Alaska Business August 2017 by Alaska Business

MANUFACTURING | ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES | MARKETING | TOURISM August 2017 Digital Edition

TAPS Forty-Year Anniversary Governor Walker: Increased output key to recovery page 40

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August 2017 Digit al Edition TA BLE OF CONTENTS

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FROM THE EDITOR EAT, SHOP, PLAY, STAY EVENTS CALENDAR RIGHT MOVES BUSINESS EVENTS INSIDE ALASKA BUSINESS ALASKA TRENDS AD INDEX

ABOUT THE COVER: Alaska—for all its size—often feels like a small town: despite advancing technology we’re still isolated in many ways and, even as we grow, Alaskans keep an eye out for each other. In terms of recycling and renewable energy, Alaska’s rural communities, though small, are powerhouses driving forward the hybrid and renewable energy industries. They’re particularly motivated, as the high cost of fuel in remote Alaska is an increasing burden. But those communities aren’t alone; in Alaska’s large population centers innovative methods of recycling and reusing and new ideas for renewable energy are being developed and implemented, improving the quality of life for all our Alaskan neighbors.

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ARTICLES

Cover Design: Art Director David Geiger

Energy & Power Special Section

MARKETING

8 | Effective Public Relations Maintenance

A cutout designed by Annie Brace for Huddle, which provides services to facilitate outdoor projects such as parks and trails.

14 | Graphic Design III Beyond just business By Tasha Anderson

EDUCATION

20 | Continuing Education for Professionals

‘Experience and education are unstoppable’ By Julie Stricker

Environmental Services Special Section

Photo by Dawne Mangus

Image courtesy of Corso Graphics

Why it’s important for reputation and success By Tracy Barbour

48 | Recycling in Alaska Slow, steady growth By Tom Anderson

54 | Hazardous Waste Disposal in Rural Alaska

It’s not as easy as taking out the trash By Tom Anderson

58 | 2017 Environmental

Services Firms & Recycling Services Directory 4

Alaska Village Electric Cooperative’s 100 kW wind turbines at Toksook Bay.

28 | Alaska’s Alternative Energy Sources

How hybrid and renewable energy power rural communities By Richard Perry

34 | The State of Renewable Energy in Rural Alaska

Renewable energy delivers benefits to rural areas of Alaska By Judy Mottl

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

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Augus t 2 017 Digit a l Edition TA B L E

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ARTICLES The trans-Alaska pipeline is still standing strong after forty years. © Alyeska Pipeline Service Company

40 REAL ESTATE

24 | The Past, Present, and Future of the Anchorage Housing Market

An inside look at the current housing market in Alaska’s most populous city By Connie Yoshimura

OIL & GAS

40 | TAPS After Forty Years Increased output key to recovery, says Governor Walker By Garrison Wells

46 | AOGA, BP, and

ConocoPhillips on the State of Oil in Alaska

TRANSPORTATION

68 | Saved by Alaskans

Volunteers not only help save lives, they save money for the state By Jessica Rohloff

TOURISM

74 | Stretching the Reach of Alaska’s Tourism Industry Visa agreement opens doors to more Chinese visitors By Sam Friedman

Coast Guard Cutter John F. McCormick crew transits through the San Francisco Bay earlier this year during their voyage to homeport in Ketchikan, Alaska. Photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Loumania Stewart

Experts answer ABM questions about the oil industry today and tomorrow By Kathryn Mackenzie and Tasha Anderson

MANUFACTURING

66 | Supplying Alaska’s

Restaurants, Stores, and Homes

The ins-and-outs of food manufacturing in the Last Frontier By Julie Stricker

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

FROM THE EDITOR

Rethinking Recycling

VOLUME 33, NUMBER 8 Published by Alaska Business Publishing Co. Anchorage, Alaska EDITORIAL STAFF Managing Editor Kathryn Mackenzie 257-2907 editor@akbizmag.com

