Kodiak Hoop House News

Attention all Kodiak EQIP High Tunnel Owners, Current Applicants and Interested Parties!

The Kodiak Soil and Water Conservation District (KSWCD) will set aside every   Wednesday for a three hour walk-in time from 9 am to 12 pm at the Kodiak office

June 18 through September 10.

This service is to answer questions, provide applications/documents/ forms and discusses objectives and protocols of participating in the NRCS Cost Share Program. Information about High Tunnels and other EQIP issues will also be available during these hours.

There will be a Technical Service Provider (TSP) on hand.

Time & Date:  Wednesday July 2 from 9 am – 12 pm.

KSWCD Office Location: 518 West Marine Way, Suite 206

                                             Second Floor above Tony’s Bar

* The TSP will meet with anyone during these hours on a first come first serve basis. Please do not call KSWCD during these hours.

"Spruce Up Kodiak" campaign kicks off

Coming to a refrigerator near you...

Last month, in an effort to increase education and outreach to the Kodiak community regarding solid waste issues, recycling and more, the Kodiak Island Borough's Solid Waste Advisory Board blessed a sub-committee called Spruce Up Kodiak. Co-chaired by Marion Owen and Cindy Harrington, the committee launched the campaign with three new posters, radio PSA's (public service announcements) and a series of new classified ads in the Kodiak Daily Mirror.

"The posters will be made into post-card size refrigerator magnets," says Marion. "The first one gets right to the message, which is what you can recycle in Kodiak. The other two are scenes of Kodiak with contact information to help direct people to help with answering the question, "what do I do with...?"

"We've only just begun and we invite anyone interested in litter, recycling, garbage and beautifying Kodiak to get involved!"

Spruce Up Kodiak poster and fridge magnet showing recyclable items and resource
contact information (Graphic design by Marion Owen)

Forget-me-not poster and fridge magnet for the Spruce Up Kodiak campaign showing
resource contact information (Graphic design and photo by Marion Owen)

Spruce forest poster and fridge magnet for the Spruce Up Kodiak campaign showing
resource contact information (Graphic design and photo by Marion Owen)

A Local Lesson in Pre-cycling:

It takes a village, or should I say, it takes persistence to be part of the solution...

How does 30 years of persistence sound to you?

Janet Wente (L, with help from Rachel Organ, R) of Northern Exposure Gallery in Kodiak has practiced the 4R's (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and Rethink) since 1983. 

Here's how she does it:

• Donates strips of foam core to the Kodiak High School drafting program (saving the school district hundreds of dollars, she says)
• Gives away mat board to all schools, day care centers and summer programs.
• Recycles and re-uses all cardboard and metal clips from incoming orders of supplies.

Janet practices pre-cycling, too. "Before I take something to Threshold Recycling Services, I stop and ask myself, 'is there another use for this material?'"

Janet adds, "I think all businesses should consider pre-cycling."

55 and counting...

We're talking hoophouses, not years, here...

According to the USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) office in Kenai, as of March 2013, Kodiak Island has 55 hoophouses (counting the 8 contracts approved this year, FY 2013). These hoophouses, also called high tunnels, are affectionately known as "hope houses" because they provide gardeners and growers an "edge" against the fickle coastal weather that can make or break a growing season.

As one gardener said, "When it's pouring rain and blowing outside, I love to go into my hoophouse to see all my vegetables standing tall, pretty and protected."

Where do these hoophouses come from? In a nutshell, they're part of a USDA program called the Seasonal High Tunnel Initiative. This is a "voluntary program that provides financial and technical assistance to agricultural producers. The goal of the initiative is to assist producers to extend the growing season for high value crops in an environmentally safe manner."

For basic information about the program, visit the 2013 EQIP Seasonal High Tunnel Initiative page or contact Craig Sanders in Homer at 907-235-8177, ext 107.

To apply for a hoophouse: Applications are available at the local NRCS/KSWCD office in Kodiak. While this office is not staffed by NRCS, the Kodiak Soil and Water Conservation District (KSWCD) uses their office and can provide you with hoophouse applications. TIP: But you should call Craig in Homer for most NRCS details. Craig can request the KSWCD to do local on-the-ground inspections for him if needed. The KSWCD number is 907-486-5574.

Meanwhile, kudos for Kodiak!

Marie Rice stands near a raised bed of broccoli in her hoophouse in Bells Flats.

