Search Results for: climate

The aftermath of the flood is seen in Maggie Nolen’s basement apartment on Tuesday afternoon. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire)

Juneau residents impacted by the Mendenhall River flood begin recovery step by step

Volunteers help salvage homes and belongings after record flood causes widespread damage.

The aftermath of the flood is seen in Maggie Nolen’s basement apartment on Tuesday afternoon. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire)
A creek runs beside the Mesa Site in northern Alaska. (Photo by Dan Gullickson)

Alaska Science Forum: Pondering the mystery of the Mesa people

Now as quiet as wind whispering through grass, a plateau rising from the flats of northern Alaska was for thousands of years a lookout for… Continue reading

A creek runs beside the Mesa Site in northern Alaska. (Photo by Dan Gullickson)
The sticker-covered wall outside the Prudhoe Bay General Store, a landmark in the community of Deadhorse, is seen on Aug. 22, 2018. Behind it is an oil equipment and oil-related facilities sited at Deadhorse, just outside of the Prudhoe Bay field. On Tuesday, temperatures reached 89 degrees at the industrial camp community, the highest ever recorded there and likely the highest ever recorded at this latitude anywhere in North America. (Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

Record-high temperatures bake Deadhorse and other sites on Alaska’s North Slope

A scorching hot day in Alaska’s Arctic set multiple records on Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service. At Deadhorse, the industrial camp community next… Continue reading

The sticker-covered wall outside the Prudhoe Bay General Store, a landmark in the community of Deadhorse, is seen on Aug. 22, 2018. Behind it is an oil equipment and oil-related facilities sited at Deadhorse, just outside of the Prudhoe Bay field. On Tuesday, temperatures reached 89 degrees at the industrial camp community, the highest ever recorded there and likely the highest ever recorded at this latitude anywhere in North America. (Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)
Bright red fruit hang from a cherry tree in the Casey-Shattuck Addition in downtown Juneau. The compact neighborhood of small homes is roughly defined by 12th Street, Glacier Avenue, Eighth Street and Calhoun Avenue. It was platted in 1913. (Laurie Craig / Juneau Empire)

A bowl of cherries: Abundant red fruit brightens the neighborhood known as ‘The Flats’

Nobody seems quite sure about the origin of the fruit trees, but people have plenty of ideas.

Bright red fruit hang from a cherry tree in the Casey-Shattuck Addition in downtown Juneau. The compact neighborhood of small homes is roughly defined by 12th Street, Glacier Avenue, Eighth Street and Calhoun Avenue. It was platted in 1913. (Laurie Craig / Juneau Empire)
Juneau resident Cathy Muse sold her oil tank after installing an air source heat pump, transitioning her house entirely off fossil fuels. (Photo by Cathy Muse distributed by the U.S. Department of Energy)

Federal grant will help 6,100 coastal Alaska homes get heat pumps

$38.6M allocation will provide rebates up to $8,500 per household for purchase and installation

  • Jul 31, 2024
  • By Larry Persily Wrangell Sentinel
Juneau resident Cathy Muse sold her oil tank after installing an air source heat pump, transitioning her house entirely off fossil fuels. (Photo by Cathy Muse distributed by the U.S. Department of Energy)
In 2024, the work of the Lynn Canal Food Web expanded into an additional community garden located in Deishú Haines using plants and seeds from the Victory Garden at Xunt’i Áa Mosquito Lake. Pictured, Erika Merklin and Liz Landes tend to the Henderson field property. Landes is funded to manage site development for the year through an additional USDA Southeast Alaska Sustainability mini-grant made available by Southeast Conference demonstrating how USDA funding continues to develop new leadership in local communities. (Photo by Shaelene Grace Moler)

Woven Peoples and Place: Upper Lynn Canal food systems boosted by regional sustainability initiatives

Network of grassroots efforts, volunteers and community gardens helping ensure access to local food.

In 2024, the work of the Lynn Canal Food Web expanded into an additional community garden located in Deishú Haines using plants and seeds from the Victory Garden at Xunt’i Áa Mosquito Lake. Pictured, Erika Merklin and Liz Landes tend to the Henderson field property. Landes is funded to manage site development for the year through an additional USDA Southeast Alaska Sustainability mini-grant made available by Southeast Conference demonstrating how USDA funding continues to develop new leadership in local communities. (Photo by Shaelene Grace Moler)
“Dreaming the Future” written by Mike Tobin and directed by Donnie Gott, and performed as part of the Climate Fair for a Cool Planet at Bill Overstreet Park on Saturday, ends with actors in an electric bus driving toward the future. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire)

Climate Fair for a Cool Planet cultivates a culture of change with songs and theater

Record rain in Juneau and record-high global temps are both worrisome signs, organizers say.

