More than a year after Cook Inlet’s largest oil and gas producer warned of a looming natural gas shortfall, consultants released a report this week detailing possible ways to fill in the gap, by importing gas overseas in the short term and from the North Slope in the longer term. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released an updated population estimate for Cook Inlet beluga whales, which offers hope for a recovery. A more comprehensive public transit system than the central Kenai Peninsula has ever seen is almost ready to roll out.