Environment

All Alaska news stories about the environment, climate and weather. Could also include topics like animal die-offs related to the environment.

beluga whales

New estimate for Cook Inlet belugas shows hope for endangered population

In a NOAA Fisheries statement, one of the biologists who compiled the new estimate expressed tempered optimism.
a mine

Kensington Gold Mine near Juneau reports 105,000-gallon tailings spill

Staff at the mine, about 45 miles north of Juneau, said the spill happened in late January after an underground pipeline leaked.
a troller

3 Alaska trollers contemplate a summer without chinook

Barring last-minute legal action, there will be no king salmon troll fishery in Southeast Alaska this summer or winter. Three trollers discuss what that means.
two people in uniforms and yellow hard hats cut down trees

Cooler, rainy weather slows growth of Interior Alaska wildfires

But firefighters are keeping a close eye on the long-term forecast that calls for warmer-than-usual weather to return.

As objection hearings wrap, countdown to new Tongass plan

The U.S. Forest Service wrapped up objection hearings Wednesday on a plan that could shape the future of timber in the Tongass National Forest. Listen Now

Southcentral fires burn, traffic at a crawl on highways, evacuees tell of heavy smoke and flames

"That was an experience coming down that highway," she said. " Trees just ablaze. Smoke so heavy you could only follow the tail lights of the truck or car ahead of you."
a nuclear reactor tower

Army studies disposing Fort Greely reactor materials at Delta Junction landfill

Some components of Fort Greely's deactivated nuclear reactor were entombed on-site after it was shut down in 1972.

There’s a new fight over Bering Sea black cod. Warming water may be to blame.

Small-boat fishermen who catch black cod are sounding alarms about increasing numbers of black cod that are being caught accidentally, as bycatch, by larger Seattle-based trawlers that fish in the Bering Sea.
a man in a jacket and shirt

As climate change transforms the Arctic, Homeland Security must adapt, official says

The forces of climate change that are reducing ice cover and opening up the Arctic to more activity are making Alaska more important, said Dimitri Kusnezov.
A man in a black hoodie and black rubber gloves cuts through marbled bowhead whale meat with a knife.

For one Utqiaġvik family, spring bowhead whaling marks an important milestone

The Aaluk Crew landed Utqiaġvik's first bowhead whale of the spring season last week. It was also 17-year-old striker Donald "Button" Adams' first catch.
a cave

BLM considers Castner Glacier recreation management area

Word of the Castner Glacier’s blue-tinted ice cave has spread far and wide, causing concern that its growing popularity is degrading it.

USGS nominee inclined to show data to Interior bosses

If confirmed as USGS director, James Reilly says he'd likely share sensitive data with his higher-ups at the Interior Department if they ask to see it. A demand to release data about the NPR-A led two USGS staffers to quit this winter. Listen now

Dunleavy fires head of state oil and gas watchdog agency

In a letter sent Tuesday, the governor informed Hollis French he is "immediately" being removed from his position as chair of the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission.
Typhoon Nuri

Alaska geologists dig into Bering Sea’s past storms to understand future ones

Extreme weather events like Typhoon Merbok are becoming more common, and many Alaska communities are wondering about the future.
a spiral blue image in the sky with auroras in the background

Mysterious glowing spiral in the sky over Alaska draws questions, and a simple explanation

“It was beautiful. It was kind of a shame to think of it as exhaust, I have to admit,” said photographer Todd Salat, who captured the spiral on camera.

Murkowski accepts climate change. What will she do about it?

Sen. Murkowski is a Republican who goes out of her way to talk about climate change and says we need to reduce emissions. But climate advocates say her deeds don’t match her words.
A man in a kayak near lines of yellow floats

Fuel vault likely led to oil spill at Anchorage’s University Lake

The popular off-leash dog park remains closed as cleanup continues.
A yellow plug hangs from the front of a black truck

Anchorage offers drivers free cords, timers amid call to plug cars in

Local officials say at 20 degrees or colder, drivers should plug in cars' engine heaters to reduce both carbon monoxide and wear on vehicles.
Unalakleet

Traditional practices blended with modern life jacket technology seen as boosting fishing safety in Alaska

A pilot program examining ways that Indigenous knowledge addresses fishing safety in Unalakleet has come up with some recommendations.
A man in a parka stands on an ice field looking toward the sun low in the sky.

‘The time for action is now’: NOAA’s Arctic Report Card paints a dire picture of climate change

The 18th annual Arctic Report centered Indigenous knowledge from Alaska, including the ways climate change is reshaping coastal communities.