With the holidays in the rear view mirror and the convention season half-way over, mining operators in Alaska, big and small, are processing their paperwork for the upcoming field season. The major... — Updated 9/24/2020 Full story

One does not have to be a septuagenarian to recall how things were before Richard Nixon signed the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act into law. Whole industries used the commons for the disposal... — Updated 6/27/2019 Full story

It is difficult not to be optimistic about the future of the mining industry in Alaska these days. Although the industry is still No. 2 – as compared to oil and gas – it remains lucrative, safe and... — Updated 5/30/2019 Full story

I know that it is a perennial hazard for those of us who follow the mining industry to be optimistic in the Spring every year; but, somehow, I don't seem to be able to contain myself this year. My... — Updated 5/24/2019 Full story

I don't really know how much it has cost John Sturgeon to go to the United States Supreme Court (SCOTUS) twice in order to vindicate his right to use a hovercraft to go hunting on the Nation River,... — Updated 4/12/2019 Full story

Despite over four decades of working with the mining industry in Alaska, my travels rarely brought me to the northwest part of the state and my opportunities to interface with residents have been em... — Updated 2/28/2019 Full story

As you have heard by now, a large segment of the federal government has been furloughed over some sort of a squabble between the Leader of the Free World and the newly-elected Speaker of the House... — Updated 1/24/2019 Full story

There can be no doubt that April 27, 1973, was an auspicious day in Nebraska, not just because Jason Brune, Governor-Elect Dunleavy's pick to become the Commissioner of the Alaska Department of... — Updated 12/1/2018 Full story

I have always been bemused by an apparently historic inconsistency between the Declaration of Independence and the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution. The first speaks of "life, liberty and the pur... — Updated 11/2/2018 Full story

I always get a giggle when I hear the stark warnings about the death and destruction that are going to occur as the result of the huge contribution that anthropomorphic activities, especially the bu... — Updated 10/5/2018 Full story

The Donlin Project took one step closer to becoming the next major mine in Alaska when on Aug. 13, the Army Corps of Engineers and the Department of the Interior signed off on a record of decision... — Updated 9/7/2018 Full story

Undoubtedly, one of the most fun parts of my vocation is introducing Cheechakos to mining in Alaska. Obviously, even the most experienced miners in the state can, and often do, get cross-wise with... — Updated 6/8/2018 Full story

In my younger years, I was hornswoggled into believing in “truth, justice and the American way.” I had no idea how evil that “way” actually was. Later, as I progressed through high school, I was t... — Updated 4/26/2018 Full story

Arguably, the process of adopting laws and regulations is well-intentioned; but like the blind men trying to describe an elephant, those who embrace the tail perceive a creature much unlike those... — Updated 3/23/2018 Full story

In an earlier column (Dec. 24, 2017), the question of proposed regulations affecting mining on State land was flagged for readers’ attention because the initial scope of the contemplated changes did... — Updated 2/22/2018 Full story

Given the fluidity of the presidential contest, it may not be premature to dust off our hip pocket copy of the U.S. Constitution and worry about what happens if neither of the contenders gets the re... — Updated 2/6/2018 Full story

I'll be the first to concede that the upcoming election is probably a done deal, and that for Alaskans, it is probably far more important that we do our best to ensure that Republican majorities... — Updated 2/5/2018

Montana's lone Congressman, Rep. Ryan Zinke, R-Mont., who is President Trump's nominee to be the next Secretary of the Interior, was sautéed (fried quickly in hot oil) for four hours on Jan. 17 by... — Updated 1/28/2018

I must be getting old because I remember when, in 1966, Robert Kennedy first uttered the so-called Chinese curse about living in interesting times. It is probably one of his more memorable lines;... — Updated 1/28/2018

Like lots of folks, I was somewhat astounded that Secretary (Hillary) Clinton was able to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory earlier this month. Everyone, of course, expected the left coast... — Updated 1/28/2018 Full story

Last week the Pebble Project announced that it had reached a settlement with the EPA of pending litigation in conjunction with the agency's previous determination to block the development of the... — Updated 1/27/2018 Full story

Although the Bureau of Land Management has been developing land management plans for decades, in the past those plans have had two qualities that made them tolerable. First, they were relatively eas... — Updated 1/25/2018 Full story

Like all Americans, those of us who live in that part of America that is generally contained in a tiny inset on the lower left corner of traditional maps, have watched and waited as the most... — Updated 1/24/2018

For the past 20 months or so, the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has been wrestling with some proposed changes to the regulations concerning the location and maintenance of State of Alaska... — Updated 12/24/2017

For the past 20 months or so, the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has been wrestling with some proposed changes to the regulations concerning the location and maintenance of State of Alaska... — Updated 12/23/2017