UAF Moves Ahead With Veterinary Program. The University of Alaska Fairbanks will enter a partnership to provide a veterinary degree program for Alaska students. The program, which could begin as early as fall 2013, is envisioned as a way to ease a shortage of veterinarians in the state. It would allow students to take two years of graduate-level study in Fairbanks before spending their final two years of veterinary training at Colorado State University. The University of Alaska Board of Regents included funding for the new program Wednesday in next year's operating budget. The $400,000 appropriation will be enough to teach as many as 20 veterinary students at the UAF campus before they finish their training in Colorado, said UAF Chancellor Brian Rogers. Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

Conferees on 'Minibus' Trying to Finish Bill Before House Returns November 14. Appropriators are still struggling to get the first of the fiscal 2012 spending bills across the finish line as the expiration of the current stopgap spending measure approaches and hopes dim for quick completion of a three-bill "minibus." House and Senate conferees on that package (HR 2112) held what may be their only formal meeting on Thursday and now have little more than a week to negotiate a compromise on the Agriculture, Commerce-Justice-Science and Transportation-HUD spending measures. House Appropriations Chairman Harold Rogers, R-Ky., said a Conference Report needs to be ready by Nov. 14, when the House returns from next week's recess, so the House can comply with its rule generally requiring that action on legislation occur no sooner than three days after a measure has been made public. Congressional Quarterly

Language to Decommission Polar Icebreaker Draws Administration's Ire. The Obama administration said Thursday that it strongly opposes the passage of a House Coast Guard's authorization bill because the measure would decommission the service's only heavy-duty polar icebreaker that has a chance of operating anytime soon. A statement of administration policy, released the day before the bill (HR 2838) was set for Floor consideration, stopped short of a veto threat. But the statement said the White House wants to work with Congress to alter the measure. It noted that lawmakers have already approved funding for refits of the Polar Star; that process is under way in Seattle. "The administration has requested, and Congress has appropriated, funds to reactivate the . . . Polar Star by December 2012 and extend that vessel's service life for seven to 10 years," the policy statement said. "This effort will stabilize the United States' existing polar fleet until long-term icebreaking capability requirements are finalized." Congressional Quarterly

Democrats Want Water Discharge Language in Bill. An otherwise routine Coast Guard authorization bill that the House is scheduled to take up Friday could draw Democratic opposition unless language is added to give states more input into the regulation of water discharged from ships. Lawmakers and House aides confirmed this week that some Democrats are discussing casting unified votes against passage of the authorization bill (HR 2838) if provisions are not added to let states propose areas where it would be illegal to unload water used on ships for such purposes as running toilets, cleaning and maintaining stability. Congressional Quarterly

Who Should Pay for Safety at Sea in the Arctic? "Individually, the Nordic countries are small, while the Arctic waters cover a vast area, so the Nordic Region countries will have to work together to improve safety at sea in the far north. And why not ask shipping companies to help foot the bill?" the Nordic Council asked at its annual Session in Copenhagen, 1-3 November. In May, the Arctic Council adopted a 'Search and Rescue' agreement, but more needs to be done, especially about prevention of accidents, according to the Nordic Council Environment Committee. The Council is calling on the Nordic governments to launch a series of tangible initiatves that will enhance safety in the Arctic and benefit both the environment and the people who live there. Fish Update

UFA Supports Reestablishment of AK Coastal Management Program. The United Fishermen of Alaska has joined a growing number of coastal communities in adopting a resolution supporting reestablishment of an Alaska Coastal Management Program at its full board meeting in Homer last week. The resolution makes no reference to the initiative, or controversial points that led to a legislative deadlock and the cessation of the program. "UFA's focus is on the common interests of the fishing industry, and we all share the recognition of the need for the ACMP's coordination of local and borough input into federal decision making on coastal projects, and the federal funding that pays for the process," said UFA Executive Director Mark Vinsel. Alaska Business Monthly

Polar Icebreaker Dispute Ties Up Coast Guard Appropriations. With the nation's only two heavy-duty polar icebreakers broken and out of service, the Obama administration and congressional Republicans are clashing on how best to put the U.S. Coast Guard back into the ice-busting business. House Republicans, who say they want to force the administration's hand, are pushing a Coast Guard appropriations bill that would decommission the icebreaker Polar Star, which is now being repaired, in just three years, saying that keeping the 35-year-old ship afloat is "throwing good money after bad." CNN

