Economy & Environment
Anchorage’s economic outlook depends on attracting workers
Earlier this month, Anchorage Economic Development Corp. shared our 2022 3-Year Outlook report, which forecasts what we expect for the next few years in our city’s economic landscape. Overall, we believe there is much to be optimistic about for the future of Anchorage, but we must be realistic about the types of investments and work […]
Policy changes can help Alaska’s new farmers work in permafrost conditions, UAF experts say
A century ago, when Fairbanks was a young mining town and a hilly area was set aside for agricultural experiments, people tried growing potatoes there to help feed the community. It was not a success. Disturbance of topsoil caused permafrost thaw, producing lots of mud in which tractors became mired, and the melt of below-ground […]
House candidates make pro-development pitches at Alaska oil industry conference
Shortly before Mary Peltola was announced as the winner in the special election to become Alaska’s sole member of the U.S. House of Representatives for four months, she and the three other candidates vying to succeed the late Don Young for a full term as Alaska made pitches to an oil industry audience on Wednesday. […]
NOAA office releases strategic science plan to support Alaska mariculture ambitions
Alaska has special opportunities for developing a thriving aquaculture industry, but also special challenges that stand in the way of such ambitions, according to a new strategic science plan issued by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The plan is intended to guide aquaculture-related research conducted over the next five years by NOAA’s Alaska Fisheries […]
Dry summers could mean trouble for use of lake water for North Slope ice roads, study says
For decades, the oil industry has built ice roads for seasonal travel across Alaska’s North Slope. The ice roads, built and used in the hard-freeze winter seasons, are designed to be thick enough to protect the tundra from vehicle weights but temporary enough to melt away in summer, avoiding the myriad negative impacts created by […]
Cruise line donation at Juneau waterfront aids Huna Totem’s cultural tourism expansion in Alaska
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings announced on Tuesday that it is donating a significant piece of undeveloped waterfront property in Juneau to Huna Totem, an Alaska Native corporation. In 2019, the cruise line paid $20 million for the property, which was appraised for less than a fifth of that amount. Mickey Richardson, Huna Totem’s director of […]
Inuit Circumpolar Council gets new Alaska president and vice president
The Inuit Circumpolar Council’s Alaska branch has new leadership, the organization announced on Tuesday. Marie KasaNnaaluk Greene, a former chief executive of NANA Regional Corp., is the new president, and Nicole Kannik Paniġiuq “Kanayurak” Wojciechowski is the new vice president, the organization said. The ICC represents Inuit people in Alaska, Canada, Greenland and Russia’s Chukotka […]
To encourage more young fishermen, look to farm programs as models, new study argues
Young Alaskans seeking to break into commercial fishing face a lot of the same barriers that confront young farmers in the Lower 48 states, but they have far fewer resources to help overcome those barriers, according to newly published research. A study by Alaska experts with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration argues that the […]
Steller sea lions most likely victims of human-caused marine mammal deaths in Alaska
Over a five-year period, 867 Alaska sea lions, seals, whales and small cetaceans like dolphins died or were gravely injured from interactions with humans, according to a report newly released by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The report, required by the Marine Mammal Protection Act, lists documented cases of human-inflicted harm from 2016 to […]
Tundra burns helped make the 2022 Alaska fire season one of the biggest since 1950
Alaska is closing out what is likely to be the state’s seventh-biggest wildfire season since 1950, wrapping up a summer notable for record-breaking fires in the tundra of the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta in the southwestern part of the state. In all, more than 3 million acres have been burned by wildfires this year, according to the […]
As Congress prepares to pass climate bill, Alaska environmentalists see more harm than good
The $370 billion climate bill that passed the U.S. Senate on Sunday is America’s biggest-ever response to climate change, expected to both reduce the national deficit and significantly cut greenhouse-gas emissions. But here in Alaska, environmental organizers are worried that tradeoffs in the bill will lead to more mining and drilling in the state in […]
Arctic Commitment Act introduced in Senate seeks to raise U.S. profile at top of world
A wide-ranging bill introduced by Sen. Lisa Murkowski and Sen. Angus King seeks to boost U.S. investment in Arctic commerce, science and defense. The Arctic Commitment Act, introduced last week, focuses on ways that the United States can become a bigger player in Arctic marine shipping and commerce, which is increasing as sea ice diminishes. […]