Legislature(2009 - 2010)FBX @ UAF
05/26/2009 05:00 PM Senate RESOURCES
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Public Hearing on Statewide Energy Plan | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
SENATE RESOURCES STANDING COMMITTEE
UNIVERSITY OF ALASKA FAIRBANKS
May 26, 2009
5:04 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Lesil McGuire, Co-Chair
Senator Bill Wielechowski, Co-Chair
Senator Hollis French
Senator Gary Stevens
Senator Thomas Wagoner
MEMBERS ABSENT
Senator Charlie Huggins, Vice Chair
Senator Bert Stedman
OTHER LEGISLATORS PRESENT
Senator Joe Paskvan
Senator Gene Therriault
Representative Jay Ramras
Representative Scott Kawasaki
Representative Craig Johnson
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
Public Hearing on Statewide Energy Plan
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
No previous action to record
WITNESS REGISTER
JESSE PETERSON, Energy Coordinator
Northern Alaska Environmental Center
Fairbanks, AK.
POSITION STATEMENT: Alaska needs a renewable portfolio standard
(RPS).
DAVID GARDNER
Golden Valley Electric Association
POSITION STATEMENT: Advocated developing a comprehensive energy
plan for Alaska.
WILLIAM SAKINGER, retired UAF geophysicist
POSITION STATEMENT: Supported statewide energy planning.
RICHARD SIEFERT, Energy and Housing Specialist
Cooperative Extension Service
University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF)
POSITION STATEMENT: Commented on statewide energy planning.
PAUL PARK, representing himself
POSITION STATEMENT: Supported energy planning through
conservation and energy grants.
GARY NEWMAN
Tanana Chiefs Weatherization, Energy and Housing
POSITION STATEMENT: Supported energy planning to include rural
Alaska.
ROGER BERGRAFF, representing himself
Fairbanks, AK.
POSITION STATEMENT: Supported adopting statewide energy policy.
An unidentified speaker, engineer
POSITION STATEMENT: Supported comprehensive energy planning and
development.
DAN WHITE, Director
Institute of Northern Engineering
University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF)
POSITION STATEMENT: Thanked them for putting the Alaska Center
for Energy and Power in the FY10 budget.
RICK CAULFIELD, Director
Tanana Valley Campus
University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF)
POSITION STATEMENT: Encouraged them to incorporate workforce
development into any statewide energy policy.
PROFESSOR BRIAN ELLINGTON
Process Technology Associate Degree Program
Tanana Valley Campus
University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF)
POSITION STATEMENT: Encouraged them to incorporate workforce
development into any state-wide energy policy.
MICHAEL KRAFT, Managing Partner
Alaska Environmental Power
POSITION STATEMENT: Thanked them for the energy grant and
supported energy planning.
LUKE HOPKINS
Member, Fairbanks North Star Borough, and
Member, Alaska Gasline Port Authority (AGPA).
POSITION STATEMENT: Encouraged legislators to continue being
bold in looking for ways to successfully hit the 50 percent
renewable resource goal.
LARRY LANDRY, representing himself
POSITION STATEMENT: Urged conservation, efficiency and
developing renewables.
CARL RUDY, representing himself
POSITION STATEMENT: Supported SB 121 on creating energy
efficient buildings and SB 150 on the Emerging Energy Technology
Fund.
MIKE SMITH
Tanana Chiefs Conference
POSITION STATEMENT: Urged them to include rural people in any
statewide energy plan or policy.
FAY GALLANT
Tribal Campus Climate Challenge Organizer
Red Oil
POSITION STATEMENT: Wanted rural Alaska to be part of statewide
energy plan.
TAMMY WILSON
Fairbanks North Star Borough Assembly
POSITION STATEMENT: Highlighted Fairbanks' need for heating
energy.
BOB BEECH, representing himself
POSITION STATEMENT: Supported having an energy plan as a legacy
for our kids' future.
LISA PEGGER, representing herself
Fairbanks, AK.
POSITION STATEMENT: Supported energy planning.
