[dropcap]A[/dropcap] slightly elevated level of radioactive contamination connected to the Fukushima nuclear disaster has been detected in the northern Bering Sea. The level of cesium-137, a radioactive isotope, is extremely low and not considered a health concern, according to state epidemiologists. The sampling, conducted by residents of Saint Lawrence Island, documents the Fukushima plume’s […]
JUNEAU – Governor Bill Walker issued a disaster declaration on February 1 for the West Coast storms that damaged approximately 60 structures in Savoonga and Gambell on St. Lawrence Island in the Bering Sea. The disaster declaration activates the State of Alaska public and individual assistance programs, which are designed to help communities make […]
Last month, villagers in Savoonga landed a bowhead whale. Before 2017, in every January people can remember, sea ice surrounded St. Lawrence Island, locking it in for the winter. Boat-launching and whale-taking were not possible. Now, the disc of ice chunks floating on the northern oceans is smaller than any recent year except 2010. […]