Two Coming Sustainability Events

Friday evening, February 22- Open to the Public
At Kodiak College

Sounds of Sustainability: A journey of passion, music, academics, and activism

An evening of discussion, lecture, and music by singer, song-writer, author, and educator Libby Roderick. http://www.libbyroderick.com/bio.html

*****

Saturday morning, Feb 23

Please join the Kodiak College teaching community to explore Difficult Dialogs and Sustainability with UAA CAFÉ’s Associate Director Libby Roderick on February 23!

RSVP by February 18 to reserve your spot, (907) 486-1215.

http://difficultdialoguesuaa.org/

Kodiak Electric Association embraces net metering policy

Kodiak Electric Association lineman at work

If you want to connect your own renewable energy generator to KEA's power grid, now you can get buy-back credits.

Starting January 1, 2013, KEA's revised Rules and Regulations for Electric Service and Rate Schedules accommodate heat pumps and net metering. For some folks, this can be a little confusing.

"Something we want to make sure people understand with net metering is that installing a residential-scale wind or solar installation can be expensive," says Jennifer Richcreek, "and the buy-back rate for excess power put onto the grid is based on KEA's diesel use. So the less diesel KEA uses, the less the buy-back rate for the resident generating their own renewable power."

If you have questions about the new policy, contact the Kodiak Electric Association. Many articles can be found on the KEA e-news website.  

Photo of new net meter 

New amp service for heat pumps

KEA has added a new residential 400-amp service rate to accommodate electric heat service to larger homes.  According to Jennifer, "As KEA does a better job supplying electricity at affordable stable rates, there's a growing interest in the community with converting home heating systems over from oil to electricity."  

This is a great improvement. If you had standard 100 or 200-amp service, you had to install multiple meters.  

"This new policy allows more power to be supplied to a residence through a single, more powerful meter.  This new service rate is not exclusive to heat, but electric heat would be the type of load that would typically require more power."

How much electricity comes from wind, hydro and diesel?

In 2012, 95.7 percent of KEA's generation portfolio, as it's called, came from renewable resources. You can follow KEA's progress on the KEA website. 

Kodiak Wind Turbines on TV

ON SUNDAY APRIL 22, 2012, TUNE INTO KUAC’s AlaskaOne service Or KAKM, YOUR LOCAL PBS STATIONS FOR THE PREMIERE OF ENERGY QUEST USA AND POWERING THE PLANET. Gather your friends and family for two new installments of EARTH: THE OPERATORS’ MANUAL, the acclaimed PBS documentary series on climate change and sustainable energy. Meet people who are energizing America by rolling up their sleeves and taking control of their energy future.

 ENERGY QUEST USA (4/22 3pm on KUAC & 4/30 8pm on KAKM) visits five very different American communities from Alaska to Fort Worth, Texas to the East Coast where people are making smart choices based on economics and the environment. Their experiences chart a path every U.S. community can follow to adapt to the challenges climate change may bring.

 POWERING THE PLANET (KUAC WORLD 4/27/12 at 2,5 & 10pm & KAKM 4/26 8pm) takes an eye-opening look at some of the world’s most important case studies in energy policy. Brazil has sugar cane. Denmark has wind. Morocco has sunshine. China has plans. And America has… politics and indecision. Using compelling stories that showcase the many ways in which great nations and smaller communities are finding sustainable solutions, this program asks an urgent question: is America making the right decisions for its own energy future?

 Don’t just watch – get involved! EARTH: THE OPERATORS’ MANUAL is not just a documentary series; it’s also a movement for people like you who want to get busy building a better future. Join our community of pragmatists on the web to learn more about how you can make a difference at home, in your town, and for our nation and planet:

earththeoperatorsmanual.com facebook.com/earththeoperatorsmanual.page twitter.com/earthtom

 EARTH: THE OPERATORS’ MANUAL is supported by a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and produced by Passport to Knowledge/Geoff Haines-Stiles Productions, Inc.

Author Charles Wohlforth Speaks at College tonight

Nature and Human Nature: Are we capable of the cooperation needed to save the Ocean?
Charles Wohlforth, author of The Fate of Nature, explores how culture, not technology, holds the key to humankind's ability to solve global environmental problems, including climate change, ocean acidification, overfishing, and oil spills. He uses Alaska as a microcosm of conflicting world views in a talk that includes dozens of spectacular photographs. http://fateofnature.com

7:00 pm-9:00pm, Benny Benson Building Room 130

Not to be Missed!