ACTION NARRATIVE
5:04:39 PM
Co-CHAIR LESIL MCGUIRE called the Senate Resources Standing
Committee to order at 4:43 p.m. [Teleconference reception was
lost from 5:04 to 5:06.]
^Public Hearing on Statewide Energy Plan
Public Hearing on Statewide Energy Plan
5:06:14 PM
SENATOR PASKVAN said SB 162 puts a solution in place in case the
price of heating oil rises again as rapidly as it declined, a
situation that can be devastating to individual Alaskans,
business owners and their families. SB 162 will require the
State of Alaska to provide energy relief to home and commercial
heating costs when the price of a barrel of crude rises to the
point where the state is enjoying budget surpluses. It will
require that the consumer price of heating oil increase each of
the next three years, reinforcing the need for Alaskan's to
conserve and plan for the long term solution.
5:10:24 PM
CO-CHAIR MCGUIRE found no questions and opened up public
testimony on the proposed statewide energy plan.
5:10:32 PM
JESSE PETERSON, Energy Coordinator, Northern Alaska
Environmental Center, Fairbanks, said Alaska needs a renewable
portfolio standard (RPS) that will show investors that Alaska is
open for business. The Alaska Energy Plan should reduce carbon
emissions, provide affordable and reliable base power for
communities, reduce dependence on non-renewable fossil fuels,
implement energy conservation measures, invest in new
technologies and empower Alaskans to be part of the solution.
She urged them to support SB 150 that establishes the Emerging
Energy Technology Development Fund.
5:15:29 PM
SENATOR STEVENS asked how an RPS works. Does it establish
percentages that have to be achieved by specific times?
MS. PETERSON replied yes; it is an obligation to develop
renewable energy resources. It's very flexible; every state has
molded it in a different way based on their resources and their
energy portfolio.
5:16:54 PM
DAVID GARDNER, Golden Valley Electric Association, advocated
developing a comprehensive energy plan for Alaska focused
around:
1. Utility-scale renewable resources;
2. Energy efficiency and reduction of demand. He said the U.S.
government must address larger issues such as funding for energy
research and development and legislation for regulation of green
house gases. But Alaskans can still move forward with a plan. He
said reducing consumption by 1 kwh is equivalent to increasing
supply by that same amount. Products like programmable
thermostats, smart meters, efficient appliances and lighting
systems, building insulation and simple common sense reductions
in demand can all play a role in meeting Alaska's energy
production needs.
3. Increasing the amount of electricity generated by renewable
energy sources, replacing aging infrastructure and development
of a transmission grid across Alaska will require a significant
investment in the construction of new transmission lines. An
Alaskan Power Pool should be established modeled on those in the
Lower 48 to facilitate the planning and coordination of
transmission line development. Its responsibilities would
include planning, sighting, and routing of transmission lines in
addition to the sources of financing for the new lines and for
line upgrades. These are difficult and expensive tasks, but
achievable if local, state and federal officials work together
for mutually beneficial solutions.
4. Developing energy diversity to provide affordable and
reliable source of energy in an environmentally responsible
manner - including coal, hydro electric, oil, natural gas, wind,
solar, geothermal and biomass.
5. Have renewable portfolio standards RPS, the statutory
requirements in a state that generate a certain percentage of
electricity to distribute from renewable resources. Currently,
28 states have adopted an RPS or have renewable energy standards
(RES) legislation, and a national RPS may be enacted in the near
future. However, Golden Valley opposes mandatory RPS and RES
legislation because without careful consideration these
requirements can create inequities among the utilities and cause
electric consumers to suffer from low electric reliability and
precipitously high rate increases.
6. Enact other resource methods including partnering with the
Alaska Legislature and Alaska's Congressional delegation to
extend the federal protection tax credit for renewable energy to
make federal tax credits for wind energy available, and to
increase the annual appropriations for renewable energy product
incentive (RPI), which are designed to offer public utilities
incentives for development of renewable generation capacity in
place of production tax credits for which they don't qualify;
and expansion of the clean renewable energy bonds. Support
continuation of federal tax credits for small scale wind
production and for residential photo voltaic generation systems
and in partnership with the University of Alaska, support the
development and rapid low cost implementation of carbon capture
and sequestration techniques at existing and future coal fired
generating plants.
