For years, shipping safety advocates have called for better protections against oil spills in the Aleutian chain. Now, the plan for a new prevention and response system is finally finished.
The Aleutian Islands Risk Assessment’s new draft report recommends some familiar solutions in new places – all at a cost of almost $14 million a year.
Read full story: http://kucb.org/news/article/aleutians-risk-assessment-unveils-spill-prevention-plan/
A dynamic event is underway in Arctic Alaska — one that, if successful, could have a profound effect on our state’s economy.
Shell Alaska is preparing to drill for oil this summer in Alaska’s offshore continental shelf. To date, Shell has expended over $7 billion in gearing up for its effort. It anticipates substantially advancing its delineation effort by the end of this year’s drilling season.
Read full story: http://juneauempire.com/opinion/2015-07-22/my-turn-action-alaskas-arctic
The community of Adak depends on its fish processing plant for jobs and tax revenue. But they’ve struggled to keep the lights on over the years.
Now, the plant’s latest operator is looking for new partners to help shoulder the financial burden.
The Adak Cod Cooperative formed in 2013, when two businessmen with experience in salmon fisheries decided to branch out.
Read full story: http://www.alaskapublic.org/2015/01/12/adak-fish-plant-seeks-additional-operators/
ADAK — This Aleutian island is 1,200 miles from Anchorage, and it might as well be in a different country, but a mileage ticket on Alaska Airlines makes a trip affordable. There’s more than enough to explore in the island’s abandoned military infrastructure — which once housed 6,000 troops — and thousands of acres of tundra to keep visitors entertained for a long weekend.
Read full story: http://www.adn.com/article/20141004/go-remote-48-hours-far-flung-adak
Last month, the Canadian government gave conditional approval to the Northern Gateway pipeline in British Columbia. If it’s built, it’ll bring hundreds more oil tankers through the Bering Sea.
That’s putting pressure on the Aleutian Islands to get ready for an increase in vessel traffic.
Read full story: http://www.ktoo.org/2014/07/04/aleutians-prepare-vessel-traffic-canadian-pipeline-advances/
It’s not often that cruise ships call in the far western Aleutian port of Adak, but earlier this month, one did just that. The 295-foot Caledonian Sky wound up in Adak after bad weather forced it to bypass its original destination.
The unexpected visit temporarily doubled the population of the remote community – and turned some Adak residents into tourists in their own town.
Read full story: http://www.alaskapublic.org/2013/06/28/ak-a-remote-cruise/
Signs of a huge investment in the past abound here. The huge storage buildings, long docks for ships, and stylish suburban housing for thousands of military personnel and families are nearly all empty, following the end of the Cold War between the United States and former Soviet Union. The Naval Air Facility closed in the 1990s because of the absence of an enemy that made the remote site’s high maintenance costs worthwhile, thanks to fear as a funding source.
Read full story: http://www.thebristolbaytimes.com/article/1238adak_hopes_oil_trans-arctic_shipping_will
Oil and gas development in the Arctic could bring some major changes to the city of Adak. On Tuesday, Offshore Systems Inc and several subsidiaries of the Aleut Corporation signed an agreement to collaborate on developing the former military base as a support hub for Arctic oil drilling. OSI spokesperson Jim Butler says the community is a logical place for future development.
Read full story: http://kucb.org/news/article/adak-to-support-offshore-oil-and-gas-development/
The speech that follows was presented by Thomas Mack, president of the Aleut Corporation at the Arctic Imperative Summit in June at Alyeska Resort in Girdwood, Alaska.
Read full story: http://www.alaskapublic.org/2011/09/09/arctic-imperative-thomas-mack-president-aleut-corporation/
An Alaska Native regional corporation is applying to the state for rights to support bulk water exports to thirsty Asian markets.
Anchorage-based Aleut Corp. wants to withdraw up to 500,000 gallons per day from each of three freshwater lakes on Adak Island, a former Navy outpost midway out the Aleutian chain some 1,200 miles southwest of Anchorage.
Read full story: http://classic.alaskajournal.com/stories/082010/loc_adw.shtml