Environment

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

children with fishing nets

Alaskans invited to tell Congress what climate change means for them

Alaskans can submit their input on a draft of the upcoming National Climate Assessment until Jan. 27.

More areas around Kodiak Island could become critical habitat for endangered North Pacific Right Whales

It’s estimated that less than 50 North Pacific Right Whales exist today in a range that extends from Hawaii to the southeastern Bering Sea and beyond.

Sen. Murkowski talks aviation, climate change in Bethel visit

Climate change and rural aviation are major issues in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, and Sen. Lisa Murkowski addressed both during her visit to the region last week.
Museum-goers and listen to audio and look at a collection of photos on a red wall.

Anchorage Museum exhibit explores climate change through resilience and care

“How to Survive” uses works from Alaska and beyond to highlight how investing in community and caring can be forms of climate mitigation.
a whale in the ocean

NOAA investigates death of whale calf near Juneau

NOAA is still investigating what happened to Tango, but a post-mortem exam on Saturday revealed injuries consistent with a vessel strike.
damaged boats in chevak

Chevak subsistence gear ‘strewn all over the place’ by storm

Reporter Emily Schwing discusses Chevak's response to damaged boats and water contamination from last weekend's storm.
halibut

Fishing guides at a Petersburg lodge charged with over 50 violations

State and federal officers were involved in the investigations, including undercover officers posing as fishing clients.
a weather map

Should we invest more in weather forecasting? It may save your life.

A pair of economists calculate that "making forecasts 50% more accurate would save 2,200 lives per year," citing major improvements in the last century.
homes

Alaska’s recent cold snap tested critical infrastructure, including in Mertarvik

The entire community was without electricity for more than three days, as subzero temperatures sapped the local generator's batteries.

The challenges of being the only woman on a pipeline crew

Diane Schenker had recently graduated from Reed College and was living in Fairbanks when she heard a rumor that Welding Union 798 had been forced to hire women to help build the trans-Alaska pipeline. A 21-year-old with no experience in construction, Schenker convinced the union office manager to let her work with an all-male crew of welders from the South. Listen now
houses

In northernmost Alaska, a battle is on to limit the damages of permafrost thaw

Warming soils beneath Utqiagvik are triggering erosion that threatens homes, infrastructure and cultural resources.
a warehouse

Roof of vacant, condemned Anchorage warehouse partially collapses under snow load

The owner of the warehouse on Gambell Street said the building had been condemned and was slated for demolition.
a Coast Guard cutter

U.S. Coast Guard shares Arctic pollution response plan

One of the scenarios the U.S. plans and trains for is an oil spill off the Seward Peninsula, potentially involving Russian vessels, that reaches Alaska shores.

Melting permafrost changes Yukon River

A new study shows melting permafrost is changing the chemistry of the Yukon River, just one of many climate-related changes affecting the Yukon and beyond. Listen Now

Trump administration proposes vast increase to offshore oil leasing in Alaska

The Trump administration has proposed a vast increase in offshore waters available for oil drilling nationwide. That could mean that more waters off Alaska’s shores will be offered for oil and gas development than ever before. Listen now
a polar bear

Federal appeals court declines to ‘criminalize’ Beaufort Sea oil and gas work

A divided three-judge panel concluded that a federal agency failed to justify a regulation that allows some oil and gas work.
Newtok storm debris

Fall storm expected to bring winds, flooding to parts of Alaska

A forecaster said the latest storm is on a “very different track” than September’s powerful storm, and its main impacts will be felt farther north.
Mary Peltola

Rep. Peltola calls for more collaborative management of Southeast’s transboundary watersheds

Rep. Mary Peltola says her position is based on widespread support from Southeast tribal governments and communities.
a Tanner crab

Inside Kodiak’s crab standoff

Crews from more than 100 boats are waiting for a higher price, but experts say they are facing global market forces unlikely to budge.
wildfire evacuees

Canada wildfires prompt evacuations of Northwest Territories capital

Yellowknife residents were ordered to evacuate Wednesday night as wildfires neared the city of 20,000 people.