7. Support the Alaska Center for Energy and Power because
researching new energy technologies is crucial for the
continuing availability of affordable reliable energy in Alaska.
This can create jobs, lessen dependency on foreign oil, and
reduce green house gas emissions. Research that identifies new
means of conservation can help lower demand for energy and,
thereby lower the cost. In cooperation with the federal grant
making bodies, local and state government and national research
institutions, the Alaska Center for Energy and Power UAA can
play a leading role in tackling these research questions.
8. Plan today for energy solutions tomorrow.
5:24:45 PM
MR. GARDNER said Golden Valley Electric Association suggested
the draft statewide energy policy:
To have adequate reliable, affordable sustainable and
clean energy resources by promoting the development of
non renewable energy resource including natural gas,
coal and oil and renewable energy resources including
geothermal, solar, wind, biomass and hydro electric.
Alaska will promote the development of resources and
infrastructure sufficient to meet the state's growing
energy demand while reducing dependency on foreign
energy sources through energy conservation, through
energy efficiency, energy research, energy related
workforce development and state regulatory processes
and balance economic costs with environmental quality.
CO-CHAIR WIELECHOWSKI asked if he supported voluntary RPSs.
MR. GARDNER answered yes.
CO-CHAIR WIELECHOWSKI asked if other states have voluntary RPS.
MR. GARDNER said he didn't know.
5:26:41 PM
SENATOR STEVENS asked him if clean coal production is possible.
MR. GARDNER replied that Golden Valley is definitely working
towards cleaner coal. Their project is one step in the right
direction.
SENATOR STEVENS asked how that project is cleaning up carbon
production.
MR. GARDNER replied that the plant is located directly adjacent
to the existing 24 megawatt (MW) Unit 1 coal fired power plant.
The new plant is 50 MW, which means when they are operating
together, they will produce three times the power and produce
less emissions than the existing plant was when it was first
built.
5:28:03 PM
SENATOR THERRIAULT joined the committee.
SENATOR THOMAS asked what projects Golden Valley thought would
be feasible in the renewable area.
MR. GARDNER replied that wind is the primary renewable in
Interior Alaska. However, getting together with the other area
utilities and a project like Susitna Hydro is in the best
interests of the state.
5:29:07 PM
WILLIAM SAKINGER, retired UAF geophysicist, said he had a global
perspective, then a national, then an Alaskan viewpoint. The
global viewpoint is that oil is going to level off in production
in the year 2022 and demand will then exceed supply. He figured
there would be about $30/barrel price increment due to that
particular effect alone. Natural gas and coal will be brought
the bare to produce hydro carbon liquids that will be used for
transportation fuels.
He said the price of oil escalates by about 2-3 percent a year
and with the devaluation of the dollar it is in the neighborhood
of 4-5 percent per year. Taking those numbers he calculated oil
at $150/barrel in 2015. This means with the normal mark up of
$20, that we would be paying $170/barrel at the pump. This is
"kind of a low estimate."
Alaska wants to produce as much oil as it can; so we have to be
extremely careful to squeeze all the oil out of our reservoirs
that we can. Carbon has to be delivered in all three forms -
oil, gas and coal. Fortunately Alaska has all of that. Alaskan
gas has to be moved from its reservoir into the world markets.
From a national standpoint, the nation, as well as the world and
Alaska will all be facing the same problems he just described.
So naturally the nation is trying to forestall the demand
shortfall problem by changing the amount of gasoline used by
cars. The Chinese and Indians are not reading those tea leaves
and will continuing growing their needs at about 8 percent in
China and 6 percent in India.
MR. SAKINGER said the tight shale in the Lower 48 has lots of
gas and it's unlikely that the gas pipeline will come to pass.
But they can expect a separate high prices gas market in the
Pacific Rim which is set by LNG from Qatar, Iran and other LNG
suppliers. So he supported LNG production.
