Briefs
Study documents high rates and persistence of colorectal cancer among Alaska Natives
Alaska Natives continued to have the world’s highest rates of colorectal cancer as of 2018, and case rates failed to decline significantly for the two decades leading up to that year, according to a newly published study. The study, by experts from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Alaska Native Tribal Health […]
Alaska legislators are again on track to ignore the 90-day session law imposed by voters
Leading Alaska state legislators said this week that they intend to wrap up the 2023 legislative session in mid-May, closer to the Alaska Constitution’s 121-day limit than the 90-day limit approved by voters in a 2006 ballot measure. ”I think there’s no doubt in my mind that we will be here through the 121,” said […]
Jury convicts former Libertarian Alaska state Senate candidate of murder
A Palmer jury on Monday convicted former Libertarian state Senate candidate of second-degree murder and other crimes associated with a fatal shooting one month before the 2020 general election. Gavin Christiansen murdered 35-year-old Devin Moorhouse of Anchorage after a road rage incident, jurors concluded after a weeklong criminal trial in Palmer. Christiansen was a candidate […]
New lawsuit seeks to block development of Alaska’s Willow oil project
A coalition of environmental groups filed suit Tuesday, seeking to halt development of the Willow oil project on Alaska’s North Slope. The filing, from the Sovereign Iñupiat for A Living Arctic, the Alaska Wilderness League and the Northern Alaska Environmental Center, among other organizations, says the Department of the Interior failed to properly consider the […]
Indigenous language council, citing broad work, seeks name change and other updates
What’s in a name? For the council given the responsibility of safeguarding Alaska’s Indigenous languages, a name change could reflect a broader purpose. Under legislation pending in the state House, House Bill 26, the Alaska Native Language Preservation and Advisory Council would be renamed to sometime more general: the Alaska Native Language Council. It might […]
Alaska’s working-age population on decline since 2013 peak, and recovery chances seen as dim
Alaska’s working-age population peaked 10 years ago, and the rate of loss since then has been nearly the highest among all U.S. states, according to the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development. The details are described in the lead article in the March issue of Alaska Economic Trends, the monthly magazine produced by the […]
ANWR boundary dispute will continue as Alaska challenges ownership of oil-rich land
A nine-year-old dispute between the state of Alaska and the federal government over the western border of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge won’t be resolved anytime soon. On Thursday, U.S. District Court Judge Sharon Gleason declined to issue a verdict on the dispute, and instead referred it back to a federal appeals board that has […]
Federal judge rules in favor of ConocoPhillips to keep Willow drilling data secret
A federal judge has blocked the public release of exploration data from five oil wells drilled in the National Petroleum Reserve as part of ConocoPhillips Alaska’s Willow project. Wednesday’s decision by U.S. District Judge Sharon Gleason preempts a state law intended to encourage oil and gas development on the North Slope by requiring companies to […]
Biologist and college administrator in Colorado chosen to lead University of Alaska Southeast
The University of Alaska Southeast will have a new top leader this summer. Aparna Dileep-Nageswaran Palmer, a college administrator and professor in Colorado, will succeed retiring Karen Carey as the chancellor in Juneau, University of Alaska President Pat Pitney announced on Wednesday. Palmer, a biologist, currently serves as vice president of Front Range Community College, […]
Alaska Legislature approves free trapping licenses for disabled veterans
The Alaska Legislature has unanimously passed a bill that gives disabled veterans and members of the Alaska National Guard free trapping licenses in addition to the free hunting and fishing licenses they already receive. The Alaska House of Representatives voted 39-0 in favor of Senate Bill 10 on Monday, and on Wednesday, the Alaska Senate […]
Proponents of Alaska Long Trail pitch 14 projects as steps toward ambitious 500-mile goal
An ambitious project to create a 500-mile network of connected Alaska trails would move a few steps closer to reality if state lawmakers approve funding for selected pieces of it, advocates say. The Alaska Long Trail project envisions a trail system running from the Gulf of Alaska coastline in Seward to the boreal forest in […]
Alaska courts consider rules for permanently streaming many hearings online
The Alaska Court System is planning to continue video streaming many court hearings online despite the end of the COVID-19 emergency that prompted the first broadcasts. The court system is taking public testimony on the proposal through March 17. Alaska’s constitution requires public access to trials, and the court system’s streaming program began during the […]