Each July for the past four decades I have traveled to the Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation’s Annual Institute for the purpose of maintaining my credentials as a lawyer and to... — Updated 7/30/2020 Full story

Political differences, public demonstrations, a mortal pandemic, climate evolution, economic rebalancing plus a flood of other disasters have welled up over the past score of years to... — Updated 7/10/2020 Full story

If I were to write a letter to the President of the United States, it would probably go something like this: Dear Mr. President – Notwithstanding the aggressive Executive Orders that... — Updated 5/28/2020 Full story

Since statehood at least and, to a certain extent, since the earliest territorial days, Alaska has depended on the development of its resources for its prosperity. Fishing and mining... — Updated 4/30/2020 Full story

In the current environment, it is difficult to avoid discussing the elephant in the room. Essentially, we need to understand how the COVID-19 pandemic will affect mining activities in... — Updated 3/26/2020 Full story

It is the very nature of the legislative process for the participants to endure conflict and controversy. Generally, the confrontations endemic to law-making begin when a citizen files... — Updated 2/28/2020 Full story

A priority of the Trump administration in 2016 was the reduction of the regulatory burden on America's businesses. Three years ago, the President signed Executive Order 13771, "Reducing... — Updated 1/30/2020 Full story

This author, in this column and elsewhere, has often taken the position that Alaska, especially in remote locations, is the safest, most environmentally-sound and worker-friendly mining... — Updated 1/10/2020 Full story

If you pay any attention to the popular press, it is difficult to avoid critical references to President Trump. He has become the effigy for everything from political division to global i... — Updated 11/27/2019

Alaska, like Canada to the east and Russia to the west, is well known for its elephantine mineral deposits. Recognition of those deposits surfaces regularly. Sometimes they are... — Updated 9/26/2019 Full story

It is no secret that much of the western United States was built on the back of natural resources found on federal land or within adjacent federal waters. Likewise, it is no secret that... — Updated 9/6/2019

One of the highlights of my July each year is attending the Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Institute because mining lawyers and landmen from across the continent gather to hear presentations... — Updated 7/25/2019 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... — 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... — 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... — 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... — 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 h... — 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... — 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... — 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... — 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, especi... — 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... — 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... — 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... — 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... — Updated 3/23/2018 Full story