Alaska News

Our view: Almost-completed UAA science building needs money to operate

Times are tight, and the University of Alaska realistically is not going to get state money for a bunch of new programs. Since we know there's high demand in Alaska for some fields -- engineers and health workers, for example -- the university has to focus on educating more students in those subjects.

This fall UAA is set to open the new $104 million integrated science building, which has modern labs and classrooms for these growing numbers of students. It will about double the space devoted to science instruction and research.

The Legislature should put the added money needed to operate this new building near the top of its list for university spending.

It's not clear the Legislature is going to do that.

There's been some confusion over whether a House Finance subcommittee deleted funding for UAA's new science building. Finance Committee co-chairman Rep. Mike Hawker earlier this week said the money's there, though the subcommittee switched some categories around. But UA officials believe the money is gone.

The legislators and the university need to sort that out, but the net result should be this: The integrated science building is new space and needs new money to operate.

Not getting funding for it would be "a huge problem," said UAA chancellor Fran Ulmer.

ADVERTISEMENT

The university requested $2.2 million for lab directors, a safety specialist, a veterinarian for lab research, utilities, maintenance workers and the like. The governor, in her budget proposal, cut the request to $1 million, since the drastic drop in oil prices has slashed state revenue. The Legislature should set aside at least the $1 million requested by the governor to open the new building.

House subcommittee chairwoman Rep. Anna Fairclough of Eagle River points out that the university is still getting an increase in overall funding, while enrollment is pretty flat. She says UAA could choose to open the integrated science building instead of adding health programs.

But UAA's engineering and health programs have waiting lists; local employers are eager to hire graduates in those fields. If UAA doesn't produce those graduates, employers will have to import workers from the Lower 48 or overseas.

The Legislature recognized that UAA needs a new science building to serve those students and help local businesses fill their highly-skilled, high-paying jobs with local workers. Now legislators need to make sure UAA has the money to open the science building.

Gov. Sarah Palin already shrank some of the university's ambitious proposals in the budget she submitted. In this case, the Legislature doesn't need to cut that budget any further.

BOTTOM LINE: The Legislature approved a new science building at UAA; legislators should make sure UAA has the money to run it.

Dogs win

And wolverines, too

The Board of Game undid a poor decision this week.

In 2007 the board had voted to permit trapping wolverines in Chugach State Park.

But traps used for wolverine are a large type that can be lethal for dogs. The first year, trappers caught an equal number of dogs and wolverines -- two each. A pitbull-Lab mix died from a wolverine trap, and a Lab was injured.

Bad result.

Fish and Game biologists had opposed wolverine trapping in the park anyway for fear they would be over-harvested. The department believed there were only about 20 wolverines in the entire Anchorage area, said area biologist Rick Sinnott.

The park is a hugely popular recreation area for Anchorage residents. It's hard to know why the Board of Game decided to allow the wolverine trapping there in the first place, given the downsides.

In any case, this week the board fixed the problem by both banning wolverine trapping in the park and also banning use of the large traps that can maim or kill dogs there.

BOTTOM LINE: Wolverine traps in Chugach Park endangered dogs. Good decision to ban them.

ADVERTISEMENT