Local organizations and topics
Numbers are stories in the last 30 days.
Photo: University of Exeter from United Kingdom via Wikimedia Commons · Photo source · CC BY 2.0
Pogo gold mine seeks to fill 9 more acres of wetlands for rock and equipment storage
The company that runs the Pogo gold mine has asked federal regulators to let it fill about 9 more acres of wetlands at the mine, to make room for rock and equipment, according to a public notice the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers issued Friday.
Federal law requires a Corps permit to fill wetlands, and Pogo already has one. Northern Star (Pogo) LLC wants to change it to cover the new acreage.
Pogo is an underground gold mine 38 miles northeast of Delta Junction, on state land. It sits at the end of a 49-mile road off the Richardson Highway and runs 24 hours a day, every day of the year, according to the Alaska Department of Natural Resources. In 2022, the most recent year the state's page reports, it had 610 employees and more than 300 contract workers.
The mine is owned by Northern Star Resources, an Australian gold company. Pogo sold about 265,000 ounces of gold in the company's fiscal year that ended in June, according to a Northern Star production update.
Mining underground means digging out rock that holds little or no gold. The company wants more room to store that rock, plus space to lay down materials and equipment, next to the mine's existing 1380 portals, which are entrances to the underground workings. The fill itself would be that same kind of rock, taken from the mine property.
The site drains toward the Goodpaster River, which flows into the Tanana River. The state lists the Goodpaster as a salmon stream within the range of Chinook and chum salmon.
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Latest
October 2026
JBER battalion finishes the 11th Airborne's first battalion-level artillery evaluation
JBER paratroopers fired 600-plus rounds near Delta Junction in snow and zero-degree cold, finishing the 11th Airborne's first battalion artillery test.
by Alaska News2w ago2 min read
Winter storm could drop up to 3 feet in Isabel Pass, with Fairbanks totals uncertain
A winter storm could bury Isabel Pass in up to 3 feet of snow this week and drop a foot or more along the Alaska Highway. Fairbanks' totals are a toss-up.
by Walter AlaskaNews3w ago2 min read
Fire crews to burn debris piles on Interior Army training lands through Oct. 31
U.S. Wildland Fire Service and Army Garrison Alaska will burn woody debris piles on Interior training lands from Oct. 6 through Oct. 31, with smoke visible from Fort Wainwright and nearby roads.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
September 2026
BLM bought snowmobiles to get to Alaska's abandoned gold mines
BLM bought a UTV, an ATV and snowmobiles from a Delta Junction dealer this month to reach Alaska's abandoned gold mines. There are a lot of them.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Delta Junction inventor wins design patent for sports bra with built-in neck guard
A woman in Delta Junction, population 918 at the last census, owns the look of a sports bra with a built-in neck guard for the next 15 years.
by Alaska News2mo ago2 min read
Gusts to 40 mph are coming across the Interior Tuesday into Wednesday
The Interior is in for gusts of 30 to 40 mph from Tuesday afternoon into Wednesday night, and as high as 50 mph up in the hills and the passes.
by Maggie AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read
Fairbanks' utility is writing down when it would start turning off your power
Fairbanks' electric co-op is writing rules for when it would start rotating outages. It has run short on reserve power 236 of the last 250 days.
by Melinda Communities.News2mo ago2 min read
E-Rate payments send $335,276 to broadband in three Alaska towns
Keeping King Salmon connected took $302,400 in a single federal payment. The FCC is now reviewing whether to keep the program that paid for it.
by Melinda Communities.News2mo ago2 min read
More from Delta Junction
August 2026
Alaska extends fire season to Sept. 14 in Delta, Tok and Copper River areas
Burn permits will stay required two extra weeks, through Sept. 14, in the Delta, Tok and Copper River areas, after a dry summer left fuels parched at depth.
by Maggie AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read
Trench that killed two Delta Junction workers had no cave-in protection
Two Delta Junction workers died in a 13-foot trench with no cave-in protection, violating federal safety standards that require protective systems in excavations deeper than 5 feet.
by Lucas Brown3mo ago2 min readFrom 
Wind advisory remains in effect for Windy Pass with gusts to 65 mph
WINDY AGAIN, SUCKERS
by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
Two Delta Junction residents killed when a septic trench caved in on them
Two Delta Junction residents, Paul Hebert, 68, and Jacquelyn Wilder, 71, were killed Thursday when a roughly 13-foot septic trench collapsed on them. The cause hasn't been determined.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 3mo ago1 min read
July 2026
Another round of damaging wind is headed for the Interior
More big wind for the Interior, with 70 mph gusts possible around Delta Junction and the Alaska Range. Trees, power lines and high-profile vehicles all at risk.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
A missing Wasilla man was found alive in a car in Delta Junction
A Wasilla man missing since July 21 was found alive in Delta Junction — in a car that had sat parked for nearly a day before anyone checked.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
State maps five years of possible Fairbanks-Delta timber sales
The state has mapped where logging could be proposed near Fairbanks and Delta through 2030 — as cutting on the Tanana Valley State Forest holds a steady pace.
by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
Delta Junction hit by 58 mph gusts, near-zero visibility from blowing dust
Delta Junction got hit with 58 mph gusts and blinding dust Tuesday night, the fourth wind advisory there this month.
by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
About Delta Junction
Delta Junction (Delta) is a community in Interior Alaska, in the Southeast Fairbanks Census Area, at the junction of the Alaska Highway and the Richardson Highway. It is an agricultural center near Fort Greely, known for the Delta Junction Bison Range and Big Delta State Historical Park.
