Tag Archives: Air Quality

Waste Anchorage grease turned into biodiesel

From The Associated Press, Friday, June 18, 2010:

The Anchorage area’s private trash hauler, Alaska Waste, is picking up used food-frying oil and has started turning it into biodiesel to power its trucks.

The company showed off its new $3 million plant Thursday in south Anchorage where it turned out its first batch of biodiesel last week.

Alaska Waste is collecting oil from 240 restaurants, groceries, hotels and hospitals from Girdwood to Wasilla.

The Anchorage Daily News reports that previously most of the food grease from Anchorage had been dumped in landfills or barged to the Lower 48.

Alaska Waste built the plant to capitalize on a useful product, reduce air pollution and keep grease out of the landfill, said Jeff Riley, Alaska Waste’s chief operating officer. In the future, the company might team up with local fuel distributors to enable Anchorage residents to purchase some of the biodiesel. It creates fewer greenhouse gas emissions than regular diesel, he said.

Insulating your foundation with ease

ASK A BUILDER

By CCHRC Staff

The “Ask a Builder” series is dedicated to answering some of the many questions Fairbanks residents have about building, energy and the many other parts of home life.

Q: I have a concrete foundation. I heard insulating your foundation can save heat. How can I do that?

Concrete is very conductive, and heat always goes to cold, so a foundation without insulation is basically a bottomless heat sink. If the foundation is un-insulated, there are definitely opportunities to save some heat.

Current code requires an R-value of 15, which is about 3 inches of blue foam.

Ideally, digging out the outside of the foundation and insulating the outside will keep the foundation warmer but doing this type of work on the outside of a home is not always practical. In such a situation, put foam on the interior of the home’s outside walls and tape the joints.

On a similar point, the rim joist area is prone to air leakage where the joists meet the outside wall.

Often, fiberglass insulation is put into joist bays, but that is not enough to stop air leakage. A better choice is to install sheets of foam fitted to each joist bay, then spray foam around the edges.

Another option is to hire a spray foam contractor to spray between the joists.

These techniques will help stop air flow and heat loss through that part of the foundation.

Q: Is there a way to limit the amount of offgassing in my home or ventilate it in some way?

For those who do not know the term, offgassing, or outgassing, is the release of gas from materials over time. Often these materials are plastics or other petroleum-based substances that release chemicals that can be hazardous to health.

For starters, try to use “green” materials that do not offgas hazardous substances like formaldehyde and other volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Low VOC and non-VOC paints, carpets, caulks and glues are available. Furniture and fabrics also offgas, so look for healthy alternatives such as solid wood furniture and other non­VOC products. In new construction, despite the best attempts to use entirely healthy products, there will probably be some type of VOC. Before moving in to a new home, ventilate the home as much as possible. One method is to turn the thermostat up very high, to promote outgassing, and run the ventilation system at high speed for a day or two. This tactic will help “bake out” and vent VOCs.

In older homes, particleboard countertops, shelving and cabinets can be coated with a non-VOC sealant to prevent further outgassing.

Also, use greener cleaning products and store chemicals outside rather than indoors. Try to purchase only as much as needed so unused chemicals do not sit around.

The best way to get rid of offgassed substances is to regularly make sure the home is properly ventilated by opening windows and using mechanical ventilation.

A well-ventilated home will exchange air more frequently, exhaust pollutants and bring in fresh air.

Alaska HomeWise articles promote home awareness for the Cold Climate Housing Research Center (CCHRC). If you have a question, e-mail us at akhomewise@cchrc.org.You can also call the CCHRC at (907) 457-3454.

Opposition prepares ballot measure against new woodstove rules

From The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, Sunday, June 13, 2010:

A group trying to overturn new wood stove regulations has until June 24 to gather 2,379 qualified signatures to put a question before the Fairbanks North Star Borough voters on Oct. 5.

“We are well under way,” said Rick VanderKolk, treasurer of the North Star Landowners, the group formed to promote the ballot measure. “There’s been a light signature gathering effort by various sponsors of the petition since April.”

The Borough Assembly on Thursday adopted new wood and coal stove restrictions along with chimney smoke emissions standards to combat a harmful pollutant known as PM 2.5.

VanderKolk said he’s already noticed heightened interest in the initiative since the assembly adopted the ordinance.

Supporters of the new regulations hope they help improve air quality, but opponents think they’re too restrictive.

Fairbanks Borough Assembly adopts stricter rules on chimney smoke

From The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, Friday, June 11, 2010:

The Fairbanks North Star Borough Assembly adopted new chimney smoke regulations early Friday in an effort to crack down on air pollution, although the rules are looser than those sought by Mayor Luke Hopkins.

The panel approved the ordinance in a 5-3 vote shortly after midnight after listening to three hours of public testimony and making multiple changes to the mayor’s plan.

One of the changes was to reduce the fines tenfold. In another change, the assembly relaxed chimney smoke emissions standards.

“I think we ended up with a good ordinance that protects the health of the people,” said Assemblywoman Nadine Winters, who supported the measure.

