News

Supreme Court to hear Kensington mine dispute
Anchorage Daily News
Jun 27, 2008
In the Alaska case that the court will hear next winter, the mine operator, Coeur Alaska, and the state are fending off a challenge by environmentalists to the planned disposal of tailings from gold mining into 23-acre Lower Slate Lake in the Tongass National Forest.

BIODIESEL: It's not easy, but the result is a $2 a gallon alternative.
Anchorage Daily News
Jun 22, 2008
Two bucks a gallon to make your own biodiesel sounds like a bargain compared to $5 to pump a gallon of gas or heating oil. But operating a processing plant in your garage might be more of a hobby than you’re willing to take on.

In Juneau, Firm Resistance to a Road Out of Isolation
New York Times
Jun 06, 2008
Some Juneau residents echo arguments made by opponents in lawsuits, saying that the road poses an environmental threat as well as a daunting engineering challenge and will prove much more expensive than is projected. While the steepness of the terrain is expected to make construction extremely complicated (a video opposing the route, “Steep, Not Cheap,” is on YouTube) engineers also say the threat of avalanches would keep the road closed for about 34 days per year.

Juneau Road: another huge project Alaska doesn't need moves quietly along.
Anchorage Daily News
May 04, 2008
As federal highway dollars drop now, and with Alaska's oil tax income expected to shrink as production declines, it makes no sense to tie up so much future government money in this project. It will use up funds that could be spent on more beneficial projects throughout the state.

Legislature wants $2 million to show polar bears are safe.
Anchorage Daily News
May 04, 2008
The state Legislature is looking to hire a few good polar bear scientists. The conclusions have already been agreed upon -- researchers just have to fill in the science part.

Don't let greed rule over common sense in Bristol Bay.
Alaska Journal of Commerce
Mar 30, 2008
We are not suggesting that Alaskans should continue to develop their resources on a magnanimous scale. But if we choose to, it should be decision for all of us and one that should be measured, thoughtful, researched and not done for the wrong reasons.

Weighing the local carrot vs. the global organic carrot
Anchorage Daily News
Mar 12, 2008
I would like to explore the success of Full Circle Farms, the Washington-based Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) and its impact on Alaska's food system. We all must eat and Full Circle offers a good option for some Alaskans, but what if their success is hurting local producers and our local seasonal markets?

Contrary to story, Alaska biofuels do not harm the environment
Anchorage Daily News
Feb 25, 2008
Alaska's biofuels do not destroy native habitat, and I would argue, reduce our impact on climate change. While the study especially condemns the clearing of tropical lands for agricultural biofuels, Alaska is dumping the equivalent of 13 million gallons of fish oil and is exporting nearly half a million gallons of used deep-fryer oil. In addition to capturing these wasted renewable resources, we need to support the Delta growers planting canola on existing croplands for fuel to power Alaska's family farms.

Yukon Flats Land Swap Comments
Anchorage Daily News
Feb 24, 2008
The draft environmental impact statement for a proposed exchange of land between Doyon Ltd. and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in the Yukon Flats region of interior Alaska is out for public review. And, judging by the past controversy surrounding the proposed deal, comments should come a plenty.

British Columbia's New Carbon Tax
Globe and Mail
Feb 19, 2008
B.C. Finance Minister Carole Taylor introduced an escalating carbon tax on most fossil fuels Tuesday, one she says is designed to ignite an environmental social movement in British Columbia and across Canada to fight climate change.