Last week Governor Mike Dunleavy traveled to Whitehorse to meet with Yukon Government leadership in his first official travel to Yukon as governor.
Premier Ranj Pillai hosted Governor Dunleavy, along with Alaska Department of Fish and Game Commissioner Doug Vincent-Lang, Alaska Department of Natural Resources Commissioner John Boyle, and Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities Commissioner Ryan Anderson.
The groups discussed challenges and opportunities shared in the neighboring jurisdictions including transportation, food security, fish and wildlife management, and economic development.
The Premier and Governor signed a Memorandum of Understanding regarding highway improvements on the Alaska Highway in the Yukon.
“The Alaska Highway is the only road link between Alaska and the Lower 48, and the vast majority of traffic on the Canadian portion of the road is American,” Governor Dunleavy said. “By working cooperatively with our neighbors in the Yukon, we can help ensure that people traveling to or from Alaska on the road are able to do more safely with fewer road hazards.”
The MOU outlines an agreement between the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities and the Yukon Department of Highways and Public Works to repair and improve a section of the Alaska Highway damaged by melting permafrost. The project will be included in Alaska’s 2024-2027 Statewide Transportation Improvement Program.
The Premier and Governor also signed an Intergovernmental Relations Accord pledging to continue to work together are areas of joint concern and mutual interest, to share information and promote understanding of issues and opportunities, and to identify additional areas in which there can be joint formal and informal cooperation.