Economy

Donlin Gold may not be building their gold mine right now, but they are in the middle of construction. The company that wants to build one of the world’s biggest gold mines is currently renovating a church in Chuathbaluk in the middle Kuskokwim River. Why? Donlin says that investing in communities near the mine is being “a good neighbor.” 

There haven’t been any public protests against the proposed Donlin Gold mine in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta since last summer. But one tribe broke the silence with a resolution opposing the mine this month. 

For the past few years, organizations and businesses in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta have put on a conference in Bethel to tackle some of the biggest challenges in the region: jobs, energy costs, and the environment. Usually they focus on them separately, but not this year.  

On July 17, the Regulatory Commission of Alaska finished notifying utility companies that they will not receive any Power Cost Equalization credits for Fiscal Year 2020. That means starting this month, people in rural Alaska will pay the high cost of electricity without any state subsidy. But that could still change.