“Dreaming the Future” written by Mike Tobin and directed by Donnie Gott, and performed as part of the Climate Fair for a Cool Planet at Bill Overstreet Park on Saturday, ends with actors in an electric bus driving toward the future. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire)
Anchorage musician Quinn Christopherson sings to the crowd during a performance as part of the final night of the Áak’w Rock music festival at Centennial Hall on Sept. 23, 2023. He is the featured musician at this year’s Climate Fair for a Cool Planet on Saturday. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire file photo)

Climate Fair for a Cool Planet expands at Earth’s hottest moment

Annual music and stage play gathering Saturday comes five days after record-high global temperature.

Anchorage musician Quinn Christopherson sings to the crowd during a performance as part of the final night of the Áak’w Rock music festival at Centennial Hall on Sept. 23, 2023. He is the featured musician at this year’s Climate Fair for a Cool Planet on Saturday. (Clarise Larson / Juneau Empire file photo)
Waters of Anchorage’s Lake Hood and, beyond it, Lake Spenard are seen on Wednesday behind a parked seaplane. The connected lakes, located at the Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport, comprise a busy seaplane center. A study by Alaska Community Action on Toxics published last year found that the two lakes had, by far, the highest levels of PFAS contamination of several Anchorage- and Fairbanks-area waterways the organization tested. Under a bill that became law this week, PFAS-containing firefighting foams that used to be common at airports will no longer be allowed in Alaska. (Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

Bill by Sen. Jesse Kiehl mandating end to use of PFAS-containing firefighting foams becomes law

Law takes effect without governor’s signature, requires switch to PFAS-free foams by Jan. 1

Waters of Anchorage’s Lake Hood and, beyond it, Lake Spenard are seen on Wednesday behind a parked seaplane. The connected lakes, located at the Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport, comprise a busy seaplane center. A study by Alaska Community Action on Toxics published last year found that the two lakes had, by far, the highest levels of PFAS contamination of several Anchorage- and Fairbanks-area waterways the organization tested. Under a bill that became law this week, PFAS-containing firefighting foams that used to be common at airports will no longer be allowed in Alaska. (Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)
A car on Gastineau Avenue is partially buried by a mudslide that occurred during record rainfall on Sunday, July 14, 2024. (Photo by Simba Blackman)

New July rainfall record set for Juneau with a week to go; Suicide Basin nears 2023 fill level

No more heavy storms expected this month, according to forecaster.

A car on Gastineau Avenue is partially buried by a mudslide that occurred during record rainfall on Sunday, July 14, 2024. (Photo by Simba Blackman)
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Genius Wave Review – Is It Really Worth Buying?

In today’s fast-paced world, we constantly search for ways to optimize our mental performance and cognitive abilities. The quest for peak brain function has led… Continue reading

  • Jul 24, 2024
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U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola, D-Alaska, speaks on Jan. 4, 2024, at a town hall meeting on the possible Albertsons-Kroger grocery merger. The meeting was held at the Teamsters Local 959 headquarters in Anchorage. Peltola said on Tuesday she has not decided whether to support her party’s likely candidate, Vice President Kamala Harris. (Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

Rep. Mary Peltola withholds support for Kamala Harris, is ‘keeping an open mind’

Congresswoman says she’s considering Harris presidency’s affect on Alaska as an oil-dependent state.

U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola, D-Alaska, speaks on Jan. 4, 2024, at a town hall meeting on the possible Albertsons-Kroger grocery merger. The meeting was held at the Teamsters Local 959 headquarters in Anchorage. Peltola said on Tuesday she has not decided whether to support her party’s likely candidate, Vice President Kamala Harris. (Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)
President Biden at the White House on July 3. (Doug Mills/The New York Times)

President Joe Biden drops out of race, scrambling the campaign for the White House

Withdraws under pressure from fellow Democrats; endorses Vice President Kamala Harris to take on Trump.

