Alaska Group Describes Permitting Problems in Meeting With Carr Aide
CEO Jens Laipenieks and others from the Arctic Slope Telephone Association Co-op met with an aide to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr on how delays in permitting construction plans are affecting implementation of the Alaska Connect Fund. For example, the group cited the problems that the Tanana Chiefs Conference has had installing fiber connecting three unserved communities under a $35 million grant, said a filing Tuesday in docket 23-328.
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“The project required access through the Yukon Flats National Wildlife Refuge,” the filing said. “Despite a series of meetings with the Refuge manager to answer questions and concerns, the … manager could not clearly explain how a permit through the Refuge” wasn’t granted. The tribal group and the co-op are now “pursuing an alternative route for the fiber lay but the delay has increased the project cost by 18% and the increased length of the route will increase the overall environmental impact of the project.”