Stream protection vote rejected
A referendum petition calling for a citizen vote on Ordinance 2011-12 was rejected by Kenai Peninsula Borough clerk Johni Blankenship, according to the Peninsula Clarior. The ordinance added 2,317 stream miles to the existing 602 stream miles under protection by the borough of the near-stream habitat of anadromous streams — streams that host fish that migrate from salt water to breed in fresh water. Blackenship wrote in a letter to the petitioners, Citizens 4 Responsible Waterfront Land Use, that the vote conflicts with Alaska’s delegation of planning and land use decision-making to the assembly.