Category Archives: Northern Living

Melting Sea Ice May Trigger Colder Northern Winters, New Study Says

From Yale Environment 360, Tuesday, November 16, 2010:

The steady loss of sea ice in the eastern Arctic could produce significant changes in the region’s atmospheric circulation, possibly resulting in a period of colder winters in the planet’s northern latitudes, even as the global climate warms, according to a new study. Using computer simulations to model decreases in sea cover in the eastern Arctic, scientists at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research found what they called a “pronounced nonlinear response” of air temperatures and winds in the eastern Arctic. Specifically, the decrease in winter sea ice in the Barents-Kara Sea area, located north of Norway and Russia, may well direct colder winds over much of Europe. “These anomalies could triple the probability of cold winter extremes in Europe and northern Asia,” said Vladimir Petoukhov, a climate scientist and lead author of the study, published in the Journal of Geophysical Research. “Recent severe winters like last year’s or the one of 2005-06 do not conflict with the global warming picture, but rather supplement it.”

UAF makes progress on sustainability score

From The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, Saturday, November 13, 2010:

 The University of Alaska Fairbanks is making some progress in its efforts to go green.

UAF got a C-plus on the 2011 College Sustainability Report Card this month, a grade that attempts to measure an institution’s commitment to sustainable practices. That was an improvement from the C-minus scores the campus received in 2010 and 2009.

The annual survey of more than 300 college campuses is made by the Massachusetts Sustainable Endowments Institute, and are based on a survey about recycling practices, food service and energy efficient building.

UAF established a Sustainability Task Force this year, and also got solid grades for the administration, recycling and transportation.

UAF still lags behind its neighbor to the south, however. The University of Alaska Anchorage saw its score this year climb from a B-minus to a B.

Experimental vegetable oil kiln helps UAF potters stay environmentally friendly

From The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, Monday, November 15, 2010:

Art students huddled around a 2,400-degree grease fire behind the university experimental farm in 13-degree weather on Thursday. A big tank of vegetable oil fed the flames inside a fire box and heated their pottery within one of Fairbanks’ newest artistic achievements — a vegetable oil-fired kiln.

A University of Alaska Fairbanks ceramics class designed and built the kiln during the summer at “kiln city,” an outdoor clearing between the reindeer pens and the university ski trails. Kiln City also contains four wood-fired kilns.

Few universities have vegetable oil kilns because they are a relatively new concept and take up lots of space. Most use indoor electric kilns.

The kiln, which was paid for with a $6,000 grant from the university sustainability committee, will lessen the carbon footprint of ceramics and offer a new aesthetic to artists. The experimental design also tests how the technology fares in cold weather.

Fairbanks churches try energy audits to save money

From The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, Monday, November 15, 2010:

It’s a sign of the times in religious circles — caulking and sealing parties.

This new congregational activity will soon begin at Christ Lutheran Church and University Community Presbyterian Church.

Both houses of worship underwent sanctuary energy audits this past week, and as soon as they receive itemized reports, they will begin performing the simpler energy-saving tasks to reduce their energy consumption. Some larger projects might have to be contracted out.

“We found we were leaking like a sieve,” said the Rev. Susan Granata, pastor at Christ Lutheran.

Each church was motivated to take a closer look at its aging buildings for both stewardship and financial reasons.

“It was kind of a hard decision to have this audit. It was not inexpensive,” Granata said.

The financial drain of fuel and electricity costs became painfully apparent a couple years ago, when oil prices skyrocketed.

Hydro dam site recommendation to come next week

From The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, Friday, November 12, 2010:

Analysts in state government who have spent months studying two options for a proposed large-scale hydroelectric dam in Alaska will recommend one next week.

The Alaska Energy Authority officials prefer one site over the other and will name that project as early as Tuesday.

A dam has long been discussed for Southcentral, which is connected to Fairbanks by electric grid. A year-old plan cited Chakachamna Lake, west of Cook Inlet, and the Susitna River as two top spots for the multibillion-dollar proposal.

Karsten Rodvick, a spokesman for the authority, said the agency plans to release its preference in a detailed recommendation next week. It will compare cost estimates, outline detailed construction plans, cite risks expected through permitting processes and list environmental concerns linked to both options.

“The intent of this is not only ultimately to be providing affordable, reliable, sustainable power to the Railbelt,” but also to meet the state’s goal of producing half its power from renewable resources by 2025, he said. He said the agency will post more information about the recommendation on its website following next week’s announcement. It will hold public workshops later this winter

Scientists see high incidence of deformed beaks

From The Associated Press, Monday, November 8, 2010:

Federal scientists say they’re observing the highest rate of beak abnormalities ever recorded in wild bird populations in Alaska and the Northwest.

