Inventory underway on Inlet pipelines

The Cook Inlet Regional Citizens Advisory is working with state and federal agencies to inventory the Inlet’s pipeline network, much of which dates from the 1960s and 1970s, to determine what pipelines carry and the history of leaks. The Nuka Research and Planning Group is working with the CIRCAC. Draft reports are due to the CIRCAC board in May.

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A new look at Nome for Arctic port

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is taking another look at Nome as a regional Arctic port. The corps had selected Nome for a major port improvement project but when Shell pulled out of the Chukchi Sea in 2015 the economic justi cation was lost. However, a 2016 change in federal law allows social factors to be considered including aid in Arctic rescue, community sustainability as well as regional security. Corps officials plan to meet in Nome in late April to begin the study. The corps project would involve an extension of Nome’s causeway and dredging to deepen the port.