Sustainable North

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 a heat pump and can it work in Fairbanks?
A heat pump is a mechanical system that uses a series [...]

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From The Tundra Drums, Monday, December 28, 2009:
The City of Bethel received a 2009 Community Award of Excellence in the Public Involvement category from the Alaska Municipal League for the city’s development of the Bethel Community Garden in Bethel, according to a written statement from John Sargent, the city’s grant development manager.
Announcement of the award [...]

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From The Tundra Drums, Monday, December 21, 2009:
Two Western Alaska villages spinning power from small wind turbines say they’re saving thousands of dollars a year.
“I’m still amazed at what they’re doing,” said Gerald Kosbruk, president of the tribal government in Perryville on the southern Alaska Peninsula.
However, the head of the largest utility in rural Alaska, [...]

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From the New York Times, Friday, December 25, 2009;
Some of the greenest technologies of the age, from electric cars to efficient light bulbs to very large wind turbines, are made possible by an unusual group of elements called rare earths. The world’s dependence on these substances is rising fast.
Just one problem: These elements come almost [...]

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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: Refrigerators are expensive to operate. How can I make sure mine is using less energy?
In terms of energy efficiency, refrigerators are often [...]

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From the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, Thursday, December 17, 2009:
Environmentalists and conservatives have joined forces to help solve air pollution in Fairbanks.
Their report goes before the Fairbanks North Star Borough air pollution control commission today, and one of the recommendations calls on the government to improve access to wood cutting on public lands. The group also [...]

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ASK A BUILDER
By Cold Climate Housing Research Center 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 double-pane windows. Every year I get large amounts of frost buildup on the pane facing the [...]

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From CBC News, Tuesday, December 15, 2009:
A new study suggests the financial burden of Arctic climate change is already falling on Inuit people and the heaviest costs are hurting those families least able to pay.
The study backs demands made by Inuit leaders for a share of global funds being proposed to help adapt to a [...]

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ASK A BUILDER
By Cold Climate Housing Research Center 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 wood stove. Can I burn coal in it, too?
A: Unless a wood stove has been [...]

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From The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, Sunday, December 6, 2009:
A study of emissions from the Fairbanks area’s three power plants finds the plants, the most visible polluters, are a minor player when it comes to Fairbanks’ pollution problems.
“They are a contributor, of course they are, but they are not the main one,” said Nicole Mölders, chairwoman [...]

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