Results: Calendar of Events
NEW ENERGY FOR ALASKA COMMUNITIES will be presented by GWEN HOLDMANN, Director of the Alaska Center for Energy and Power at 7 p.m. in the Hickel Room, Centennial Hall. Alaska uses more energy per capita than any other state, in a nation that uses more energy than any other country in the world! Our state’s high energy use is complicated by high energy prices, isolated electric grid systems, and dependence on external supply. By developing more local energy resources–both fossil and renewable–we can stabilize prices and reduce our vulnerability. This would also position Alaska as an energy leader. In this lecture, cutting edge technology solutions available to meet Alaska’s current and future energy demand will be discussed. This event is free and families are welcome. For more information, visit www.scienceforalaska.com, or call 907-474-7558.
NEW ENERGY FOR ALASKA COMMUNITIES will be presented by GWEN HOLDMANN, Director of the Alaska Center for Energy and Power at 7 p.m. at the Anchorage Museum. Alaska uses more energy per capita than any other state, in a nation that uses more energy than any other country in the world! Our state’s high energy use is complicated by high energy prices, isolated electric grid systems, and dependence on external supply. By developing more local energy resources–both fossil and renewable–we can stabilize prices and reduce our vulnerability. This would also position Alaska as an energy leader. In this lecture, cutting edge technology solutions available to meet Alaska’s current and future energy demand will be discussed. This event is free and families are welcome. For more information, visit www.scienceforalaska.com, or call 907-474-7558.
February 10, 2010
6:00 pm to 8:00 pm
Hydrokinetic turbine in Ruby
Everyone knows about wind turbines. But what about installing turbines underwater in Alaska rivers to make power? Last summer, UAA civil engineering professor Tom Ravens and his students looked at 17 potential sites for turbines on the Yukon and Kuskokwim rivers. They measured velocity and water depth and, based on the data, are developing hydrologic and hydraulic models to estimate the energy potential of these sites. Come hear him discuss the preliminary results and learn more about Alaska’s hydrokinetic energy potential at REAP’s monthly forum from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Anchorage museum.
A demonstration project in Ruby on the Yukon River has already shown that hydrokinetic turbines can be placed in the river and electricity generated. The work done by Ravens and his students will be made available to the public and could encourage energy developers and villagers to seriously consider hydrokinetic energy as a renewable energy source. Hydrokinetic power could be particular useful for residents of rural Alaska, who face some of the highest electricity rates in the United States and, in many cases, live next to large, fast flowing rivers.
Dr. Tom Ravens joined the UAA faculty in the School of Engineering in 2007. Previously, Dr. Ravens was a professor at Texas A&M University at Galveston. His interests in renewable energy include renewable energy assessment, environmental impact of renewable energy systems, and system design and testing. In addition to the Alaska Energy Authority-funded hydrokinetic assessment study that will be the subject of this presentation, Ravens is also working on a Department of Energy- funded project to assess hydrokinetic energy for the U.S. In the area of environmental impacts, he is examining the impact on hydrokinetics on flow, water level, and sediment transport in Cook Inlet. Besides his renewable energy work, Ravens is engaged in coastal processes and coastal erosion research. Projects include: Impact of climate change and storm surges on Y-K delta sedimentary processes; Sediment transport and flow in the Sag River Delta and the impact of the causeway; and Predictive and process-based coastal erosion modeling for the North Slope of Alaska.
For more information, call 929-7770 or email s.nowers@REalaska.org
August 7, 2010
12:00 pm to 10:00 pm
June 17, 2010 to June 18, 2010
The 2010 conference will pick up where the 2009 conference left off, offering a more Alaska-centric focus on business and policy development of Energy Efficiency (EE) and Renewable Energy (RE) within the state. Attendees will also gain insight into the experiences of governments and businesses from around the country, as they relate to Alaska’s unique potential.
Based on participant feedback, the 2010 conference will feature a redesigned format that will allow for excellent opportunities to engage with presenters, network with participants, and collectively implement an energy independent future for the state.
January 12, 2010
From Joshua Saul at Alaska Dispatch: Far out on the Aleutian chain, on windy Adak Island, a world-class Nautilus gym sits dark and cold because the city of Adak can’t afford the electricity to light and heat it. The gym is an artifact left over from when the island was a naval base, home to 6,000 military personnel. Today Adak has about 200 residents who are struggling to find a way to make their remote lifestyle sustainable. Read more
January 11, 2010
By Marc Lifsher, Los Angeles Times
When octogenarian Arthur H. Rosenfeld vacates his utilitarian office at the California Energy Commission this week, one of his final tasks might seem of little consequence: He’ll turn off the lights. But that simple act — some would say compulsion — has transformed California into a world leader in energy efficiency.
California homes are loaded with personal computers, widescreen TVs, iPods, PlayStations, air conditioners, massive refrigerators, hot tubs and swimming pool pumps. Despite that, Golden State residents today use about the same amount of electricity per capita that they did 30 years ago. For that, they can largely thank Rosenfeld, a slight, bespectacled nuclear physicist fueled by a passion to wring the most out of every kilowatt. Polite and affable, with a knack for making science understandable to people who couldn’t screw in a lightbulb, Rosenfeld, starting in the 1970s, provided California energy regulators the data they needed to enact some of the toughest efficiency standards in the world. Read more
January 27, 2010
11:30 am to 1:30 pm
Featuring Best-Selling Co-Author of Freakonomics & SuperFreakonomics Stephen J. Dubner
The AEDC Annual Economic Forecast Luncheon provides an opportunity for attendees to get the first look at the 2010 economic forecast. The Annual Economic Forecast Luncheon is a highly anticipated business event; nearly 1,000 of Anchorage’s top business leaders attended last year. To reserve a ticket, go here
Dena’ina Civic & Convention Center
Luncheon is from noon – 1:30 p.m.
Doors open at 11:30 a.m.
AEDC Investor Table of 10 – $425
AEDC Investor Individual Seat – 45
Non-Investor Tables – $450.00
Non-Investor Individuals – $47.50
January 8, 2010
The Alaska Energy Authority has extended until Jan. 20 the public comment period for the recently released Regional Integrated Resource Plan. The plan analyzed long-term solutions for powering the Railbelt for the next 50 years and made a series of recommendations that include hydro, wind and other renewable energy sources. Please send your comments electronically to May Clark at mclark@aidea.org by Wednesday, January 20. The comments will be sent to consultant Black & Veatch, which authored the report, for consideration. More info from AEA on the public comment process here. REAP also has more info here on the plan and a podcast of our December forum with Jim Strandberg, of AEA.
January 8, 2010
From Joshua Saul at Alaska Dispatch: High 2008 oil prices are still busting budgets in this Bristol Bay town. Bob Himschoot heats his Dillingham home with firewood he cuts himself, and after oil prices skyrocketed in the summer of 2008, the city councilman saw more of his neighbors doing the same. But after oil prices dropped back down that winter and the rest of the country put the price-spike behind them, Dillingham residents even today are still paying prices kept high by fuel remaining from the summer of 2008.
Dillingham’s fuel-price hangover, now going strong for more than six months, is a result of how diesel and gasoline are delivered in rural Alaska. Because many remote towns depend on barges to ship fuel in during ice-free months, fuel prices are set when the last vessel leaves town. The fuel delivered in summer 2008 was so expensive that many Dillingham residents cut their consumption. And when more fuel was delivered last summer, there was an unusually large supply of the 2008-priced fuel still sitting in the tanks. Read more
