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U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Elderberry carried the Together Tree, bound for the Alaska Governor’s Mansion, up from Wrangell where it was harvested after a brief delay due to some mechanical issues. (USCG photo / Petty Officer 2nd Class Lexie Preston)

Governor’s mansion tree arrives in Juneau

No weather or floating lines could stay these Coast Guardsmen about their task.

U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Elderberry carried the Together Tree, bound for the Alaska Governor’s Mansion, up from Wrangell where it was harvested after a brief delay due to some mechanical issues. (USCG photo / Petty Officer 2nd Class Lexie Preston)
COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)

COVID case rate continues decline; 7 new deaths reported

The state reported 632 new COVID-19 cases in Alaska.

COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)
EPA logo

Alaska Native group to receive EPA funds for clean water projects

The agency is handing out $4.3 million to participating tribal organizations nationwide.

EPA logo
COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)

State reports 6 new COVID deaths

The deaths, which included a Kenai woman in her 40s, pushed the total to 840 since the pandemic began.

COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)
This undated photos shows National Day of Mourning plaque on Cole’s Hill in Plymouth, Mass, where since 1970 Indigenous groups have gathered to mourn the history of colonization in North America. This year marks the 400th anniversary of the traditional “First Thanksgiving ” in 1621, but for many Indigenous people, including Alaska Natives, the holiday is a somber one. (Courtesy photo / Creative commons)

Thanksgiving has somber context for Indigenous Americans

New narratives.

This undated photos shows National Day of Mourning plaque on Cole’s Hill in Plymouth, Mass, where since 1970 Indigenous groups have gathered to mourn the history of colonization in North America. This year marks the 400th anniversary of the traditional “First Thanksgiving ” in 1621, but for many Indigenous people, including Alaska Natives, the holiday is a somber one. (Courtesy photo / Creative commons)
Alaska Rep. David Eastman sits at his desk on the Alaska House floor in Juneau, Alaska, on March 5, 2020. Dozens of West Point graduates have demanded state Rep. Eastman resign from office over his ties to a right wing extremist group, saying his affiliation has betrayed the values of the U.S. Military Academy he attended. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer, File)

70 West Point grads call on Alaska lawmaker to resign

Fellow West Point graduates called on Eastman to resign after his membership in the Oath Keepers became public.

Alaska Rep. David Eastman sits at his desk on the Alaska House floor in Juneau, Alaska, on March 5, 2020. Dozens of West Point graduates have demanded state Rep. Eastman resign from office over his ties to a right wing extremist group, saying his affiliation has betrayed the values of the U.S. Military Academy he attended. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer, File)
COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)

Officials: Get vaccinated before the holidays

The state also encourages all eligible adults to get a booster shot to increase protection for the holiday season.

COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)
Joseph Lee, of Idaho, backed by Ivan Zarate, of Arizona, and Abiud Zarate, of Baja California, Mexico, arrange fish so their heads can be chopped off by a guillotine-style machine Tuesday, July 14, 2020, at Pacific Star Seafoods in Kenai, Alaska. Not only were seafood jobs lost due to COVID restrictions, infections among industry personnel affected the fishing season. (Photo by Jeff Helminiak/Peninsula Clarion)

Seafood industry hit hard by pandemic

Overall fish harvesting jobs in Alaska dropped by the widest margin since 2000 — 14.1% — in 2020.

Joseph Lee, of Idaho, backed by Ivan Zarate, of Arizona, and Abiud Zarate, of Baja California, Mexico, arrange fish so their heads can be chopped off by a guillotine-style machine Tuesday, July 14, 2020, at Pacific Star Seafoods in Kenai, Alaska. Not only were seafood jobs lost due to COVID restrictions, infections among industry personnel affected the fishing season. (Photo by Jeff Helminiak/Peninsula Clarion)
COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)

New COVID cases continue downward trend

Alaska remained at a high COVID transmission alert level Monday.

COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)
COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)

20 more COVID deaths pushes statewide total to 832

Most of the deaths took place in October.

COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)
Workers with the Pebble Mine project test drill in the Bristol Bay region of Alaska, near the village of Iliamma, on July 13, 2007. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced Wednesday, Nov. 17, 2021, it is extending through May a timeline to decide how or whether to proceed with proposed restrictions on mining in Alaska’s Bristol Bay region, which is known for its salmon runs. (AP Photo/Al Grillo, File)

EPA sets timeline to weigh next steps related to Pebble Mine

In 2019, during the Trump administration, the EPA withdrew proposed restrictions.

Workers with the Pebble Mine project test drill in the Bristol Bay region of Alaska, near the village of Iliamma, on July 13, 2007. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced Wednesday, Nov. 17, 2021, it is extending through May a timeline to decide how or whether to proceed with proposed restrictions on mining in Alaska’s Bristol Bay region, which is known for its salmon runs. (AP Photo/Al Grillo, File)
The Tongass National Forest sign stands near the Auke Village Recreation Area. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire File)

Feds aim to block Tongass forest logging

At 16.7 million acres, Tongass is the largest national forest in the country.

