Transportation Secretary Buttigieg Talks Salmon ‘Transit’ Funding On Alaska Visit

U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg went to Alaska to talk about the usual topics his cabinet department need to supervise. But remember that this is the Last Frontier, where salmon highways are more likely than roadways. That struck “Mayor Pete” – the former South Bend, Indiana mayor earned that nickname before joining President Joe Biden’s cabinet – during his time in Alaska. Here’s more from Alaska Public Media:

The U.S. Department of Transportation is sending Alaska more than $44 million to install fish-friendly culverts and other means to get migrating salmon to the other side of roads. Nine Alaska projects are in the first round of grants from a new DOT program for fish crossings.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said he was surprised to find it part of his portfolio.

“When you take on a job like secretary of Transportation, there are some things you know you’re going to be working on — planes, trains, and automobiles,” he said during an interview in Anchorage on Tuesday. “And there are other things, like anadromous fish passage, that you do not realize will be on your plate.”