Elizabeth Harball, Alaska's Energy Desk - Anchorage

Elizabeth Harball, Alaska's Energy Desk - Anchorage
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Elizabeth Harball is a reporter with Alaska's Energy Desk, covering Alaska’s oil and gas industry and environmental policy. She is a contributor to the Energy Desk’s Midnight Oil podcast series. Before moving to Alaska in 2016, Harball worked at E&E News in Washington, D.C., where she covered federal and state climate change policy. Originally from Kalispell, Montana, Harball is a graduate of Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

Lawyers spar over whether young Alaskans’ climate lawsuit can move forward

The case, Sinnok v. State of Alaska, is being brought by 16 young Alaskans arguing that current policy violates their right to "a stable climate system" under the state constitution.

Pebble opponents sue Trump administration over EPA reversal

They are challenging EPA’s decision this summer to throw out what some saw as a “preemptive veto” of the proposed copper and gold mine, claiming the agency did not properly justify the decision.

As BP exits Alaska, 1,600 employees are waiting to find out what’s next

BP has operated in Alaska for over half a century and has long had a hand in running the state’s biggest oilfield, Prudhoe Bay. The oil company’s plans to exit the state has left hundreds of workers like McFarland in limbo.

About 300 BP union employees will keep their jobs — for now

According to Hilcorp, about 300 BP union workers at Prudhoe Bay will remain in their jobs, at least through the end of their current contract.

8 key takeaways for Alaska in a major new United Nations report on climate change

The United Nations on Wednesday released a major new report on how climate change is affecting the world’s oceans and frozen areas, like glaciers, ice sheets and permafrost. It contains stark warnings on how rising emissions will affect the environments that blanket most of the earth's surface -- and much of Alaska.

These Anchorage students skipped school to attend a climate protest. Here’s why, in their own words

Despite pouring rain, about 300 people of all ages gathered at a park in midtown Anchorage to take part in the global protest.
Caribou graze on the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, with snowcapped peaks of the Brooks Range as a backdrop. (USFWS)

Trump administration rolls out final environmental review for Arctic Refuge oil leasing

Today, the Trump administration took one of the last necessary steps before it allows oil leasing in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.  The Interior Department has released its final environmental analysis for oil lease sales...

New technology could help save Anchorage homes from wildfires

The Anchorage Fire Department hopes a new, specialized camera will help them respond to wildfires faster.

Internal email casts uncertainty on future of BP Alaska employees

In the email, sent after the deal was made public, BP Alaska President Janet Weiss told employees they have three options, including applying for jobs with BP outside Alaska or leaving the company with a severance package.

BP’s Alaska exit no surprise, say experts and industry insiders

BP's exit from Alaska was rumored long before it was officially announced on Tuesday. But that's not the only reason the company's $5.6 billion deal with Hilcorp is far from surprising, experts and industry insiders said.

BP moves to exit Alaska, relinquishing role as operator of Prudhoe Bay

One of Alaska's "Big Three" oil companies is stepping away from its major role in the state. BP is leaving its position as the company that oversees Prudhoe Bay.

ConocoPhillips’ next big oil project in Alaska takes another step forward

The company hopes to construct a new oil processing facility, up to five drill sites, about 40 miles of permanent roads, a gravel mine and hundreds of miles of pipelines and seasonal ice roads.

Trump’s path to ‘energy dominance’ in Alaska has a key opponent: lawyers

Not long after Trump took office, former Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke famously proclaimed "the only path for energy dominance is a path through the great state of Alaska." Two and a half years into the administration, lawyers have proven to be significant impediments to that path.

Wildfires crimp Alaska’s major transportation corridor, halting tourist operations, delaying groceries

Major wildfires that flared up in Southcentral Alaska over the weekend caused road closures and delays on some of the region's busiest road corridors, forcing re-routes and long delays for locals, buses filled with tourists and trucks trying to re-supply grocery stores.

State raises concerns about Red Dog Mine spill cleanups

Following a truck rollover earlier this summer, emails show state regulators raised concerns about how the Red Dog Mine near Kotzebue is cleaning up after spills on the sensitive tundra.

Point Lay sees earliest walrus haul out ever

It's the earliest walrus haul out since it began happening in 2007, according to the federal agency. The haul outs are associated with declining sea ice due to climate change. Paragraph

‘We’re never going to surrender’ — Sarah James on a life fighting oil drilling in the Arctic Refuge

Sarah James’ desire to preserve the Neets'aii Gwich'in way of life drove her into the thick of the battle over oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

In Arctic Village, Gwich’in leaders say the fight to stop drilling in the Arctic Refuge isn’t over

Until recently, Gwich'in tribes were on the winning side of battle over over drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Then, in late 2017, Congress opened the coastal plain to oil development So Gwich'in tribes are now taking unprecedented steps to try to protect the caribou herd they depend on.

Rep. Don Young files for re-election once again

Republican Congressman Don Young, the longest currently serving member of the House of Representatives and the longest-serving Republican in House history, today filed for re-election.

Pebble CEO and opponent debate whether mine proposal is ‘the nose under the camel’s tent’

The CEO of the Pebble Limited Partnership and a prominent Pebble opponent debated a key point of contention about the proposed mine: its size.