The Tongass National Forest sign stands near the Auke Village Recreation Area. (Michael Penn | Juneau Empire File)
COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)

‘It takes active work from Alaskans’

As cases trend downward, health officials encourage vaccines, boosters.

COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., talks to reporters about plans to pass President Joe Biden’s domestic agenda as the House meets to debate the Build Back Better Act, at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, Nov. 18, 2021. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Dems’ sweeping social, climate bill nears approval

House approval is still expected on a near party-line vote.

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., talks to reporters about plans to pass President Joe Biden’s domestic agenda as the House meets to debate the Build Back Better Act, at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, Nov. 18, 2021. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
This June 1912, file photo provided by the U.S. Geological Survey shows ash drifts around Katmai village’s then-new Russian Orthodox church after the eruption of Novarupta Volcano in Katmai National Park and Preserve in Alaska. An unusual alert was issued by volcano scientists Wednesday, Nov. 17, 2021, warning that an ash cloud was headed toward Alaska’s Kodiak Island. The ash is from the powerful 1912 eruption of Novarupta, a volcano on the Alaska Peninsula that dropped volcanic ash that is still visible today. (G.C. Martin/U.S. Geological Survey via AP, File)

Winds whip up volcanic ash from 1912 eruption in Alaska

The Novarupta eruption was the most powerful of the 20th century and ranks among the largest in recorded history.

This June 1912, file photo provided by the U.S. Geological Survey shows ash drifts around Katmai village’s then-new Russian Orthodox church after the eruption of Novarupta Volcano in Katmai National Park and Preserve in Alaska. An unusual alert was issued by volcano scientists Wednesday, Nov. 17, 2021, warning that an ash cloud was headed toward Alaska’s Kodiak Island. The ash is from the powerful 1912 eruption of Novarupta, a volcano on the Alaska Peninsula that dropped volcanic ash that is still visible today. (G.C. Martin/U.S. Geological Survey via AP, File)
Raynelle Hoskie attaches a hose to a water pump to fill tanks in her truck outside a tribal office on the Navajo reservation in Tuba City, Ariz., on April 20, 2020. A massive infrastructure bill that President Joe Biden signed this week includes billions of dollars to address long-standing issues with water and sanitation on tribal land. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

Tribes welcome infusion of money in infrastructure bill

President Joe Biden signed the $1.2 trillion deal earlier this week that includes about $11 billion in benefits for Indian Country.

Raynelle Hoskie attaches a hose to a water pump to fill tanks in her truck outside a tribal office on the Navajo reservation in Tuba City, Ariz., on April 20, 2020. A massive infrastructure bill that President Joe Biden signed this week includes billions of dollars to address long-standing issues with water and sanitation on tribal land. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)
A woman stands next to an antenna at an NYU base camp at the Helheim glacier in Greenland on Friday, Aug. 16, 2019. In an effort to combat climate change and help develop Arctic communities, the Department of Energy Wednesday announced it was seeking to develop new sustainable energy projects in Alaska. (AP Photo / Felipe Dana)

Feds promote Arctic energy innovation

Living laboratory.

A woman stands next to an antenna at an NYU base camp at the Helheim glacier in Greenland on Friday, Aug. 16, 2019. In an effort to combat climate change and help develop Arctic communities, the Department of Energy Wednesday announced it was seeking to develop new sustainable energy projects in Alaska. (AP Photo / Felipe Dana)
COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)

2 new COVID deaths reported as cases decline

The deaths pushed the total number of statewide deaths to 812 since the pandemic began.

COVID-19. (Image courtesy CDC)
Clouds over the sky over Lazy Mountain and the Matanuska River on March 23, 2016, in Palmer, Alaska. Lights from downtown Palmer and Pioneer Peak can be seen in the lower right. Some critics say a new map of state political boundaries drawn following the last Census short-changes the fast-growing area north of Anchorage seen as a hotbed of conservatism. (AP Photo/Dan Joling, File)

Critics raise concerns with new Mat-Su redistricting

Republican Rep. Christopher Kurka, said the Matanuska-Susitna region is “getting Cheated, Shortchanged, and Hosed.”

Clouds over the sky over Lazy Mountain and the Matanuska River on March 23, 2016, in Palmer, Alaska. Lights from downtown Palmer and Pioneer Peak can be seen in the lower right. Some critics say a new map of state political boundaries drawn following the last Census short-changes the fast-growing area north of Anchorage seen as a hotbed of conservatism. (AP Photo/Dan Joling, File)
FILE - In this Sept. 30, 2016, file photo, a marijuana bud is seen before harvest at a rural area near Corvallis, Ore. Alaska Marijuana Industry Association President Lacy Wilcox said federal legalization could potentially hurt Alaska's cannabis cultivators who could lose out to other states such as Oregon where production is cheaper. (AP Photo/Andrew Selsky, File)

Young supports bill to end federal marijuana prohibition

Start the conversation.

FILE - In this Sept. 30, 2016, file photo, a marijuana bud is seen before harvest at a rural area near Corvallis, Ore. Alaska Marijuana Industry Association President Lacy Wilcox said federal legalization could potentially hurt Alaska's cannabis cultivators who could lose out to other states such as Oregon where production is cheaper. (AP Photo/Andrew Selsky, File)