Village Chickens and Community Gardens Thriving in Igiugig

Truly Inspiring!
Village Chickens and Community Gardens Thriving in Igiugig
27th September
2011

(With thanks to Alan Austerman's blog http://www.alanausterman.com/?p=1838)

For the last few years we have been learning about some really amazing projects in Igiugig, one of the westernmost villages in District 36. The 64 residents of the village on the southwest tip of Iliamna Lake have been developing a community food system bit by bit… beginning with community chickens nearly a decade ago. At this point, they have a community greenhouse with power and heat to extend the growing season; a wonderful egg program; and access to significant quantities of delicious vegetables and fruit that were impossibly expensive just a few years ago. Some of the ideas and lessons from their projects are absolutely inspiring, and may be instructive for villages all around District 36 and the rest of Alaska.

Staff in our office had a good chat with AlexAnna Salmon, president of the Igiugig Village Council, and learned more about the projects.

The Egg Program

Like most fresh food items in Igiugig, eggs used to arrive via plane from Anchorage, and would often arrive broken. In 2002, when AlexAnna’s father Dan was the administrator for the Igiugig Village Council, they initiated an egg program. Eggs were expensive, says AlexAnna, “but keeping chickens themselves are not.” In the beginning, friends of some of the residents sent chickens to the village. They were kept in a private coop, and people could go by and grab eggs as they wanted. As demand grew, they took the next step to grow the operation. With a mini grant from the Alaska Food Coalition and a considerable local match they were able to procure freezers, a fridge, and an egg incubator. This allowed them to “produce” new chickens when they needed them, and to freeze excess food scraps for the chickens for future use. They also built a larger coop.

Today the coop and its 30 chicken residents are located at the landfill, and is incorporated into the town’s solid waste program. Residents and seasonal lodges in the area separate food scraps from their regular waste. Some of that food scrap is used to feed the chickens. (More on other food scrap uses in just a minute.) The chicken area is located within the gated landfill area, where they’re safe from the region’s bears.

Eggs were initially free, but with growing demand from the lodges in the region an honor-system fee was implemented–a $3.50 donation for a dozen fresh, local eggs! Elders in Igiugig still get their eggs free of charge.

The program is very popular, and provides a nutritious food source for the residents. With a decade in operation, it’s still going strong!

Growing Food

With the chicken program in place and popular, the community started looking to other food items. The next step was a community potato garden. With seed potato obtained from the long-running farm at the community of Port Alsworth on Lake Clark, they were able to plant the first potato plants. The potato garden also took off. The community embraced the project, and responded to the gardening successes by creating a potato festival and potluck at harvest time.

Igiugig's community greenhouse complex.

As often happens, more ideas grew from there. During the community’s planning process residents identified a community greenhouse as something that would be valued in Igiugig. The village council picked up the project and ran with it. They developed a business plan for the concept, envisioning the operation as a profit generator with potential sales to the 24 nearby lodge operations. They applied to the Alaska Federation of Natives’ Alaska Marketplace competition, which provides seed funding for innovative business ideas. The Kvichak Organic Produce plan won one of the top prizes, taking away just under $40,000 to initiate the project. With that money in hand, Igiugig was able to leverage additional funding support, including $60,000 from the Pebble Fund for three wind generators, a USDA grant related to farmer’s markets, and smaller grants from the Alaska Food Coalition (for starter seeds) and the Division of Agriculture (for innovative equipment).

A Labor of Love

Keilan Wassillie (left) and Kaleb Hill enjoy the tropical jungle of the Iliamna community greenhouse.

Today the Igiugig community greenhouse is largely supported by the volunteer labor of community residents. In addition, AlexAnna has been able to bring in volunteers from out of state who work in the greenhouse in exchange for an amazing summer experience in Alaska. By starting small and taking small steps, the project has been able to grow, to the point where today the community has:

* A 24′x48′ indoor polycarbonate green house
* A 10′x20′ outdoor cold house
* Space in the greenhouse for all the families in the community to have plots
* Space for growing food for local lodges that generates revenues for the project
* A wood boiler that will be used for the first time this year to extend the growing season.
* Locals saving seeds so that seeds won’t have to be purchased from outside the community.
* A community food scrap program that takes scraps from residents and lodges and transforms them into either chicken food or compost for the garden projects.

In addition, they’ve been able to offer a greenhouse growing class through UAF, with instruction right in the community. Participants earned college credit.

