiffs’ attorney, Saima Akhtar (National Center for Law and Economic Justice), highlights the system’s impact and similar improvements in other states.

  “There have been litigation and there has been a resolution that led to processing improvements.”
  — Saima Akhtar, 10:24

• Evidence of progress: backlog cut by 75% since suit began, though about 4,000 applications remain unresolved.

• Legal arguments continue over individuals’ rights to sue under federal deadlines; possible outcomes include a permanent injunction.

5. Tuna Surge in Sitka Waters: Anglers' Stories and Ecosystem Shifts (11:36)

Unprecedented Tuna Catch:

• Exceptionally warm sea temperatures (>60°F) around Sitka drew in rare skipjack and albacore tuna, sparking excitement among local fishermen.

• Jason Ohn, a self-described reformed “reluctant angler,” spear-fished a skipjack tuna, marking a community milestone.

  “I was honestly just so enamored by how cool that thing was. It was obviously very shimmery and tuna just built for the water, built for the ocean.”
  — Jason Ohn, 12:46

Sportfishing Boom:

• RJ Miller, charter captain, describes an “irrationally excited” local fleet that landed 45 albacore in one day.

  “Well, you're trolling at 7 to 10 knots. They grab the lines and the reels just start screaming.”
  — RJ Miller, 15:14

Wider Impact:

• Department of Fish and Game addressed regulatory questions but confirmed no catch limits for sport fishermen.

• Miller hopes to share the thrill and culinary rewards of tuna with the broader community.

  “I hope that everybody in Sitka can go out and get their hands on one of these, not only for how absolutely delicious they are, but the thrill of the chase and the thrill of the fight.”
  — RJ Miller, 16:07

6. Fat Bear Week: A Celebration of Alaska’s Biggest Bears (16:33)

Annual Event Returns:

• Fat Bear Week at Katmai National Park kicks off, inviting public voting on the park’s largest, healthiest bruins.

  “We celebrate how fat the bears get. Fat equals survival. A fat bear is a healthy bear...”
  — Park Ranger Sarah Bruce, 16:48

• Over a million people participated last year; “junior” bracket voting opens for the season’s plumpest cub.

7. Anchorage History Book Chronicles the City’s Evolution (18:40)

Book Launch:

• UAA History Professor Ian Hartman authored Images of America: Anchorage, a photographic journey from the region’s indigenous roots through pipeline booms, earthquakes, and rapid city expansion.

  “Anchorage is such a young city... you can kind of thumb through it and get a sense of maybe the highlights of Anchorage’s history over the last hundred years.”
  — Ian Hartman, 19:13

Notable Moments in Anchorage’s Past:

• Earliest photographs pre-date major settlement, highlighting the Denina Athabaskan homeland and Russian Orthodox presence.

• Iconic photos document periods of devastation (e.g., 1964 earthquake), resilience, and cultural change during the oil pipeline era.

  “...even in the midst of this devastation, you find sort of, in typical fashion, Alaskans being good sports and trying to make the most of a really awful situation.”
  — Ian Hartman, 22:22

Notable Quotes by Timestamp

• 04:26 Monica Johnson (Juneau landslide evacuee):
  “All of this, this has happened to us several times and anything can come down like those two trees on the side. They kind of creep me out because if those were to fall, they could, you know, smash right into our building.”

• 06:27 Gillian Nicolazzo (geologist):
  “First step was to go through basically any published report that looked like it might have a landslide.”

• 08:01 Gillian Nicolazzo (geologist):
  “It’s not that there aren’t any up there, it’s just that they haven’t been mapped yet.”

• 10:24 Saima Akhtar (attorney):
  “There have been litigation and there has been a resolution that led to processing improvements.”

• 12:46 Jason Ohn (fisherman):
  “I was honestly just so enamored by how cool that thing was. It was obviously very shimmery and tuna just built for the water, built for the ocean.”

• 15:14 RJ Miller (charter captain):
  “Well, you're trolling at 7 to 10 knots. They grab the lines and the reels just start screaming.”

• 16:48 Park Ranger Sarah Bruce:
  “We celebrate how fat the bears get. Fat equals survival. A fat bear is a healthy bear...”

• 19:13 Ian Hartman (UAA History Professor):
  “Anchorage is such a young city... you can kind of thumb through it and get a sense of maybe the highlights of Anchorage’s history over the last hundred years.”

• 22:22 Ian Hartman:
  “...even in the midst of this devastation, you find sort of, in typical fashion, Alaskans being good sports and trying to make the most of a really awful situation.”

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 00:37: Governor’s Department of Agriculture proposal controversy
• 02:36: Juneau landslide incident and resident testimonials
• 05:59: Introduction of Alaska’s first landslide inventory
• 09:42: Details on state SNAP backlog lawsuit
• 11:36: Tuna fishing surge in Sitka and angler accounts
• 16:33: Fat Bear Week at Katmai National Park
• 18:40: Anchorage history through photography—new book release

This episode delivers a compelling portrait of contemporary Alaska—its environmental risks, shifting climate and wildlife, legal battles for basic needs, community spirit, and a strong connection to its storied past.