The government press release actually says it in all caps: “HUGE.” The new USGS mean estimate of 8.7 billion barrels of undiscovered, technically recoverable oil is far more than was last calculated in 2010.
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Come 2018, the state plans to dispose of F/V Akutan
The processor was abandoned in September following a disastrous fishing season in Bristol Bay where the ship’s owner went broke, the crew went unpaid, and it’s 158,000 pound haul of salmon was declared unfit for human consumption.
Affordable Care Act enrollments down in Alaska, but not by much
“There was a great deal of confusion amongst consumers,” said Alaska Division of Insurance Director Lori Wing-Heier. “So to come out of it with that capture? We’re thrilled.”
Alaska Christmas trees: backyard charm or out-of-state beauty?
This year, the Governor’s Mansion is decorated for the holidays with a Sitka spruce tree from the Tongass National Forest. But Alaskans in the capital city aren’t just decking the halls with local greenery.
Refuge drilling opponents prepare for next phase of struggle
Now that Congress has OK’d oil and gas exploration in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge’s coastal plain, opponents are preparing for the next phase in their decades-long struggle to protect the environmentally sensitive area.
Robust health insurance sign-ups surprise supporters and opponents
Despite an enrollment period that was half as long, nearly 9 million people have signed up for Affordable Care Act insurance for 2018 so far, about the same as last year.
Video premiere: ‘How to Say Goodbye’
Christy NaMee Eriksen’s new poem “How To Say Goodbye” follows a pair of friends over a lifetime. It’s dedicated to her late friend Amy Henderson.
Homer fishermen grapple with cod decline
Regulators voted to slash Gulf of Alaska Pacific cod allocations 80 percent earlier this month after a massive decline in stocks. That has fishermen and processors around the Gulf deciding what to do when the season kicks off in January.
Life expectancy drops again as opioid deaths surge in U.S.
The opioid epidemic caused U.S. life expectancy to fall for the second year in a row, marking the first time that has happened since the early 1960s. Death rates also continued to rise.
Spending bill allocates $200M for Fort Greely interceptors
Congress passed a short-term spending bill today that includes one longer-term project for Alaska: the bill allocates $200 million to build a fourth field of underground missile silos at Fort Greely, near Fairbanks.