Economy

The road would stretch 211 miles from the Dalton Highway to the Ambler Mining District east of Kotzebue and would cross Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve.

According to the Alaska Department of Labor, the worst of the pandemic job loss is over for now. Economist Karinne Wiebold said Alaska is expected to add jobs in 2021, but slowly.

The Sitka Tribe of Alaska in November won another round in its legal fight with the state over the management of the commercial herring fishery. And next week the court will hear new oral arguments and decide whether the state has upheld its constitutional responsibilities in its management of the fishery.

A working group to reboot the cruise industry in Alaska is in the works, says Alaska’s commissioner for health and social services. But those working most closely with the cruise industry say they’re not in the loop.

Wrangell’s first state ferry since last November has been delayed for more than 24 hours due to stormy seas in the Gulf of Alaska.

“[Families] didn’t go places. They aren’t going to movies to spend little bits. They aren’t spending as much at restaurants. They aren’t doing all these other things. But they can stay at home and build models and play with RC Cars and planes.”

The UniSea fish plant in Unalaska is under partial lockdown and has shut down all non-essential work after four employees tested positive for COVID-19 Tuesday.

The nation’s sole heavy icebreaker arrived in the Aleutian Islands this week for the first time since 2013.

The first cruise line has canceled at least some of its sailings to Alaska in 2021. Princess normally sends its first cruise ships to Alaska in late April.

One of the Trump administration’s biggest energy initiatives suffered a stunning setback Wednesday, as a decades-long push to drill for oil in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge ended with a lease sale that attracted just three bidders — one of which was the state of Alaska itself.