From oil in the Arctic to the Ambler Road, Alaska’s resource and conservation battles await a new administration’s fate, affecting communities, ecosystems and industries alike.
Victoria Petersen
Victoria Petersen is a freelance journalist living in Anchorage, Alaska. Previously, she was a reporting fellow at The New York Times and a High Country News intern. Follow @vgpetersen
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Bringing fast, reliable broadband to rural Alaska could cost $1.8 billion
During a visit to Bethel, Alaska, first lady Jill Biden highlighted hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding to improve internet access in Alaska Native communities.
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The Biden administration just approved a huge oil project in Alaska
The Willow project threatens local lifeways and wildlife in Nuiqsut, Alaska.
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The Iditarod changes alongside Alaska’s climate
Mushers and sled dogs adapt to warmer temperatures and worse trail conditions at the world-famous race.
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5 new state bills that could shape the future of energy in Alaska
The state’s legislative session has just begun. Here are the bills climate activists are watching.
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The EPA vetoed Alaska’s proposed Pebble Mine
Read a Q&A with Yup’ik fisher and activist Alannah Hurley on the fight for Bristol Bay’s future.
Posted inMarch 1, 2023: Moving Parts
Here’s what it takes to build Alaska’s highways of ice
Frozen rivers are vital transportation routes for communities outside the state’s traditional road system.
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At first, locals protested Alaska’s land sale. Now, they’re reclaiming it
The buyers plan to transform 40 acres of fire-scarred land into a sustainable, Indigenous-led farm.
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Could Alaska help lessen international dependence on Russian oil?
A proposed LNG project spanning the state would export natural gas, but could harm land, wildlife & subsistence harvests.
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Record rainfall, bears and French toast at Anchorage’s new city-sanctioned homeless encampment
A network of mutual aid organizers provides meals and supplies for people experiencing homelessness.
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Alaska’s Willow Project promises huge amounts of oil — and huge environmental impacts
Residents in nearby Nuiqsut worry that oil and gas development is ‘too fast and too much.’
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As waters warm, Alaska experiences salmon booms and busts
Chaotic salmon returns leave some Alaskans with an abundance of salmon, and others with none.
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In Alaska, coal is dwindling as green energy is on the rise
The closure of Healy Unit 2 signals a rise in renewable energy projects around Alaska.
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Alaska’s fire season is off to a blazing start
Drought, heat and thunderstorms have started fires across the state.
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Alaska land sale kicks off the state’s ambitious new agricultural project
The Nenana Totchaket Agricultural Project aims to fight food insecurity in the state but could interfere with local trappers’ ability to gather food.
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A wetter and warmer Alaska means dangerously slippery slopes
Climate change is making landslides more likely and preparation vital.
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Will a multimillion-dollar dock help a remote Alaska community get more services?
Alaska’s marine highway still faces uncertainty under severe budget cuts.
Posted inJanuary 1, 2021: No Place Like Home
Drowning the derelicts: Yesterday’s boats are today’s problems
States and municipalities from Alaska to California struggle to dispose of old vessels without federal support.
Posted inDecember 1, 2020: A Community Divided
Trump administration chops logging restrictions in the Tongass National Forest
But President-elect Biden could reinstate them once in office.
Posted inDecember 1, 2020: A Community Divided
Climate change intensifies tsunami threat in Alaska
As glaciers retreat and permafrost thaws, massive landslides threaten coastal communities.