Climate-Safe Infrastructure will be Important in ÐӰÉԭ°æ’s Energy Future

 

Climate-Safe Infrastructure will be Important in ÐӰÉԭ°æ’s Energy Future

In the third of five videos highlighting content from the ÐӰÉԭ°æ’s Changing Arctic: Energy Issues and Trends report, Rick Thoman and John Walsh of the International Arctic Research Center at UAF discuss ÐӰÉԭ°æ’s changing weather impacts on energy system infrastructure and convey the key points that state leaders must consider when navigating decisions against the backdrop of a rapidly changing Arctic.

The University of ÐӰÉԭ°æ recently released the first in a series of informational reports designed to aid state leaders as ÐӰÉԭ°æ confronts a transforming Arctic and the increasingly globalized North. 

The report was led by UAF’s Center for Arctic Policy Studies at the International Arctic Research Center, with help from the ÐӰÉԭ°æ Center for Energy and Power and UAA’s Institute of Social and Economic Research.

A video series created by ACEP’s chief storyteller Amanda Byrd will cover each topic in the report.

The report covers four energy topics:

  • The history of ÐӰÉԭ°æ’s reliance on oil and the boom-bust impact on the state’s economy. (Watch a short video: .)

  • How ÐӰÉԭ°æ currently produces energy and has become an expert in cold-climate renewables and microgrids (Watch a short video: .)

  • Energy infrastructure planning under rapidly changing environmental conditions (Watch a short video: .)

  • Current competition and cooperation in the international Arctic energy regime. 

Read or download the report here: .

 

ÐӰÉԭ°æ Department of Transportation and Public Facilities works to repair Bear Creek Bridge on the Richardson Highway after high rainfall caused the creek to wash away the road. Photo by ÐӰÉԭ°æ DOT.