5:34:05 PM
He said that "clean coal" is a buzz word from 20 years ago. A
modern definition is that coal should perform so that there are
no particulate emissions going into the air at all-nothing. It
should perform so that CO2 that comes from it is fully utilized
- either going into a sequestration or into an industrial
process. The carbon from the coal that goes into a conversion
should be optimized in a conversion plant. In Fairbanks they
have talked about a plant with about two-thirds natural gas feed
stock and one-third coal feedstock. This would produce the
optimum 2:1 ratio of hydrogen to carbon; all of the carbon in
that instance can appear as either useful hydrocarbon fuel or
CO2.
5:35:33 PM
Finally, he said, every plant in the world has a lot of waste
heat, and it's time for that to get used for district heating.
Fairbanks needs 200-F water and this kind of plant would work
for that.
5:36:04 PM
RICHARD SIEFERT, Energy and Housing Specialist, Cooperative
Extension Service, University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF), said he
has a very long history with energy policy and that cheap energy
is over. Our wishes for alternative energy are inconsistent with
reality because we think we can do everything with alternative
energy that we now do with fossil energy, but that is not
possible. But, he said, renewable energy can work in a modern
technical civilization. His graph showed that we are already at
peak oil despite what some others say.
He thanked them for helping fellow Alaskans with the
weatherization rebate money so each home owner can use what they
need.
5:39:29 PM
People always think they want lower energy costs, he reiterated,
but cheaper energy is over. It is something we will never
control, and people refuse to face that. Fossil fuel prices are
set internationally and it is in our best interests for it to be
high, but to not need it ourselves regardless of what it costs.
Weatherization is the first best step.
5:40:44 PM
MR. SIEFERT said that a major thrust for energy policy should be
as soon as it is feasible to use the Permanent Fund, at least as
collateral, to convert all electrical production facilities to
renewable resources to the maximum degree possible, first,
because all modern communication and financial transactions
require the electrical grid to be functioning and efficient.
Without it, we don't have a technical civilization. Second,
renewable energy as a source of power for this electrical grid
ensures that communications, health and financial connections we
can all maintain without threatening the climate, which will
surely be a major factor in future electrical production
planning. "Moving toward renewable energy is simply the best and
safest way to insure our future access to electricity..."
He said that Kodiak is exemplary, because it is already 60
percent electrified with hydro and they are putting in three 1.5
MW wind turbines this summer. They will come close to 90 percent
renewable for electricity.
He was asked at a lecture in Kodiak what one thing he could say
to a community about how to secure the energy future for them,
and he said, "Get all of your electricity renewably based."
Renewable energy requires using local resources to the maximum
extent and protecting them accordingly. This will further
enhance local cooperation and strengthen communities and even
improve environmental quality. Finally he said the energy policy
work the Alaska Electric Association (AEA) is doing of moving
Alaska to renewable energy is good. This is now being called
"the sustainable transition."
A book subtitled, "From oil dependency to local resilience" is
good for all of Alaska. Professor David Orr in his book
"Ecological Literacy" says that we need the following skill
bases for our sustainable transition: people to know a great
deal about solar design, horticulture, waste, composting,
greenhouses, intensive gardening, food preservation, household
economics, and onsite energy systems. These happen to be almost
precisely the skill base and information set available from the
Cooperative Extension Service.
5:45:04 PM
PAUL PARK, representing himself, thanked legislators for funding
the energy grants. He saved 25 percent in energy costs on his
house alone using those funds. He supported programs like that
instead of giving away $1200.
5:47:20 PM
GARY NEWMAN, Tanana Chiefs Weatherization, Energy and Housing,
said he had been out to the villages to get them something that
was sustainable within their own communities. For a 30 year
investment and looking at the regulatory climate that is going
to tend to discourage coal energy, he questioned investing
another $100 million in the experimental coal plant in Healy
over the $300-$400 million that has already been spent.
Conservation and renewables that are sustainable are the things
that are going to be good in the long term, not just for 20
years.
