Associated Press

Homeowners concerned about the level of erosion alongside a river in their Kenai Peninsula community have to consider other options to prevent the bank from collapsing after officials shot down their request to install a type of rock that would provide long-term stabilization.

Authorities are investigating the theft of more than a thousand pounds of food that was intended to feed homeless youth in Anchorage.

A newly released report shows that about a third of households in interior Alaska won’t make the switch to natural gas once it’s more widely available because of low heating oil prices.

A University of Alaska Fairbanks student has been recognized at the White House for his work advocating for communities that would be severely affected by climate change.

The Fairbanks Daily News Miner reports that Esau Sinnok, of Shishmaref, an island community in northwest Alaska, was among 10 people honored by the president on Friday as Champions of Change for Climate Equity.

Sinnok was recognized for his work raising awareness of climate change, particularly in the Arctic. The tribal management student at UAF says Arctic and sub-Arctic communities like Shishmaref are already losing land each year to coastal erosion.

He says Shishmaref has lost between 2,500 and 3,000 square feet to coastal erosion in the last 35 years.

A North Pole legislator has filed an ethics complaint against Gov. Bill Walker for issuing a statement suggesting he would campaign for lawmakers who support him in the ongoing budget battles.

The Juneau Empire reports that Walker on Wednesday issued a statement calling for state lawmakers to resolve the state’s growing deficit. At the end of the statement, Walker said he would “ask every legislator and every candidate for the Legislature” to choose a budget plan to support.

Rep. Tammie Wilson says that language suggests Walker will support candidates for office and though he is legally allowed to endorse anyone, the governor cannot use state resources to do so. Wilson claims that by issuing an official press release, Walker used state resources.

Walker says he is not trying to influence an election but wants to inform the public.

A Bethel jury has awarded $14,000 to a man who was injured in the back of a police vehicle when the officer driving crashed into an electrical pole.

KYUK-AM reports that Adrian Hoffman of Tununak suffered minor injuries in the 2014 crash including bruising, a broken nose and other contusions.

According to police records, former Bethel Police Officer Aaron Fedolfi was driving the vehicle with Hoffman in the back seat when he lost control due to icy conditions. The vehicle slid into an electrical pole.

Hoffman had been taken into police custody that night for causing a disturbance in a home while intoxicated.

Hoffman’s attorney says police footage shows Fedolfi buckling his own seat belt but not Hoffman’s.

Fedolfi is serving a one-year prison sentence for an unrelated crime.