Associate Editor Tasha Anderson 257-2902 tanderson@akbizmag.com Art Director David Geiger 257-2916 design@akbizmag.com Art Production Linda Shogren 257-2912 production@akbizmag.com Photo Contributor Judy Patrick BUSINESS STAFF President Billie Martin VP & General Manager Jason Martin 257-2905 jason@akbizmag.com VP Sales & Marketing Charles Bell 257-2909 cbell@akbizmag.com Advertising Account Manager Janis J. Plume 257-2917 janis@akbizmag.com Advertising Account Manager Holly Parsons 257-2910 hparsons@akbizmag.com Advertising Account Manager Christine Merki 257-2911 cmerki@akbizmag.com Accounting Manager Ana Lavagnino 257-2901 accounts@akbizmag.com Customer Service Representative Emily Olsen 257-2914 emily@akbizmag.com 501 W. Northern Lights Boulevard, Suite 100 Anchorage, Alaska 99503-2577 (907) 276-4373 | Toll Free: 1-800-770-4373 Fax: (907) 279-2900 www.akbizmag.com Editorial email: editor@akbizmag.com ALASKA BUSINESS PUBLISHING CO., INC. Alaska Business (ISSN 8756-4092) is published monthly by Alaska Business Publishing Co., Inc., 501 W. Northern Lights Boulevard, Suite 100, Anchorage, Alaska 99503-2577; Telephone: (907) 276-4373; Fax: (907) 279-2900, ©2017, Alaska Business Publishing Co. All rights reserved. Subscription Rates: $39.95 a year. Single issues of the Power List are $15 each. Single issues of Alaska Business are $3.95 each; $4.95 for October, and back issues are $5 each. Send subscription orders and address changes to the Circulation Department, Alaska Business, 501 W. Northern Lights Boulevard, Suite 100, Anchorage, Alaska 99503-2577. Please supply both old and new addresses and allow six weeks for change, or update online at www.akbizmag.com. Manuscripts: Email query letter to editor@akbizmag.com. Alaska Business is not responsible for unsolicited materials. Photocopies: Where necessary, permission is granted by the copyright owner for libraries and others registered with Copyright Clearance Center to photocopy any article herein for $1.35 per copy. Send payments to CCC, 27 Congress Street, Salem, MA 01970. Copying done for other than personal or internal reference use without the expressed permission of Alaska Business Publishing Co., Inc. is prohibited. Email specific requests to editor@akbizmag.com. Online: Alaska Business is available at www.akbizmag.com/ Digital-Archives, www.thefreelibrary.com/Alaska+Business+Monthly-p2643 and from Thomson Gale. Microfilm: Alaska Business is available on microfilm from University Microfilms International, 300 North Zeeb Rd., Ann Arbor, MI 48106.

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educe, Reuse, Recycle. Since the early 1970s that slogan has been used to bring awareness to increasing air pollution, water contamination, and unchecked waste. In many parts of the Lower 48, recycling is not just second nature, it’s expected. Instead of pushing one garbage bin the curb for pickup, residents line up their municipality-provided recycling bins with their contents meticulously separated into paper, plastic, glass, and “other.” In Alaska, where less than 5 percent of the population recycles, “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle” requires a fourth “R”: Rethink. The “re-thinking” is that it will benefit Alaska’s communities to take a new look at waste, whether that’s working to minimize the logistical challenges that stand in the way of moving, storing, or recycling waste appropriately or discovering new ways recycling can serve as an economic and environmental boon. At its most basic, recycling is defined as converting waste products into new products: sounds simple. But Alaskans know that in the Last Frontier it’s rare that any endeavor is simple. Improving our recycling record will require Alaskan fortitude, creativity, and a strong desire to make a difference; and because those characteristics already exist throughout the state in each community, the foundation for change has already been laid. Alaska is home to more than 200 municipal landfills and an additional 115 waste storage, treatment, or disposal facilities that support Alaska industries, including oil and gas, mining, timber, construction, fishing, and tourism, according to the State of Alaska’s Division of Environmental Health Solid Waste Program website. No matter the amount of space available, the need remains to keep recyclable materials out of Alaska’s landfills. The longer our landfills work for their communities, the better—not just because constructing a new landfill is costly but because in most cases, it’s not necessary: not if we rethink how we handle our “garbage.” For example, in a recent road project in Anchorage, glass waste was diverted from the landfill, crushed, and used as clean fill without any additional cost to the project. Everyone wins. Much like recycling waste, Alaska’s residents are also focused on recycling and rethinking how they create and use energy. Communities statewide are realizing the benefits of turning glass, metal, and paper into reusable materials and finding renewable sources of energy. Especially in the state’s most rural areas, such as the small Alaska Native community of Hughes. Locals are taking advantage of energy resources including biomass fuel, which uses organic materials (in this case wood) as a renewable and sustainable source of energy to produce electricity. Hughes is also a prime example of hybrid energy at work. The community of no more than ninety people uses a mix of biomass, solar, and diesel to power and heat its homes, school, church, and tribal offices. (Quick note: Look for a feature story on touring Hughes in our September issue). In this issue we look at how rural villages across the state are rethinking how to reuse, recycle, and reduce waste. We also examine renewable and hybrid energy sources and offer up examples of how alternative energy is making an economic difference in Alaska’s communities. While oil is and will remain the backbone of Alaska’s economy and a primary source of fuel and energy production, the state’s energy needs are growing, making room for diversified energy sources such as wind turbines, solar panels, and biomass boilers, all of which can help reduce energy costs in communities that badly need a break from the high cost of... everything. In addition to our Environmental Services and Energy & Power Special Sections, the August issue features a special guest column on the state of housing in Anchorage, the final entry of an exceptional, three-part series on Alaska’s burgeoning graphic design industry, and how Alaska became a premier travel destination for Chinese tourists. Enjoy! —Kathryn Mackenzie, Managing Editor, Alaska Business

www.akbizmag.com

August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

MARKETING

Maintenance important for reputation and success By Tracy Barbour

“We thought it would make an interesting angle that this credit union in Alaska had developed this program that will be used by credit unions nationally.”