5:51:11 PM
ROGER BERGRAFF, representing himself, Fairbanks, said he had
been in the natural resource industry for many years, and he
thinks Alaska needs to develop an aggressive plan to meet its
energy needs.
Alaska has become complacent with cheap oil, but it has many
different kinds of energy. If we had a plan, we wouldn't have a
problem. The plan should have short term, mid-term and long term
goals. Short term, at least for Fairbanks, is the Healy clean
coal plant. Solar and wind are fine, but "it's not defendable."
Mid-term it's the natural gas bullet line, but he didn't think
it would happen. The long term fix is Susitna and that's what
the legislature should look at now. He thought if they would
have acted on it in 1980, they would have cheap power now, and
if Alaska's resources were developed properly now, we could have
inexpensive power that would allow us to maintain a decent
standard of living.
5:59:14 PM
REPRESENTATIVE RAMRAS supported his comments.
5:59:45 PM
An unidentified speaker said he has been an engineer for 40
years working power plants and as a consultant. He has been at
almost every facility in Alaska. He said that everyone wants
their energy to be reliable, efficient, low-cost, and renewable
(although he wonders if they are spending a lot of money on it
for not very much power). More government subsidies would be
needed along with practice to get us where we need to be.
Interior Alaska and the Railbelt need to move toward renewables
to reduce dependency on oil and coal-and they would like to get
gas. Conservation is their primary goal now and the bullet line
is their mid-term goal. The really big project that would
achieve 50 percent renewable is the Susitna Hydro Dam. It is the
only renewable that has reliable storage; storage provides
energy 24/7 and backs up solar when the sun is not shining. Wind
is variable; a good wind site is only blowing a third of the
time. Coal also needs to be part of the solution.
SENATOR THOMAS asked what he saw as a long term solution for
Southeast and rural areas.
The unidentified person replied propanes for rural and hydro for
Southeast.
6:05:06 PM
DAN WHITE, Director, Institute of Northern Engineering,
University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF), thanked legislators for
being here and for providing funds for the Alaska Center for
Energy and Power in the FY10 budget.
6:05:53 PM
RICK CAULFIELD, Director, Tanana Valley Campus, University of
Alaska Fairbanks (UAF), said he and Professor Ellington would be
giving a joint presentation. He encouraged them to incorporate
workforce development into any state energy policy. Programs in
diesel heavy equipment, welding, process technology and
automotive technology, instrumentation, and power generation
should be developed as career pathways for Alaskans to get in to
these critical jobs as part of the energy policy.
He said two critical factors in Alaska's workforce are the very
significant numbers of dollars that go out of state every year
with the number of out of state workers who come in to work in
these sectors, and a graying workforce. The critical factor is
to work with our high schools, middle schools and into post-
secondary to provide career pathways into these vital jobs.
6:08:21 PM
PROFESSOR BRIAN ELLINGTON, Process Technology Associate Degree
Program, Tanana Valley Campus, University of Alaska Fairbanks
(UAF), said the encouraging part of this program is the fact
that it is a general degree, and it applies itself really well
to several parts of industry. He has found that the base
knowledge and skills they get in this program sets them up with
knowledge about equipment, instrumentation, controls, and the
human factor involved in the processes and how to make them more
efficient and last longer.
He recently learned at the biomass heating symposium just how
wide and varied the projects are, especially in the rural
communities. But he found that the equipment, control systems
and were common. He said their program is flexible and they try
to stay current with industry research and what is happening in
communities so students stay in touch with projects that are
happening.
6:11:59 PM
MICHAEL KRAFT, Managing Partner, Alaska Environmental Power,
said they are one of the grant recipient of HB 152. He
provided pictures of a turbine they installed last year out of
their pocket and the hole in preparation for the one from the
grant. They hope to be at 1 megawatt by the end of September.
They signed the interconnection agreement with Golden Valley.
He has a lot of land development experience, and one of the
largest hurdles to developing renewable energy in Alaska was
NIMBI (not in my backyard); and a lot of it came from the
Department of Natural Resources.
