News-Miner Editorial
Does it take a crisis?
Example set by Juneau residents is more than notable
Published Wednesday, May 7, 2008
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Stumble It!Ask yourself, have you really done all you can to cut your usage of gas and electricity?
The people of Juneau managed to cut their energy consumption by nearly 20 percent recently because they had little other choice with a fivefold electricity cost increase during their temporary energy crisis.
Utility officials told the Juneau Empire that the weekend before an avalanche forced the city to turn to diesel generators for its electricity that the city used 1.9 million kilowatt-hours of electricity, but residents quickly cut that usage to 1.54 million for a weekend.
A drop of 19 percent is awfully impressive, and it should drive home a point to all Alaskans that we do have the ability to save in a big way if we put our minds to it.
We don’t mean to be presumptuous. Certainly there are a number of Fairbanks households that were struggling enough this winter that they were looking for, and likely found, many creative ways to save energy.
There were homes in crisis. Let’s not forget that. But while our community at large is making a lot of noise about energy costs, we certainly have nothing on the order of a community-wide drop in electrical usage of 20 percent.
Maybe the trick is to try imagining a crisis in your own household, or to pull some lessons from Juneau to manage the financial crisis you already are facing.
And what happened in Juneau? The department stores sold out of clothespins and clothes-drying racks, and people got creative about stringing up clotheslines. They rediscovered candlelight and family time instead of full illumination and TV time.
Bigger-ticket savings on electricity come with things like water heaters and home heating. So what about just taking shorter showers, using water-conserving nozzles and turning down the thermostat a few degrees?
A lot of Fairbanksans know how to get by living in a waterless cabin. Just because you live in a house with a dishwasher, do you really need to use it every day?
If you really had to, could you find a way to bicycle or walk to or from work, ride the bus or figure out a way to carpool with co-workers? What would you do if your car broke down?
Many of us are complaining about the high price of energy, but do our complaints ring true if we aren’t doing all we can to manage our personal usage? Juneau’s example is more than notable.
Community Discussion
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The writer is right-on. We have been living in a world with to much convenience and time saving technology.
In an effort to get with the program. I am thinking Mothers Day.
I was thinking of getting a few gifts that will allow us to return to a more simple time. In an effort to go green and use less energy.
I really hope my wife will enjoy the new washboard, tub, rope and clothes pins. I also picked out a very nice flat rock and stick for the more delicate items.
Not only will she be the greenest on the block, but soon she will also get a nice long work out as well :)
I was also thinking of going to the use of candles in our vaccum sealed home, I don't think she will mind if any soot builds up in the house, I mean, I am sure she will have lots of time after hand washing all the dishes, that doing some dusting will be but a minor detail. Besides who will notice in the dark shadows.
Now to do my part in an effort to go green. I want to go one better then the article above suggest, when it comes to limiting water usage.
I am going to tell my wife that I know the washboard can be a tiresome thing and in an effort to reduce her workload I will start wearing my work clothes on a weekly basis, and will limit my use of a shower to a weekly ritual (possibly monthly). I didn't mention I will be working up a nice sweat daily just by simply getting to work on my bicycle. I promise to purchase some cologne just too keep things from getting to far out of hand.... I am sure there are some more retro ideas out there. What's yours?
Awesome comments, user
Don't forget - you can use the washboard as a musical instrument as you sit in the dark! Kinda like on old hee-haw
What fun it will be.
I personally think more people in this town could spend a few extra minutes in the shower......
"We don’t mean to be presumptuous" - - - hah!
Sad truth, is the more American even try to save. Electricity, Fuel, the higher the costs goes. Big Oil will get it's money one way or another. So will big government, they can't live without those taxes. That's the primary reason state and federal officials are not tackling the high cost of fuel, they love the income
Welcome to the third world folks. I'm sure that as soon as I start washing my clothes in the Chena River, some eco-whiners will file suit. Meanwhile...do you think GVEA really gives a rodent's rear if I save electricity? HA, that's how they make their money.
Many people are under the false impression that they can save money by heating their hot water with electricity. This is false. With heating oil at $3.90/g. it is cheaper to run your boiler for hot water even during the summer months. Even the most modern on-demand electric water heater with 95% efficiency will cost more than an old 60% efficient oil-fired boiler when electric rates are more than 16 cents/kWh. To calculate the difference go to
http://www1.eere.energy.gov/femp/procure...