AlexAnna estimates that the total costs in the greenhouse project, including the wind generators, is about $300,000. Much of that came from community match, she said, but it also went together bit by bit. With the increased focus on community agriculture and sustainability, a number of funding options have been available along the way.

Challenges

AlexAnna reports that the volunteer labor in Igiugig is tremendous, but people’s seasonal obligations mean that having a full time greenhouse coordinator makes a big difference. With so much going on, she says it’s really needed! The village council has had luck bringing in people from outside for a summer adventure.

They’re also hoping to improve the watering system. Gutters currently collect some of the rainwater that fall on the building, but AlexAnna says the system could be expanded, and she hopes that a misting system can be built in the greenhouse to make the watering more efficient and less labor intensive.

Sustainable?

Today, the inputs that keep the community greenhouse going are minimal. In the beginning, soil was flown in from outside the community as they worked to get their composting system going, but that should not be a need in the future. In addition to using food scraps to feed the chickens, as described above, the community landfill now includes composting of other food scraps and compostable items. Specialty items such as blueberry bushes or other plants could be brought in, but the only significant remaining input from outside the community is organic fertilizer. AlexAnna notes that the community could produce its own fertilizer from fish scraps and other items, but they’re not there yet.

For the chickens, the community continues to order chicken feed via barge. Though chickens are happy on scrap food, they also need nutrients that the feed provides.

An Inspiration for Other Communities

All in all, Igiugig’s accomplishments are admirable, and show what is possible with some passion and a dream. And the benefits–greater self-reliance, healthful food, and a sense of participation and volunteerism–far exceed their costs.

AlexAnna said that potlucks in Igiugig now feature big salads and vegetables grown in their own earth. These never would have been on the menu before–the cost and the lack of availability meant they just weren’t part of the community fare. Nowadays, a big bowl of salad can be the feature dish!

Kodiak Hoophouses get Great Press Coverage

Web posted Thursday, August 18, 2011 http://www.alaskajournal.com/stories/081811/bus_snuatg.shtml

State's new USDA agronomist talks growth

By James Brooks
Kodiak Daily Mirror


Guests at the Kodiak Soil and Water Conservation District growers potluck Aug. 3 in Kodiak take their pick of food provided by Kodiak residents, including fresh-grown produce and beef. The event was a chance for local growers to meet Craig Smith, the new USDA agronomist for Alaska. AP Photo/James Brooks/Kodiak Daily Mirror

KODIAK (AP) — If you listen to new Alaska state agronomist Craig Smith for long, you'll probably come away believing hoophouses, formally called high tunnels, are the greatest thing since sliced bread.

In Kodiak, that might not be far from the truth. While they won't do the slicing, hoophouses have tripled crop yields in farms across Kodiak, Smith said.

Smith was the featured speaker at a recent growers potluck, sponsored by the Kodiak Soil and Water Conservation District.

Advertisement

Smith, who works for the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation Service, said a three-year pilot program to expand the use of hoophouses has been wildly successful in Kodiak and Homer, helping the service reach its congressional mandate to reduce the amount of energy needed to transport food to consumers.

"(Hoophouses have) been one of our successful programs," he said at the Aug. 3 event. "It has been small-scale farmers that are trying to decrease transportation costs and transportation difficulty by growing their own fresh vegetables."

Smith said much of his job involves answering questions that staff at the local soil and water office forward to him.

"Here on Kodiak . they call up, visit or email the district staff, and if they can't answer it and feel it deals with agronomy, they pass it on to me," Smith said.

Mark Kinney, district conservationist for Homer and Kodiak, is one of those staffers. He joined Smith in promoting the hoophouse gospel.

"When you buy locally, you're not only supporting the local economy, you assure yourself you're eating well," Kinney said.

Under the subsidy, which was only available to established growers, the NRCS required participants to purchase a hoophouse kit and maintain it for four years, including soil testing, pest control and fertilizer. In return, NRCS paid $4.86 per square foot of hoophouse. To put this figure in perspective, an eligible 480-square-foot model available online costs $1,039, not including shipping.

Kinney said of the 234 hoophouses subsidized in the first two years of the NRCS pilot program, 153 have been built in the Homer-Kodiak area and 31 constructed on Kodiak Island. There were 134 applications from the area for the third year of the project, including 25 from Kodiak. That's more hoophouses built and more applicants than any other NRCS region in the country.

"That really shows the desire here to extend the growing season," he said. "It's a minimum of six weeks added to each side of the growing season . That's three months additional growing time."