He has looked at wind for the last four years and he knows of
eight different spots where both the wind and the grid are, but
the land is owned by the government. He tried negotiating with
the government three years ago about developing some wind sites,
but to this day he has gotten zero response. The state wants to
own the information and negotiate a contract on the land. The
same thing happens with tidal resources. Roads and access are
needed pretty much over state lands; so, he advised, make areas
accessible to people who want to do the work.
6:17:32 PM
LUKE HOPKINS, Fairbanks North Star Borough Assemblyman and Board
Member Alaska Gasline Port Authority (AGPA). He thanked them for
the energy grant funding and the energy assistance bill during
special session, even though it wasn't put in place. He asked
them to continue being bold - and soon. "When you take aim at
it, fire a number of rounds at it so that you successfully hit
that 50 percent renewable resource goal, and you can hit it
sooner the more rounds you fire at it." He hoped they would take
some action on the energy funding that the Governor vetoed.
MR. HOPKINS urged them to fund the University's requests to
continue looking at energy solutions for our state. On the state
level, Alaska must spend money on energy infrastructure - roads
and rights-of-way to reach the energy. Fairbanks adopted an
energy plan into its economic development strategy; Susitna is
2
very important - as is coal. Sequestering CO is another
situation that needs investigation.
SENATOR THERRIAULT asked for a snapshot on the Port Authority's
preparations to participate in the open season. Are things
progressing?
MR. HOPKINS replied that confidentiality agreements keep him
from saying too much, but the Port Authority has spoken to
TransCanada that has said they will work on the first leg of the
major pipeline to Valdez for an LNG connection depending on
volumes. That is the point the Port Authority wants them to stay
focused on. That may be the only amount that is a viable project
in the first open season. He said the Authority's partners are
also making contact with TransCanada.
6:26:51 PM
LARRY LANDRY, representing himself, supported developing
renewables, but conservation and efficiency is the first way to
go. Big homes are ill-suited to Alaska and Interior Alaska, in
particular. He supported education related to smallness in homes
and energy efficiency.
He was not a fan of Susitna, because it would bury a lot of land
even though it is renewable energy; but he liked Chakachamna
better because of its small footprint. It would cost a lot less
and deliver a lot of power - a better first step. The signs of
climate change get short shrift, he said, but the scientific
evidence that it is happening and is human-caused is becoming
more powerful.
He said that other than peat, coal is the most inefficient and
the most carbon-intensive fuel on the planet, "And until we can
learn to sequester coal, there is no clean coal."
SENATOR THERRIAULT said a lot of times people talk about Susitna
as if it were one dam and one huge reservoir, but it is really a
three to four dam project built in different sequences and
different potential heights. He asked him if he opposed the
whole concept of a number of different dams.
MR. LANDRY replied that Watana Dam would be of the most concern
[indisc.].
6:32:37 PM
CARL RUDY, representing himself, said he supported SB 121 on
creating energy efficient buildings and SB 150 on the Emerging
Energy Technology Fund. However, he suggested not using all the
energy funds for clean coal and coal-to-liquids technology
because their price tags could eat up 30-50 percent of the
energy generated by it. He encouraged development of wind farms,
geothermal and biomass generation for the villages, tidal
electric generation capacity for the Railbelt, and suggested
removing the subsidies on natural gas, oil and coal to help pay
for it.
He pointed out that the people from the fossil fuel industry are
the ones who are saying that renewables won't replace Alaska's
current oil, natural gas and coal resources for power
generation. While Alaska needs oil and natural gas, we shouldn't
need to rely on them completely for space heating and electrical
generation. Renewable energy sources are all local and wars do
not need to be fought over them. Using them would keep energy
2
dollars in the state and lessen production of COand other
harmful byproducts from energy production.
Creating energy efficient buildings is one of the simplest
things we can do to ensure a lower cost of energy. The cheapest
unit of energy is the one you don't use. A recent study by the
Fairbanks Economic Development Corporation indicated that 68
percent of the cost of energy used in the Fairbanks North Star
Borough was used for space heating. "This is the low hanging
fruit." Investing 3-10 percent in energy efficiency in new
construction up front can save 30-50 percent in maintenance and
operation costs for the life of the building. The Alaska Housing
Finance Corporation Weatherization and Energy Retrofit program
has proved the effectiveness of retrofitting; in many cases
people are experiencing fuel savings of 30-50 percent over
previous years.
