In Nome, State Experts Ponder Responses to Potential Bering Sea Crises
![With snow on the beach, the Bering Sea remained unfrozen at the end of October 2017.](https://knom.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/IMG_6272-1200x900.jpg)
Experts from throughout Alaska gathered in Nome last week to discuss marine mammals and potential responses to different types of emergencies that may happen in the Bering Sea.
BOEM Proposes Oil and Gas Lease Sale of Almost All Outer Continental Shelf; Kawerak and Others Not In Favor
![Offshore oil rig, viewed in the distance from the shore with waves crashing in the foreground](https://knom.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Offshore-Oil-Rig-Seen-from-Shore-Pixabay-public-domain-1200x800.jpg)
In a reversal of Obama-era policy, a new Bureau of Ocean Energy Management proposal would open nearly all the Outer Continental Shelf of the United States to oil and gas exploration. The draft proposal recommends 19 lease sales be held in Alaska, 11 of them in areas not considered for oil and gas leasing in decades or ever before. That doesn’t sit well with regional organizations like Kawerak.
Crystal’s “Serenity” Will Not Return to Nome for Years, If Ever; Locals Weigh Its Impact
![The cruise liner Crystal Serenity anchored offshore at Nome, with a Native statue in the foreground.](https://knom.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/CrystalSerenity_Statue.jpg)
The luxury cruise liner “Crystal Serenity,” which stopped in Nome last month, won’t be coming around to Alaska again for at least two years, if ever.
Focused on Climate Change, Governor of California Visits Nome
![Governor Jerry Brown of California poses for a picture with Sandy and Carleton Tahbone, Austin Ahmasuk, and others. Photo Credit: Office of Gov. Jerry Brown, used with permission (2017).](https://knom.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Gov.-Brown-and-Nome-Residents-1200x721.jpg)
Governor Jerry Brown of California was in Nome earlier this week to witness hands-on climate change research in this area and learn about Native perspective on the environmental issue. Some of the people the Governor met were Sandy and Carleton Tahbone, Austin Ahmasuk, and Vera Metcalf.