With that growing time, "The farmers market is firing up as a result," he said. "We have people growing fruit trees, apples and cherries, here on Kodiak. . We saw people growing and harvesting corn here in Kodiak."

As the three-year pilot project reaches its conclusion, Kinney said time will be needed to analyze the data generated by the project, whose stated goal was to determine whether hoophouses are economically viable in Kodiak.

When asked if that seems to be the case, he had a quick answer: "Absolutely."

With the high cost of transportation to Kodiak, there's a niche for local producers to create locally grown produce and take advantage.

"Kodiak producers are very clever," Kinney said.

Save the Date: Great Film April 1

Sustainable Kodiak and Kodiak College Community Engagement Committee Present:

Friday, April 1, 6:30 pm, room 130 The Age of Stupid

Bullfrog Films has just released a new documentary film, The Age of Stupid by Franny Armstrong.

About THE AGE OF STUPID
The film is a drama-documentary-animation hybrid which stars Pete Postlethwaite as a man living alone in the devastated world of 2055, watching archive footage from the mid-to-late 2000s and asking "Why didn't we stop climate change when we had the chance?"
Amid news reports of the gathering effects of climate change and global civilization teetering towards destruction, he alights on six stories of individuals whose lives in the early years of the 21st century seem to illustrate aspects of the impending catastrophe. These six stories take the form of interweaving documentary segments that report on the lives of real people in the present, and switch the film's narrative form from fiction to fact.
Details, awards and a trailer can be found on Bullfrog Film's website here http://www.bullfrogfilms.com/catalog/aos.html

SK Newsletter, June 22

Sustainable Kodiak Newsletter, June 22, 2010

Farmer’s Market News
To all of you who were at the Saturday "Townie Market", thank you for being there. It was a fun event, even though we did not get the crowd we had hoped for. It is early in the season, and again we have to educate people, not only that we are open, but also that we are in a new location. If any of you have ideas as to how we can get more local folks to attend, please let me know. It was good to have Marie Rice there with her rhubarb, to start our local produce season. By the next Saturday market, which is July 17, it is possible that we will have more growers out in front. That in itself will draw in more local people.
Both Jeff Barnhart and Brian Dixon took pictures of Marie. As the hope for BearTown is that it will be successful for all of you, I think it's important to put a focus on Brian's photography skills as well as on the rhubarb sellers. Therefore, will send that picture and information about Marie and the kids' part in BearTown to the newspaper tomorrow.
Remember, the next ship arrives Wednesday. Building opens for vendors at 7:00 a.m. Let's hope for a large crowd and good sales for everyone! Fran
***
Latest from Rich Seifert:
This is the link to my lecture Video : Is Alaska Sustainable", from last week , June 16, given here at UAF. Haven't looked at it myself, so don't know its quality, but they've got it recorded.
In case you want to check it out… from Rich Seifert
http://echo.uaf.edu:8080/ess/echo/presentation/7071be90-6c9a-4ed2-a609-f83f22c48497
Also- Rich’s new Solar Design Manual –
“Really pleased with this discussion of my new solar design manual. Great interview.”
This is the site to see the video: http://www.alaska.edu/oit/cts/streaming/archive/2010/journalism/fairbanksfocus/

***
Invasive Weed Report:
See attached Governor's proclamation!

Our summer youth crew has been busy surveying and removing weeds along our roads in Kodiak. They were very disappointed to see all the garbage dumped along the Monashka road, they found orange hawkweed growing from torn garbage bags and in waste piles in several of the dump areas. They visited Ahkiok last week and found NO orange hawkweed! Congratulations Akhiok! Next week they will be in Port Lions helping to assess the problem and talking to folks. They will be able to dig small infestations if they find any along the ATV trails but they will also be looking for other species such as yellow tansy.

Sara Persselin, our Invasive Plants Coordinator, has been playing weed games with kids in several summer camps and has plans to work with some Kodiak Master Gardeners next week. She is scheduled for a presentation at Fort Abercrombie on Saturday June 26, 6pm. Stop by and learn more about Kodiak Invasive Plants and what you can do to stop their spread.

