Science Update: Alaska's Energy Anxiety. Issue 22.

摘要

Alaska’s natural resources are not limited to oil. Coastal Alaska has wind and hydropower options, and southeast and interior Alaska have abundant trees. Interior Alaska contains 17 percent of the forested land in the United States. For renewable energy proponents, this looks like a lot of biomass. Biomass refers to any organic (carbon-based) plant or animal matter. Biomass energy, in the form of heat or power or both, is created by burning that plant or animal matter. In Alaska, biomass sources range from fish processing byproducts to municipal waste and spent grain from beer brewing. But the most commonly used form of biomass fuel is woody material from trees or sawmill residue. Woody biomass is widely dispersed throughout Alaska, often available in the immediate vicinity of rural communities, as opposed to fossil fuels, which are only available from limitsites. Wood fuel can be readily collected and processed, often only requiring a chain saw, whereas the processing of crude oil is an expensive industrial process. In addition, transporting and storage of firewood or wood pellets requires few special safeguards, and spilling a load of wood fuel creates minimal environmental contamination compared to oil. In southeast Alaska where Deering lives, hydropower ot more attention earlier in the search for renewable.