Environment

Borough plans to look at steps that could help cut air pollution

The Fairbanks borough is again taking up the problem of air pollution.

Fairbanks borough takes another look at limits on heating emissions

The Fairbanks North Star Borough Assembly is scheduled in two weeks to take up a proposal that would implement an emissions limit for burners as well as creating a system to approve heating devices.

Roof snow load begins to worry Anchorage building owners

Chaz Dumont and Tim Picket of F/P Roofing Inc. shovel snow off the roof of the Alaska Railroad Headquarters building near Ship Creek Feb. 7, 2012. The snow is being removed to stop ice dams from forming along the eves.

Heavy snowfall in Anchorage has pushed two commercial buildings to the breaking point. But city officials say snow loads shouldn't be a problem for most roofs.

2012 ALASKA LEGISLATURE

DNR claims mission statement isn't a philosophy change

The commissioner of the Alaska Department of Natural Resources told lawmakers Tuesday that no philosophical change is intended in a proposed a new mission statement deleting the words "conserve" and "enhance."

Alaska Senate plans generic oil tax bill to start process

Agencies pledge science-based policy in Arctic development

The head of President Obama's working group on Alaska energy development says the federal government will bring a renewed effort to incorporating science in Arctic policy decisions.

Icebreaker Healy returns to Seattle after 254 days at sea

The crew of a Coast Guard MH-65 Dolphin helicopter lands their aircraft on the flight deck of the Coast Guard Cutter Healy just off the coast of Nome Jan. 15, 2012. The Dolphin was transporting local, state and federal representatives to the Healy during a media day focused on the delivery of more than 1.3 million gallons of fuel to Nome by the tanker vessel Renda.

The Coast Guard cutter Healy is back in Seattle after a 254-day patrol that included clearing a path for a crucial fuel delivery to ice-bound Nome.

Photos: Coast Guard Cutter Healy, tanker Renda reach Nome

'Mixed bag' of foul weather hits southern Alaska

Northbound traffic crawls up the Glenn Highway as soaring temperatures make conditions difficult Feb. 1, 2012, north of the old Ft. Richardson overpass that accesses Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson.

A "mixed bag" of freezing rain and snow is causing hazardous driving conditions north of Anchorage on the Glenn Highway. To the south, increased avalanche risk along Turnagain Arm has caused state transportation officials to issue a warning for motorists.

Current Alaska weather warnings, advisories

Alaska volcano lava dome forms, alert level raised

The warning level for a remote Alaska volcano has been raised after a new lava dome began forming, indicating the mountain could explode and send up an ash cloud that could threaten aircraft.

Alaska Volcano Observatory Cleveland page

Russian tanker, Coast Guard icebreaker reach open water

A Russian tanker that delivered 1.3 million gallons of fuel to Nome and the Coast Guard cutter that broke ice for the tanker have reached open water in the Bering Sea.

GRAPHIC

Alaska Interior weathers a cold weekend

Interior Alaska endured severely cold temperatures over the weekend, with records broken in Galena ( - 63 Saturday and - 65 Sunday) and Bettles ( - 60 Saturday and Sunday).

Kodiak bear guides aim to give guests low-impact adventure

Brigid and Harry Dodge, owners of Kodiak Treks, pose with their dog, Reuben, on a beach near their lodge on Kodiak in 2008. Kodiak Treks has been recertified by Adventure Green Alaska, which offers Alaska's sole ecotourism certification program. The couple guide clients from June 1 through late September at their lodge on Aleut Island. The rest of the year, they travel to destinations around the world.

Harry and Brigid Dodge's efforts to reduce the environmental impact of their business have won them several awards. This month, their business, Kodiak Treks, was recertified by Adventure Green Alaska, the sole Alaska organization offering a certification process for ecotourism.

Ice in Bering Sea threatens crab fishery

Ice covers much of the Bering Sea surface in southwestern Alaska in mid-January 2012. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA's Aqua satellite captured this natural-color image on Jan. 15. Although sea ice extent in mid-January 2012 was not at a record high, it was the highest ice extent in several years, according to the National Snow and Ice Data Center.

Sea ice is encroaching unusually early on the central Bering Sea, threatening to grind Alaska's economically important snow crab fishery to a halt at the peak of the season, leaving crabbers facing major losses.

Aurora viewing is dazzling in Alaska after solar storms

The northern lights near Fairbanks, gave a good showing, including this corona on Jan. 22, 2012.

The aurora borealis streaking across Alaska skies this week captivated sky watchers who camped out in subzero temperatures to photograph the lights, billed as the most active in years.

UAF aurora forecast page

Reader photos: Aurora borealis 2012

Post your northern lights photos

Possibly spectacular aurora displays expected

For the self-described Aurora Chasers of Fairbanks, tonight is like a Christmas present from the solar system. The University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute has predicted "highly active" auroral displays visible over many parts of Alaska, from Barrow all the way to Ketchikan.

Reader photos: Aurora borealis 2012

UAF aurora forecast page

Post your northern lights photos

USGS uses airborne tool to map Alaska permafrost

A tool used by mining companies to find mineral ores has been adapted to map frozen soils below the ground in Alaska and could be used to track the effects of global warming, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

No radioactive threat expected from Japan's tsunami debris

The Japan tsunami debris has reached the beaches of Yakutat. Six or seven buoys washed up near Cannon Beach around January 15, 2012. Similar to others found in Washington state and Kodiak, they came from Japanese oyster farms.

As debris from last year's devastating tsunami in Japan shows up along Alaska's shoreline, there's little need to be worried that it will be contaminated by radiation, state health and environmental officials said Friday.

Murkowski plans discussion of Japanese tsunami debris

U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski will host a discussion in Anchorage on Friday on the effect on Alaska of debris from last year's tsunami in Japan.

Most of the gas, about half the fuel oil pumped to Nome

A Russian tanker crew was nearly finished pumping fuel to the iced-in city of Nome today, having sent more than half the 1.3 million gallons of diesel and gasoline through two hoses across the ice.

Photos: Coast Guard Cutter Healy, tanker Renda reach Nome

Bethel schools reopen after pipe problems fixed

All schools in the Lower Kuskokwim School District were reopened Wednesday. They had been closed for more than a week because of frozen sewer pipes.

Alaska Air cancels flights as snow falls in Seattle, Portland

Alaska Airlines has canceled almost 50 flights into and out of snowy Seattle and Portland, Ore., today, and more cancellations could be coming. The airline waived rebooking fees for travel Tuesday through Thursday in those cities.

Photos: Snowstorm batters Pacific Northwest

VPSO recruits difficult to find, troopers report

The money and the political support will exist to expand the number of village public safety officers to every Alaska village that wants one by 2019, but it has taken time to find qualified candidates for the remote posts.