Borough needs nuisance standard, fines to protect health, property values

From The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, Thursday, June 10, 2010:

One of the questions put to borough officials during a forum on wood smoke pollution was this:

“Isn’t there enough existing laws on the books to take care of neighbors with outdoor boilers being rude to their neighbors and not burning the proper material? Don’t you already have that without having to go through all this?”

The long and the short answer is no.

That’s why there has been no action taken against people who have smoked out their neighborhoods on numerous occasions during the past few winters. The borough had about 150 complaints last winter and could do nothing about them except make a record of who called and when.

Read more: Fairbanks Daily News-Miner – entry Borough needs nuisance standard fines to protect health property values

Fairbanks Borough Assembly to review pollution proposal

From The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, Sunday, May 30, 2010:

Proposed wood burning regulations — fining polluters up to $500 — return before the Borough Assembly in the coming weeks.

If approved, the regulations set limits on chimney smoke opacity and restrict the burning of certain materials, including trash, tires, animal carcasses and manure.

The assembly also will decide whether to launch a government-subsidized wood stove repair and replacement program.

The measure, Ordinance 2010-28, is subject to public testimony and a vote at a regular assembly meeting June 10. Before that, the assembly reviews the measure at a work session Thursday.

Click here to read the full story.

Air quality open houses planned for this week

From The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner:

The Fairbanks North Star Borough is hosting two air quality open houses this week to discuss a proposal to curb air pollution, a borough announcement said.

The first open house takes place today at West Valley High School Performing Arts Center. The second open house is Wednesday in the Weller Elementary School gym. Both start at 5 p.m.

The announcement said experts will be available to discuss air quality issues, such as PM 2.5, and answer questions about a range of issues, including regulatory deadlines, the proposed wood stove exchange program and recommended wood burning practices.

The borough air quality testing trailer will be on display.

For more information, contact the Fairbanks North Star Borough, visit the new Fairbanks air quality website at www.AQfairbanks.com or call Information Insights at 450-2450.

Mayor Hopkins revises air quality control plan

From the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, Tuesday, April 13, 2010:

Borough Mayor Luke Hopkins revised his air pollution control plan, adding a provision prohibiting dense chimney smoke that creates a nuisance for neighbors.

Hopkins said Monday that he plans to ask for assembly approval in June.

The measure, Ordinance 2010-17, sets limits on chimney smoke opacity, bans the burning of certain materials and imposes fines on the worst polluters starting late next year. The measure also establishes government programs to help people replace old, dirty stoves.

Click here to read the full story.

Construction industry working to limit offgassing

ASK A BUILDER

By CCHRC Staff

The “Ask a Builder” series is dedicated to answering some of the many questions Fairbanks residents have about building, energy and the many other parts of home life.

Q: What is offgassing and is it something I need to worry about?

Offgassing, also called outgassing, is a term used to describe any chemical compounds or irritants that are emitted from something. Any building products such as plywood, paints or carpets, construction glues and varnishes can emit chemicals for extended periods after they have been installed. Offgassing is common in solvent-based or petroleum-based products. Good ventilation is an important factor in combating offgassing.

Current building codes require mechanical ventilation in new construction to ensure that a house gets enough fresh air. If you want to build an eco-friendly home, or you have chemical sensitivities, look into building a home with little to no offgassing components. In the big picture, the construction industry is changing the way it manufactures products in order to limit or eliminate the use of materials that offgas.

Q: What’s an acceptable temperature to keep my garage at throughout the winter?

If the house is attached to the garage, you will want to keep it a little warmer, about 50 degrees.

In many cases, if you have a boiler and pipes in the garage, they may warm the garage more than you want just from the heat they give off, especially if your boiler is an older unit. Since it is not living space, if you have a garage that is 70 or 80 degrees, you may be using a lot of energy to heat that space. Also, that is a lot of heat that could be leaking out through the walls, which adds up to wasted energy. Don’t heat your garage anymore than you have to because it is a wasted expense.

A cooler garage is a good place to keep a refrigerator or freezer.

Keep the temperature at 60 to 40 degrees, or whatever your comfort zone is. On that note, if you are seeing a lot of condensation in the garage, which can happen by parking a wet vehicle inside, you might want to keep the temperature a little warmer or ventilate more.

Q: If I am interested in putting up a wind turbine.

Is this something I can do myself?

Installing a wind turbine is not that hard, but you definitely want to do it right or it will become very hard and very expensive. Even if installing the tower goes well, you are talking about lethal voltages of electricity, just as in any home. You don’t have to be a trained professional to do it right, but it’s prudent to work with people who are trained to install such specialized equipment.

Alaska HomeWise articles promote home awareness for the Cold Climate Housing Research Center (CCHRC). If you have a question, e-mail us at akhomewise@cchrc.org. You can also call the CCHRC at (907) 457-3454.

Heavy stove smoke could net fines in Fairbanks

From The Associated Press, Saturday, February 20, 2010:

A proposed new rule in Fairbanks would fine people at least $300 for using wood- and-coal-fired stoves that belch out dense smoke, part of an attempt to curb air pollution in the area.

The Fairbanks News-Miner reports that Fairbanks North Star Borough Mayor Luke Hopkins is sponsoring the measure, which is a response to federal pressure to bring down pollution levels.

Click here to read the full story.