News

Officials with the federal agency that oversees the White Mountain National Recreation Area will hold the first of three meetings today in Fairbanks to explain a proposal today that could lead to mining in the area.

Watch Cold Warriors Preview on PBS. See more from Nature.

For thousands of years, wolves hunted buffalo across the vast North American plains, until the westward settlement of the continent saw the virtual extinction of these vast herds and their eternal predators. However, this ancient relationship was not lost altogether and continues uninterrupted in only one location — the northern edge of Canada’s central plains in a place named Wood Buffalo National Park. Wednesday 2/13 @ 7:00 p.m.

In the latest setback to Shell’s Arctic drilling plans for this summer, the company says it’s sending both of its drilling rigs to Asia for dry dock repairs. The company says the Noble Discoverer needs an engine overhaul and the Kulluk needs major repairs to its internal electrical systems and hull after running aground near Kodiak on New Year’s Eve. Shell spokesperson Curtis Smith says the Kulluk was damaged inside when seawater came through open hatches, and that the hull was “compromised” in some areas.

The Senate Energy Committee held its first meeting of the new Congress. It wasted no time in discussing one of the most controversial issues the committee will tackle this session – exporting liquefied natural gas.

Legislation that would limit the circumstances in which public funds can be used to pay for abortions was introduced in the Senate on Monday, and the bill may have trouble standing up to court scrutiny.

Alaska’s Redistricting Board met Tuesday in Anchorage to consider its options in the wake of an Alaska Supreme Court ruling requiring a revision of the 2012 redistricting plan. The Court allowed the current plan to be used in only last November’s general election, but has required the Board to redraw the plan so it is in line with the Alaska Constitution. The Board has filed a motion for a reconsideration.

It’s no secret that the high cost of energy in rural Alaska is a barrier to economic development and one of the primary reasons many residents are leaving village life behind. In some rural Southeast communities, electric bills are up to 275 percent higher than the national average, and some households spend as much as 50 percent of their income on home heating fuel.

Three of this year’s top four Yukon Quest teams will go on to race in this year’s Iditarod – Alaska’s “other” long distance sled dog race. All top four teams are planning long-term Yukon Quest careers for their kennels as well.

Anchorage School Board member Gretchen Guess announced her resignation on Tuesday from the Anchorage School Board, effective March 1. Her announcement comes as the district faces tough choices, including how to cut $25 million from its budget.

The U.S. Senate has just passed a reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act. Its future in the House is unclear. The Senate passed a reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act last Congress, only to see it fester in the House.

Watch John D. Rockefeller on PBS. See more from American Experience.

For decades, the Rockefeller name was despised in America — associated with John D. Rockefeller Sr.’s feared monopoly, Standard Oil. The world’s first billionaire, Rockefeller held 90 percent of the world’s oil refineries, 90 percent of the marketing of oil and a third of all the oil wells. Tuesday 2/12 @ 8:00 p.m.

Medically necessary abortions would be defined as those needed to avoid serious risk to the life of the woman under a bill introduced in the Alaska Senate.

Democratic legislators have rolled out their oil tax proposal, and the bill is more of a modification of the current tax structure than an overhaul. It would cap the windfall profits tax at 30 percent, and create credits for heavy oil research and development and the construction of new processing facilities on the North Slope.

A federal judge has denied a bid to block the Port MacKenzie railroad spur project. Monday U.S. District Court Judge Ralph Beistline handed down his decision, saying that extensive environmental studies were conducted over a period of years regarding the project, and that the benefits of the project are great, while further delay in construction would not be in the public interest.

A research rocket was successfully launched from Poker Flat north of Fairbanks last week. The 67 foot high 11 thousand pound rocket was launched into the upper atmosphere February 6th.