"do you think GVEA really gives a rodent's rear if I save electricity? HA, that's how they make their money."
Don't they offer to come to your house to help you find ways to save electricity?
Time for a windfall profits tax, folks. I am sure the News-Miner would love it if everyone here in the Interior lived in a windowless 10' x 10' box, but Alaskans should not be reduced to living in third world like conditions.
It is time for Governor Palin, or our weak legislators, to call for a special session where a 90% tax rate be imposed on all of our Alaska crude oil selling for over $100 dollars a barrel.
At $122 dollars per barrel the gross profit on the oil Alaska sells to the oil industry is over 31 billion dollars per year for the nultinational corporations. And even with the new ACES tax structure Alaska still gets the smallest share.
The oil industry and oil selling nations have deliberately limited supply to create these high prices and it is time the people of Alaska realize that these large multinational corporations have declared war on us.
To send a POM to all legislators- 452-4448. 50 words or less- We want a windfall profits tax. 90%.
Money earned by the windfall profits tax must be used to reduce the price of home heating fuel and naphtha sold to the refinery so Interior Alaska can remain economically viable.
Under current, and rising, prices we are not viable.
A real estate crash will destroy the value of- and the equity- you may have in your home. So we have to move forward with the windfall profits tax ASAP. Any legislator who gets in the way needs to be replaced in this fall's election.
It is our state, folks. Lets not be reduced to poverty before we act.
Windfall profits tax. 452-4448. Send a POM.
5050 -
sadly you haven't been keeping up with the times....
The news miner would like you to live in a 5x5 windowless 'corn bale' house.....as per an opinion from a week or so ago...
please try and keep up with the technology!
i haven't done anything to save energy. i have no plans to do so either.
how fast would one of those straw or corn bale houses go up in a fire?
the price of energy is still cheap here in Amerika!
I have an observation, but not one based in true numbers, just what I've heard, ... maybe FairbanksGas can help me out with this?
For years, one generalized explanation of why our fuel prices are higher (average) than Anchorage is that it is adjusted due to a lack of demand in the Fairbanks area, ... in other words, our population numbers make it an "inconvenience" to supply, therefore rates are adjusted. I know I'm marginalizing the issue at large, but I'm simply focusing on this one aspect. My point is, energy conservation is great, I encourage it. However, if we, as a community at-large, reduce our consumption and reliance of fuel, ... wouldn't the costs per gallon increase, assuming the above observation has some truth to it?
I'm a novice at all the varying factors, so information would be appreciated!
One of the reasons Golden Valley gave for requesting a rate increase was that revenue was down because of less consumption. What a gutbuster. A real catch 22, you try and cut down on your electric bill and they penalize you for it.
Rural Alaska has been in a crisis for a number of years. Public services are next to none existent and the standard of living is closer to THIRD WORLD conditions.
Energy conservation isn't just a catchy phrase.
IT IS THE CONSEQUENCES OF A GOVERNMENT THAT HAS LOST TOUCH WITH THE NEEDS OF IT'S CITIZENS.
On the slope there's much more orphan methane being lost daily to atmosphere than all of the villages in the Yukon-Koyukuk could ever use for all their needs.
Lotsa little plastic gaslines are standard practice for gas-gathering.. just extend that spaghetti network over the Brooks southward.
Not sure where PERMAFROST ends ... your gas lines will sink in the PF just like the FIRST Prudhoe road ... unless you have an elaborate short stilt system like the Oil Pipeline. It increased TAPS' Northern third's cost a factor of 7 (thus the factor-of-3 overrun). And that is not a cost that scales directly with size.
Fortunately EVEN though it looks far away, the Southern Brooks range is a LOT closer -- Moneywise -- than Prudhoe, because it is close to the Permafrost's South edge. Anyone know HOW close ??
... PS talking about a 90% tax is really going to encourage Drilling, I'm sure.
Why should they drill for no Profit ? In 10 years with no New drilling, TAPS will go below minimum as existing fields decline. And who will risk their own money on a Gas Pipe then ?
... Your Goose is Cooked when TAPS shuts down.
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