Thanks for caring! – Blythe Brown

Hands Across the Sand? - From Switgard
Check this out. Do you think we would have some support for joining an action like this and do our own Hands-accross-the sand event in Kodiak? - Switgard
1Sky has joined with a nationwide effort to sponsor "Hands Across the Sand" on Saturday, June 26th, when groups of people will gather at beaches and communities throughout America at 11:00AM local time to send a message to the President and Congress: NO to drilling, and YES to a clean energy economy!
Visit our website to attend a "Hands Across the Sand" event in your area

***
Want to recycle your old five gallon buckets? There’s no better way than by modifying them into “global buckets.” Check it out at www.globalbuckets.org.
***

Swaps and Trades:
Your seeds email reminded me that I meant to ask you something: I don’t have much of a garden only a few planter boxes, but I am looking for a few plants that I would like to have:
2 tomatoes for my living room window (best are cherry or grape varieties)
3 or 4 dill plants for my planter outside (last year I had some great ones and they go so well with fish)
1 bushel of chives
Strawberry Fields doesn’t have these, I’ve been there three times to look. Do you know where I could get lucky? I don’t have plants to trade but maybe a piece of fish. – Switgard, switgard@gci.net

Kodiak as a Sustainable Community

Did you see the article on Kodiak as a sustainable community in the Alaska Airlines magazine? http://alaskaairlines.journalgraphicsdigital.com/current/

Starts on page 30

Very nice !

Draft of Proposed Alaska State Energy Policy

Very important blueprint for our state!!!

http://www.legis.state.ak.us/basis/get_bill_text.asp?hsid=HB0306C&session=26

CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 306(RES)                                                                
01 "An Act declaring a state energy policy."                                                                           
                                                                          

Sustainable Kodiak Meeting, Friday, March 19, 6:30 pm

February 26 Meeting Announcement

First Meeting for 2010

Composted Soil for Your Garden? Kodiak Biosolids!

Biosolid Composting: Experiment in Kodiak

Lab tests released this week by Soil Control Lab show the experiment was a success. What was once toilet paper and human waste is now soil. Tests confirm the soil is sufficiently low in heavy metals and other potential toxins. It can now be used to grow flowers and vegetables.

The material used to make the soil would usually end up at the Kodiak Borough Landfill.

But the current load of soil is only an experiment to see if biosolids — the technical term for the main solid byproduct of sewage treatment — can be turned into dirt. The load of soil, composed of a week’s worth of biosolids, will probably produce only a couple of dump truck loads of soil in the coming spring when workers will screen out the woodchips used in the composting process.

After some number crunching and evaluation of public opinion the city will make decisions regarding the expansion of the project.

“We now want to find out if this is something the community wants,” plant supervisor Hap Heiberg said. “When I see people at Safeway they’ve been very supportive, and want to know how they can get compost.”

Heiberg said options for disposal of biosolids from the treatment plant include continuing to take them to the borough landfill, burning them, hauling them off island or composting. The city must now weigh the options.

He said Kodiak is now ahead of most Alaska communities in its water treatment because it invested in a secondary water treatment system. Most Alaska communities, including Anchorage, only send wastewater through a primary system.

To be placed on a list of people interested in receiving compost from the wastewater plant, e-mail Heiberg at hheiberg@city.kodiak.ak.us or call 486-8076.

Mirror writer Sam Friedman can be reached via e-mail at sfriedman@kodiakdailymirror.com.

See the full article here:
http://www.kodiakdailymirror.com/?pid=19&id=8284

Alaska Climate Change Compact

For your consideration: Should Kodiak join this statement?

Alaska Coastal Communities Global Climate Change Compact

Alaska has more miles of coastline than all the rest of the United States. The vast majority of our state’s residents call our coastal communities home. These communities generate billions in economic activity. From Metlakatla to Kaktovik, people have lived along Alaska’s vast coast for thousands of years and depended on rich biological ocean resources for survival. Today, the cultural identity and survival of Alaska’s coastal communities still depend on the ocean resources that support commercial fishing, tourism, recreation and subsistence.

We, the undersigned Alaskan local and regional governments and elected officials, express our deep concern about human-induced global climate change and ocean acidification and issue a call to policymakers to take strong and immediate action to prevent catastrophic impacts from greenhouse gas emissions. We recognize the validity of the following statements:

1. Global climate change represents one of the greatest threats of our time. The Intergovernental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the world’s leading scientific body on this subject, has presented compelling evidence of climate change’s dangerous effects and has recommended steps to avoid them. The IPCC has called on nations to collectively curtail greenhouse gas emissions to ensure that atmospheric concentrations peak no later than 2015 and decline 80 percent by 2050, compared to 2000. The IPCC has concluded with 90 percent confidence that today’s climate changes are attributable to human activity, primarily from the burning of fossil fuels.

