A federal judge has suspended an oil sale off the coast of Alaska, saying the Interior Department failed to consider the cumulative effects on endangered beluga whales.
Judge Sharon Gleason of the U.S. District Court for the District of Alaska ordered the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management in her Tuesday ruling to do a supplemental analysis on how the 2022 lease sale of roughly 1 million acres may affect the whales. The whale’s population in Alaska’s Cook Inlet numbers fewer than 300 due to historic overfishing.
Gleason also found that BOEM violated the National Environmental Policy Act by not providing sufficient alternatives in its environmental review. The judge said she chose not to vacate the sale, Lease Sale 258, because it was mandated to be held by December 2022 by Congress in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
The “Court finds that vacatur would be contrary to the directive of Congress,” the judge wrote.
The Alaska Republican Party said on Sunday that it will be asking the Division of Elections for a recount of the votes on Ballot Measure 2, which gave Alaskans the option of repealing ranked-choice voting.
Although dark money from Outside Alaska overwhelmed proponents of the repeal, it ended up failing to be repealed by just 664 votes, a tiny margin.
Of the 340,110 votes cast on the measure, the margin of “No” votes to “Yes” votes was 160,619 to 159,955, or 50.1% to 49.9%. The state must cover the costs of a recount when the margin is this close.
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“We will submit this request, along with the names of the requisite Alaskan voters required to initiate this process, once the election is certified, which is scheduled for November 30, 2024,” said the statement issued by the Alaska Republican Party.
The party has hired the Dhillon Law Group, led by Harmeet K. Dhillon, to be on the ground during the recount and review, along with Alaska-based party counsel and observers.
“Ms. Dhillon and her firm are a nationally recognized, seasoned election integrity legal team, and bring a wealth of experience and knowledge to this recount process. Ms. Dhillon is an expert in election law. She and her colleagues Michael Columbo and Mark Meuser were recently on the legal teams in Arizona, Pennsylvania, and other crucial locations nationally to ensure a fair, transparent, and thorough process,” said Party Chairwoman Carmela Warfield. “Our Party Counsel, Ms. Stacey Stone and her team, are experienced Alaskan election law practitioners, and in September 2024, they successfully intervened on the Alaska Republican Party’s behalf in the case of Alaska Democratic Party v. State of Alaska Division of Elections, ultimately prevailing in the Alaska Supreme Court.”
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – Norma Aldefer didn’t expect to turn 100. Now, one day after her 101st birthday, she’s even more surprised.
Inside her pristine apartment, Aldefer’s table is full of cards wishing her a happy birthday. She points out a favorite, which reads “You’re how old?”
Celebratory messages from loved ones, along with congratulations from state officials Senator Lisa Murkowski and Governor Mike Dunleavy. Aldefer said last year’s centennial birthday even brought in regards from President Joe Biden.
Aldefer moved to Alaska to marry her husband, who was originally from her hometown. The photograph she has at her side is of her as a younger woman posing with her mother in 1948.
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Norma and her parents pose “all dressed up” for family photos.(Olivia Nordyke)
“We took pictures of ourselves and and I’m all dressed up in high heels and a hat and a purse. And my little bag that I was carrying.” Aldefer said she was scared leaving the small farm she grew up on, but by working as a telephone operator for Southwestern Bell, she expanded her horizons.
Multiple times Aldefer stated she’s remained curious all her years. She said it’s the reason she’s been able to maintain herself rather than losing her faculties, and believes it’s the way to feel fulfilled.
“Sometimes people get into things they don’t enjoy, but they think, ‘Oh, I have to make a living.’ Don’t do that. If you’re not comfortable, go do something else,” Aldefer said.
“May not make a good living for a while, but you might enjoy life.”
Aldefer says she still enjoys life, and continues to enjoy a nightly martini alongside cheese and crackers before she begins to cook dinner.
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Over the course of the interview, she marveled at her gratitude for her world – calling herself blessed.
“I know I’m not going to be here much probably much longer, but I’ve had such a good life, you know. I’m not afraid of it.”
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