New Icebreaker to Improve China Polar Research. As China's new icebreaker readies to set sail in 2014, the country might conduct expeditions to the North Pole every year in the near future, a senior official said. The new icebreaker will improve China's capability in polar research, joining the older icebreaker, Xuelong, on China's Arctic and Antarctic research vessel, Li Yuansheng, deputy director of the Polar Research Institute of China and leader of the 28th Antarctic research expedition, told China Daily. Li and his team started China's 28th Antarctic research expedition from Tianjin on Thursday. China Daily

Arctic Sea Ice Remains Near Historic Minimum Despite Freeze-Up. Plunging temperatures and the shorter days of approaching winter transformed vast reaches of the Arctic Ocean into ice during October - a freeze-up that has been 40 percent faster than average, according to the latest sea ice analysis posted by the National Snow & Ice Data Center. It may be too little, too late. Despite the creation of 44,360 square miles of new ice each day - adding floes nearly equal to the size of Ohio every 24 hours - the polar sea north of Alaska ended the month with the second smallest extent ever observed during the age of satellites, about 87,300 square miles larger than the all-time minimum record set in October 2007. Alaska Dispatch 

Coast Guard [Canadian] to Beef Up Iqaluit Communications Center: Five jobs to move from Inuvik to Iqaluit. Within two years, the Canadian Coast Guard's Arctic communications headquarters will call Iqaluit its home. The move will see five positions move from Inuvik to Iqaluit. The Coast Guard plans to roll services under the Coast Guard's Marine Communications and Traffic Services Centre, now based in both Inuvik and Iqaluit, into a single "modernized and state-of-the-art communications centre" in Iqaluit by 2013, said Kevin Hill, a spokesperson for the Department of Fisheries and Oceans. Nunatsiaq Online

The EU and Norway: Interdependence and Rivalry. A recent poll in Norway revealed that the percentage of the Norwegian population which favors EU membership is at an all-time low. At the same time, the EU's influence on Norwegian politics has never been as extensive as it is right now. This is especially true for the developments in the Norwegian Arctic, where European engagement leads to both limitations and opportunities. The EU-debate in Norway currently is, and has been during recent years, almost non-existent in media and national politics. Although almost 70 percent of all adopted Norwegian legislation comes from the EU through the EEA-agreement (European Economic Area), the debate about Norway's connection to the EU is lacking in society at large. The agreement, which was signed in 1994 when Norway rejected EU-membership by national referendum, has been named as a "political sleeping pillow" by commentators, hindering a proper debate on Norway's relationship to Europe. And as recent polls show, 72 percent of the population is currently against a Norwegian EU membership, while only 12 percent supports it. The Arctic Institute

H.R. 2838, Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act (LoBiondo, rule set for consideration of the bill in the House)

H.R. 2840, Commercial Vessel Discharges Reform Act (LoBiondo, placed on the Union Calendar)

Meeting of the Interagency Arctic Research Policy Committee (IARPC), November 7, 2011. Principals (senior federal officials) will meet in the White House Conference Center to discuss a draft of the 5-year Arctic Research Program Plan (called for in the Arctic Research and Policy Act) and other federal Arctic research efforts and initiatives. Brendan Kelly, at NSF, is the Executive Director of IARPC. 

Arctic Policy Forum: The Role of Science in Responsible Development, November 15, 2011. Join the Institute of the North for this quarter's Arctic Policy Forum.  This presentation and networking event will focus on science and collaboration in the Arctic and will feature Michael Macrander, Lead Scientist for Shell and Fran Ulmer, Chair of the U.S. Arctic Research Commission. The Institute of the North's Arctic Policy Forums are a new way of engaging in Arctic issues. These quarterly networking events  serve to underline and elevate Alaska's role in the Arctic.  Informal policy presentations followed by networking events invite policy makers and administrators, researchers, community leaders and interested citizens together for an informal sharing opportunity. Participants will hear expert presentations on key policy findings and positions; emerging Arctic technologies; and challenges facing infrastructure development in the Arctic. Participants will also have the opportunity to spend time getting to know key stakeholders in Alaska's Arctic.