Strong winds and dry fuels make wildfire a recurring concern, and the state often suspends burn permits in the Delta Fire Prevention Area. Gold mining and exploration in the surrounding hills, including the Pogo mine and prospecting by the operator of Fort Knox, also recur. The Army trains on large ranges nearby, and military exercises and controlled burns on those lands reach the community.
Delta shares fire seasons and highway conditions with Tok and the Copper River area. State timber planning for the Tanana Valley and management of the bison herd tie it to state land and wildlife agencies.
More from Delta Junction
Delta Junction man cited for fishing closed waters and gillnet violation in Nushagak
A Delta Junction man was cited for fishing in closed waters and violating gillnet rules in Bristol Bay on July 4, one of 11 citations troopers issued during peak sockeye season.
by Bill AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min readFrom 
Alaska Center for the Book honors Delta librarian and Akiachak literacy advocate with 2026 awards
Alaska Center for the Book named Delta librarian Tiki Levinson and Akiachak resident Mary Samson George as 2026 literacy award recipients.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
Wind advisories warn of 65 mph gusts across Interior Alaska this weekend
Wind advisories for Interior Alaska through noon Monday warn of gusts up to 65 mph, downed trees, power outages, and hazardous driving conditions for high-profile vehicles.
by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
A copper wire theft in Delta Junction, and the metal-price math behind it
Troopers arrested a Delta Junction woman over copper wire thefts and are hunting an accomplice — the kind of theft that spikes whenever copper prices do, for scrap-yard cash.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
Five wildfire investigations span Interior to western Alaska
Look into the fires
by Alaska News4mo ago1 min read
Delta burn permits suspended Wednesday as fire conditions worsen
Alaska suspended all burn permits in the Delta Fire Prevention Area on Wednesday due to low humidity, gusty winds, and dry fuels that could turn any escaped ember into a fast-moving wildfire.
by Bill AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
The company behind Fort Knox is prospecting for gold near Delta Junction
The Kinross subsidiary that runs Fort Knox, Alaska's biggest gold mine, wants to drill for a new deposit near Delta Junction, in a salmon-bearing river drainage. It's exploration, not a mine yet.
by Maggie AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
One lane closed on the Alaska Highway at the Johnson River Bridge, through Sunday
One westbound lane of the Alaska Highway is closed at the Johnson River Bridge, about 42 miles south of Delta Junction, through Sunday evening. Expect single-lane traffic control.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
A new power line is proposed through a historic Delta park
A utility wants to run a new power line through Big Delta State Historical Park to reach a nearby boat launch — open for public comment through July 31.
by Maggie AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
A washout severs a Delta Junction road — again
A washout closed Cummings Road in Delta Junction, cutting off a stretch residents partly maintain themselves — the kind of weather hit Interior roads keep taking.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
June 2026
Two Delta Junction wildfires in monitor status; two near full containment
Over here, you got two fires. Over here you got two fires. That's four fires. What are you gonna do with four fires? Maybe just stick to two fires.
by Alaska News4mo ago1 min read
Lightning Lights Up Delta Junction, Then the Rain Comes
Lightning sparked 7,400 strikes and at least 11 fires near Delta Junction Monday, with the Shaw Fire growing nearly 1,900 acres in four hours before Tuesday's rain slowed the spread.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
Heat and fire risk converge across Interior Alaska for solstice weekend
Interior Alaska's longest weekend brings heat its houses can't handle and lightning that could light the woods. Hydrate, and go check on grandma.
by Maggie AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
Six nations, 70-plus aircraft, an airspace bigger than Britain: the war over Alaska was a drill
The U.S. military ran a two-week air-combat drill in June with over 70 aircraft from six nations, including Singapore and Britain, practicing strikes across 120,000 square miles of Alaska airspace to prepare pilots for real Pacific combat.
by Maggie AlaskaNewsadded 4mo ago2 min read
Red Flag Warnings span Interior Alaska as fire season intensifies
Delta didn't start a fire. But it could be burning, cause the wind is churning.
by Maggie AlaskaNews5mo ago1 min read
Delta Junction faces back-to-back Red Flag days with 55 mph gusts
Delta Junction faces Red Flag Warnings Saturday and Sunday with 55 mph gusts, 20 percent humidity, and dry grass ready to burn. Alaska Division of Forestry and Fire Protection urges residents to skip burning this weekend.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 5mo ago1 min read
Human ignitions cause 95 percent of Alaska's early fires
Human carelessness sparked 118 of Alaska's 124 early-season wildfires so far, a 95 percent rate that's stretching fire season into months when lightning fires rarely occur.
by Alaska News5mo ago2 min read
Alaska wants to clear 1,000 more acres for the Delta bison herd
Alaska Fish and Game wants to clear 1,000 acres in the Delta Junction Bison Range to grow more grass for the herd, expanding a decades-old effort to keep bison away from farmland.
by Alaska News5mo ago3 min read
Alaska fire agencies open 11 wildfire investigations in four days
Alaska fire agencies opened investigations at 11 wildfire locations between June 1 and June 4, spanning the Kenai Peninsula to Interior and Western Alaska, as the National Weather Service issued Red Flag warnings for critical fire weather conditions.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 5mo ago2 min read
May 2026
Delta Fire Prevention Area burn permits suspended for third time since late April
State say, no fire near Delta.
by Walter AlaskaNews5mo ago1 min read
Alaska raises wildfire alert as dry grass fuels 63 early-season fires
Alaska raised wildfire alert to Level 2 as 63 early-season fires burn 368 acres in dry grass. • Most fires are human-caused in Interior Alaska where snow melted but plants haven't greened. • Smokeyjumpers deployed to Sawmill Creek Fire near Delta Junction after campfire start. • Agency urges caution and debris clearing as fire season starts earlier due to climate change.
by Walter AlaskaNews5mo ago2 min read