ANCHORAGE — ConocoPhillips has agreed to federal and state civil penalties of about $200,000 for spills of crude oil and contaminated water from corroded pipe in Alaska’s Kuparuk Oil Field in 2006 and 2007.

ConocoPhillips Alaska Inc. also agreed to reimburse the state $112,273 for the cost of its investigation and oversight.

The company also must complete restoration of the 0.32 acre that was affected.

ConocoPhillips Alaska spokeswoman Natalie Lowman said by email that spill prevention and protection of the environment are top priorities for the company.

ANCHORAGE — If whale expert John K.B. Ford has his way, school children one day will study a kind of North Pacific killer whale that preys on warm-blooded creatures — mostly harbor seals and sea lions, but also gray whales and seabirds.

They roam as far north as the Arctic Ocean and are now known as “transients” to distinguish them from fish-eating “resident” killer whales.

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Alaska’s Commerce commissioner says the disaster from poor king salmon returns was worse than first estimated.

In a letter to the state’s congressional delegation, Susan Bell says commercial fishery permit holders lost an estimated $16.8 million in direct revenue.

She says that doesn’t include the economic effect on crew members who help harvest salmon, or processors and support businesses. She says it also doesn’t include account for revenue lost by communities from fish and sales tax.

ANCHORAGE — Alaska health officials say it’s a good idea to wear a helmet if you climb aboard a motorcycle on state roads.

A decade of motorcycle crash data indicates that people hospitalized after a crash were 70 percent more likely to suffer a traumatic brain injury and 2.3 times more likely to die if they were not wearing a helmet.

“It does provide protection to the head,” said Deborah Hull-Jilly, an injury epidemiologist for the Division of Public Health. “It can also help reduce some of the fatigue with the windshield.”