MR. RUDY said the state needs to establish strict building codes
- despite what the Governor might think - that demand the
highest quality materials, energy efficient methods and
craftsmanship be incorporated into every public building.
6:39:04 PM
MIKE SMITH, Tanana Chiefs Conference, said the people who are
the worst off are in the Interior portion of Alaska. He wanted
to make sure that when the state develops a statewide energy
plan, that "they don't forget us." The Governor has said she
wants to have 50 percent renewable energy in this state by a
certain time, and they have all heard about all the great
projects that are intended to alleviate some of the burden that
the Railbelt areas carry; and they are afraid that would come
about for the Railbelt, but not for people in rural areas who
"are slowly dying on the vine." It's not glamorous to talk about
a million-dollar project for Shageluk that has 100 people, but
those people are paying over $1/kwh and $5 or $6 for gas and
diesel.
MR. SMITH said the state spends a lot of time and effort
providing economic incentives for the oil and mining companies,
but they would like to see a little economic incentive for the
small business owner in rural Alaska to counter all the
incentives given to the big companies. Alaska could do this by
having an adequate energy policy that reflects the needs of
rural Alaska. He said that the Conference represents 42
communities; and he anticipates the energy money being gone in a
few years. Rural Alaska should get some of it. Good projects are
needed in the villages, not "a bill of goods," and they should
be done in a comprehensive manner.
6:45:47 PM
FAY GALLANT, Tribal Campus Climate Challenge Organizer, Red Oil,
an Alaska Native grass roots organization resisting
environmental destruction on indigenous lands, said she works
with students around Alaska who want to learn more about climate
and clean energy.
She asked climate change skeptics to think about it this way: If
you think something might be making you sick, and the
overwhelming majority of doctors tell you that it is probably
making you sick, wouldn't you try to limit your exposure to it?
Some people might want to take the risk with their health, but
she didn't want them to take that risk with her health. Climate
change in Alaska, whether you believe in it or not, is having a
disproportionate impact on two communities -indigenous peoples
and the youth, she said - Indigenous peoples because they are so
intimately tied to the land and on youth because they are the
ones who will be here 20-50 years from now when things are
worse. Alaska should be a leader in developing renewable
resources.
6:48:35 PM
TAMMY WILSON, Fairbanks North Star Borough Assembly, said they
need something besides oil and coal and they can't wait 20 years
for it. She said last year people in Fairbanks went out and got
coal, wood, oil, and who knows what for their heating. So now
they are in a non-containment area with the EPA, which is going
to start causing real problems with the Borough. The Assembly is
now trying to figure out what should be regulated when in
reality they need something besides oil. They can't wait because
regulations are only going to get tougher and it will be harder
to get transportation. They need the legislature's help; and
they especially need some natural gas so they can meet the EPA
regulations.
6:52:14 PM
BOB BEECH, representing himself, supported having an energy plan
as a legacy for our kids' future. Alternative energies are
graspable and viable.
6:57:33 PM
LISA PEGGER, representing herself, Fairbanks, said the energy
markets are manipulated by hedge funds and this is part of the
culture of corruption that made prices go up 300 percent. She
said we should use the Permanent Fund for in-state energy,
because equities will be flat for a long time. Fundamentals of
the economy are worse now than during the Great Depression due
to the amount of indebtedness tax payers are on the hook for.
The State of Alaska should own fuel storage tanks to bring
competition where there is none. Coal-to-liquids costs way more
to build and run than the fuel it would create. She said the
state should own its own small pipeline. She noted that Forest
Refinery is selling lots of biomass that is the only fuel that
can replace petroleum in all aspects including plastics. This is
the wave of the future.
7:08:48 PM
CO-CHAIR MCGUIRE thanked everyone for their testimony and
adjourned the meeting at 7:08 p.m.
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