President Biden at the White House on July 3. (Doug Mills/The New York Times)
The offices of the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development in Juneau are seen on Thursday, Oct. 26, 2023. (James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)

Alaska demographers predict population drop, a switch from prior forecasts

For decades, state officials have forecast major population rises, but those haven’t come to pass.

The offices of the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development in Juneau are seen on Thursday, Oct. 26, 2023. (James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)
Dancers rehearsed in front of “Tahku,” the whale sculpture ahead of the Climate Fair for a Cool Planet in 2021. (Courtesy of Mike Tobin)

My Turn: Thank the cool, rainy heavens we live in Juneau

Thank heavens we don’t live in Houston, oil capital of the U.S., where the remnants of Beryl, the earliest Category 5 hurricane to ever form… Continue reading

Dancers rehearsed in front of “Tahku,” the whale sculpture ahead of the Climate Fair for a Cool Planet in 2021. (Courtesy of Mike Tobin)
Spawning chum salmon swim in 1990 in Kitoi Bay near Kodiak. A newly released task force report says research should be conducted in a holistic way that considers the complete life cycles and geographic ranges of salmon runs. (David Csepp/NOAA Alaska Fisheries Science Center)

Task force report identifies research needs to better understand Alaska salmon problems

Fishery managers overseeing Alaska’s faltering salmon runs should be able to rely on a more comprehensive and holistic approach to science that considers all habitat,… Continue reading

Spawning chum salmon swim in 1990 in Kitoi Bay near Kodiak. A newly released task force report says research should be conducted in a holistic way that considers the complete life cycles and geographic ranges of salmon runs. (David Csepp/NOAA Alaska Fisheries Science Center)
Commercial fishing boats are lined up at the dock at Seward’s harbor on June 22. Federal grants totaling a bit over $5 million have been awarded to the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute to help Alaskans sell more fish to more diverse groups of consumers. (Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

Federal grants to state agency aim to expand markets for Alaska seafood

More than $5M to help ASMI comes after Gov. Dunleavy vetoed $10M for agency.

Commercial fishing boats are lined up at the dock at Seward’s harbor on June 22. Federal grants totaling a bit over $5 million have been awarded to the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute to help Alaskans sell more fish to more diverse groups of consumers. (Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)
Gov. Mike Dunleavy holds up the omnibus crime bill, House Bill 66, after signing it at a ceremony Thursday at the Department of Public Safety’s aircraft hangar at Lake Hood in Anchorage. At his side are Sandy Snodgrass, whose 22-year-old son died in 2021 from a fentanyl overdose, and Angela Harris, who was stabbed in 2022 by a mentally disturbed man at the public library in Anchorage and injured so badly that she now uses a wheelchair. Snodgrass and Harris advocated for provisions in the bill.Behind them are legislators, law enforcement officers and others. (Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

Goals for new Alaska crime law range from harsher penalties for drug dealers to reducing recidivism

Some celebrate major progress on state’s thorniest crime issues while others criticize the methods.

Gov. Mike Dunleavy holds up the omnibus crime bill, House Bill 66, after signing it at a ceremony Thursday at the Department of Public Safety’s aircraft hangar at Lake Hood in Anchorage. At his side are Sandy Snodgrass, whose 22-year-old son died in 2021 from a fentanyl overdose, and Angela Harris, who was stabbed in 2022 by a mentally disturbed man at the public library in Anchorage and injured so badly that she now uses a wheelchair. Snodgrass and Harris advocated for provisions in the bill.Behind them are legislators, law enforcement officers and others. (Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)
The RTK drone flies on Tuesday near Snowslide Creek in Juneau. The Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities uses drones to evaluate snowpack and prepare for avalanches by increasing the collection of data. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire)

Alaska leads the nation in drone innovation, wants to use it to save more lives

Visibility, data collection for disaster management reaching new heights, experts visiting Juneau say.

The RTK drone flies on Tuesday near Snowslide Creek in Juneau. The Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities uses drones to evaluate snowpack and prepare for avalanches by increasing the collection of data. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire)
A hiker explores the Tongass National Forest. (U.S. Forest Service photo)

The Forest Service just took an inventory of the Tongass, wants suggestions about what to protect

Two-month comment period on draft map part of major revision of forest’s land management plan.

A hiker explores the Tongass National Forest. (U.S. Forest Service photo)