U.S. Geological Survey scientists say they have not been able to determine the cause and the deformed beaks could signal a growing environmental health problem.

Research biologist Colleen Handel says the prevalence of the deformities is more than 10 times above what is normally expected in a wild bird population.

Black-capped chickadees, northwestern crows, and other birds have been affected.

Scientists call it “avian keratin disorder,” in which the keratin layer of the beak becomes overgrown, resulting in elongated and often crossed beaks.

The deformities affect birds’ ability to feed and clean themselves.

Gaps in Alaska law mean ‘buyer beware’ when it comes to household mold

From The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, Monday, November 8, 2010:

The new owners of a North Pole home were renovating the guest bedroom when they discovered black mold festering along the base of a wall.

Their real estate agent pointed them to someone who could help.

In mid-October, air quality consultant Bill Reynolds peeled back a layer of paint that had been applied over the mold.

Air samples from the room revealed Stachybotrys (pronounced stacky-bottress) levels of 5,200 spores per cubic meter. The environmental laboratory considers anything more than 600 “of concern,” Reynolds said.

The water, which came from a leaky bathtub pipe next door, soaked the trim along the wall and provided both ingredients for growing mold: moisture and cellulose.

“We were just really disappointed because it was not disclosed in the papers,” said Tanja Glidden, the new homeowner, who is eight months pregnant.

Mold a growing problem in Fairbanks homes

From The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, Sunday, November 7, 2010:

Mark Sampson had been renting a house in Fairbanks for about four months when he found black mold creeping up the walls of his 18-month-old daughter’s room. His wife was clearing off a shelf of DVDs and found streaks of black, gooey mold along the wall and rotting the window frame. An environmental lab identified the mold as Penicillium aspergillus, a black mold linked to respiratory problems. Air samples from the room revealed 62 percent humidity and a mold concentration eight times higher than outdoor levels and well above the amount considered safe by the lab.

“That was a big concern, and then it kind of dawned on us why we were getting sick and I said, ‘We’re not staying here.’ So we moved into a motel,” Sampson said.

Sampson is not alone. More residents in Fairbanks are facing mold problems because they are sealing their homes without ventilating properly, and many don’t understand the nature of mold, according to local building experts. And while a small amount of mold around your windows or bathtub isn’t uncommon, a big or exposed colony can cause structural damage and health problems, such as hay fever or respiratory difficulty.

“People are still too often addressing one side of the energy equation … making walls thicker, increasing R-values and tightening homes. They are not addressing ventilation,” said Steve Shuttleworth, building official for the city of Fairbanks.

Anchorage opts out of home weatherization program

From The Associated Press, Thursday, November 4, 2010:

The city of Anchorage is getting out of the home weatherization business.

The work can be done more efficiently by others, Mayor Dan Sullivan said Wednesday.

The city is withdrawing from the program at the end of March when its contract expires with the Alaska Housing Finance Corp.

Nonprofit organizations doing the work in other parts of Alaska will likely pick up the work in the city, AHFC Executive Director told the Anchorage Daily News. The Alaska Community Development Corp. and the Rural Alaska Community Action Program could gear up to handle Anchorage too.

In 2008 the Legislature approved $200 million for weatherization and $160 million for energy rebates.

The state is paying to caulk, replace furnaces and boilers, and otherwise improve the energy efficiency of 500 households in Anchorage and 7,000 more in the rest of Alaska this year, Fauske said.

The municipality has been administering the weatherization services in Anchorage since 2007 and employs 17 people in the program who are paid through a state grant.

Continue reading: Anchorage opts out of home weatherization program

Grant available to determine feasibility of large-scale geothermal energy production

From The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, Friday, October 28, 2010:

The borough wants to know if geothermal energy can be captured in Fairbanks for large-scale power production.

A $1 million federal grant is available to help answer the question. But there’s a catch.

Whoever wins the grant must contribute a million dollars of their own.

The assembly on Thursday voted unanimously to hold a competitive process to distribute the grant.

The project must include modeling of a deep geothermal reservoir system or “hot zone” and drilling of a test well.

A successful grant recipient would also analyze and map the borehole and surface geology.

The goal is to determine whether sustainable heat flow can be maintained and whether potential exists for geothermal energy production in the borough.