2. Ocean acidification is caused by increased carbon dioxide concentrations from the burning of fossil fuels and is accelerating. The daily uptake of over 22 million tons of carbon dioxide into the ocean is causing ocean acidification and threatens many forms of marine life by decreasing the ability of certain organisms to build their shells and skeletal structures. Ocean acidification has the potential, within decades, to severely affect marine organisms, food webs, biodiversity and fisheries.

3. Global climate change and ocean acidification threaten communities in Alaska. Because high latitude regions of the earth are particularly vulnerable to the impacts of global climate change, Alaska has been described as “ground zero” for climate change. Coastal erosion, thawing permafrost, and spruce bark beetle infestations are evidence of climate change in Alaska. In addition, ocean acidification threatens the fisheries that provide food, jobs, and cultural identity to many Alaskans, particularly in coastal communities.

4. Alaskan coastal communities are important to the nation, and Alaska can play a role in addressing climate change and ocean acidification. Alaska produces more than half of the seafood caught in the United States. Alaska also has potential to mitigate climate change and ocean acidification, through development and export of renewable energy technologies that can be used throughout the developing world.

5. There are compelling economic arguments to act now. Positive economic development and diversification of Alaska’s economy will be associated with addressing climate change in the state. Furthermore, the economic costs of inaction will be far greater than the costs associated with immediate action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in line with IPCC recommendations.

6. The United States has an obligation to take a leadership role in addressing global climate change. With only 5 percent of the world’s population, the United States produces approximately 25 percent of the world’s annual greenhouse gas emissions.

7. For the well-being of current and future generations, immediate action must be taken at all levels of government and throughout society to address global climate change and ocean acidification. Given the seriousness of these problems, policies and programs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions must constitute a priority when allocating government resources.

We hereby express support for the following policies, actions and initiatives:

1. At the national level, immediately enact climate legislation that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions to meet or exceed the goals recommended by the IPCC; e.g., 80 percent reduction from 2000 levels by 2050.
2. Reengage at the national level in the international process of dealing effectively with global climate change.
3. At the national and state levels, enact legislation and fund initiatives that will dramatically increase energy efficiency and the production of renewable energy.
4. Utilize a significant portion of the proceeds from national cap-and-trade legislation, carbon tax, or other sources to fund initiatives in Alaska that will:

- develop renewable energy resources, improve energy efficiency in buildings, transportation, etc., in all sectors of the economy
- increase public knowledge of issues related to greenhouse gas emissions,
- create a skilled workforce for a new clean-energy economy
- help vulnerable communities adapt to unavoidable climate-related impacts
- protect or rebuild infrastructure that is threatened by climate impacts
- enhance research in the area of ocean acidification
- enhance research in the areas of energy efficiency and renewable energy.

We further express our commitment to:
1. network with other Alaskan coastal communities on the issues of climate change and ocean acidification;
2. encourage actions within our own communities to mitigate climate change and ocean acidification and adapt to unavoidable changes;
3. make wise and effective use of resources provided by the state and federal governments for such actions; and
4. support community efforts to educate the public on these issues.

Signatories:
City and Borough of Sitka
City of Homer
City of Petersburg
City of Dillingham
City of Gustavus
Kenai Peninsula Borough

Celebrating International Climate Change Action Day: 'A Sea Change'

On Thursday, October 15, at 6pm at the refuge visitor center downtown AMCC will sponsor a showing of the movie

“A Sea Change” by John Pierre Gattuso. Kodiak scientist Bob Foy is a leader in Ocean Acidification Research and will be present to answer questions after the showing. Don’t miss this!! Bring the family.

Here is a review excerpt from Southern Fried Movies:
Stop whatever you are doing and immediately make plans to go see “A Sea Change”. Why are you still reading this review? Ok, if you need convincing, read on, but it will be time you could have spent seeing one of the best environmental documentaries of all time.

“A Sea Change” is about ocean acidification, which could well be the worst problem you’ve never heard of. This was one of the first major screenings- another was earlier this week at the U.N.

The movie follows a retired history teacher named Sven Huseby as he travels the world learning about this problem. This style is unique and works very well- he isn’t a scientist, he’s a regular guy who is concerned and is trying to learn from the experts.
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Thank you,

Switgard


To learn more about the International Day of Action on Climate Change go to http://www.350.org/