Photo courtesy of Denali Federal Credit Union

hen Denali Federal Credit Union wanted to get the word out about how a new product it created in Anchorage was picked up by a major software vendor for national distribution, it issued a news release. It was an exciting development for the credit union when Denali’s subsidiary, Deep Future Analytics, created risk modeling technology designed to help financial institutions nationwide address their CECL (Current Expectations for Credit Loss) issues. The locally-distributed news release was an ideal way to inform the media and, ultimately, the public about Denali’s state-ofthe-art product and industry leadership. “We thought it would make an interesting angle that this credit union in Alaska had developed this program that will be used by credit unions nationally,” says Keith Fernandez, Denali’s vice president of corporate communications and development.

—Keith Fernandez Vice President of Corporate Communications and Development Denali Federal Credit Union

Beyond News Releases News releases are just one of many strategies businesses, nonprofits, and other entities can use to shape their relationship with the public. This practice, known as public relations

or “PR,” involves the sharing of information between an organization and different audiences, including prospective customers, cur-

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

rent clients, employees, partners, investors, and other stakeholders. Or, in the words of Fernandez, PR is simply “Doing good and telling people about it.” Every business needs to communicate what it is, what it does, and how it can help consumers achieve their goals. PR is a key part of any effective corporate communication strategy. “If PR is done correctly, it’s not just an external communication tool,” Fernandez says, “but it’s also a good sounding board to let you know how people think about you and what’s going on so you can help your constituency.” Education is an important part of the communication process, Fernandez says. A good PR professional will find a way to educate the public using various channels including newspaper articles, seminars, workshops, newsletters, sponsorships, and community events. For example, as part of its Community Counts initiative, Denali and its employees support a variety of local causes and organizations through initiatives such as Anchorage Cleanup Day, rebuilding a local park in Juneau, Fairbanks Resource Agency, Junior Achievement, and the Alaska Children’s Hospital. Combining effective PR with other marketing tools helps organizations disseminate positive messages designed to generate goodwill with the public. “Your constituency needs to hear the message in various ways and in an ongoing way,” Fernandez says. “Then when someone needs to take action, they will remember that they heard about you.” Fernandez is a firm believer that an effective communications program must be supported by public relations. “If you’re effective at what you do with your communications, you can and will help your business grow and prosper,” he says.

PR Starts at Home Jennifer Thompson, president and CEO of Thompson & Co. Public Relations, employs a mix of PR tools for her clients. The Anchorage-based, national firm doesn’t just send out a new release with the hope of generating media publicity for clients, it also makes use of targeted pitches to journalists, press trips, and speaking engagements. Thompson & Co. also creates special events to incite excitement and draw extra attention to its clients. When the Pier 1 chain of stores came to Alaska, for instance, Thompson & Co. organized an event in which an Alaska Native Olympian high kicked the ceremonial opening-day ribbon instead of cutting it. Thompson & Co. has also held outside events infused with fanfare—including a scavenger hunt—to help clients introduce new product offerings. “I like doing special events that feel cool and give the media something else to cover, other than the fact that we have a new product,” Thompson says. Regardless of the tactics being used, effective PR should produce significant and positive results for organizations, Thompson says. “The positive impact of a strategic public relations program is that it will help ensure the right messages reach the right people,” she says. “Public relations helps organize communication with different audiences, and it makes sure PR ties back to the end goal.” www.akbizmag.com

“The positive impact of a strategic public relations program is that it will help ensure the right messages reach the right people. Public relations helps organize communication with different audiences, and it makes sure PR ties back to the end goal.”

—Jennifer Thompson President and CEO Thompson & Co. Public Relations

When PR campaigns are successful, they result in trusted third-party recommendations for the company, through media stories, word-of-mouth “advertising,” and other exposure. The most positive results are the mitigation of negative impressions through crisis communication. In fact, Thompson says, good PR starts at home, and the best PR never sees the light of day. “It’s all about the work we do behind the scenes,” she says. PR can work well with advertising, which involves paying to spread the word about a product or service. However, PR is about building the company’s relationship with stakeholders. And it can result in “earned” media coverage that tends

Photo courtesy of Thompson & Co. Public Relations

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Leveraging Social Media Social media can be an excellent PR tool because it provides a direct line for communicating with consumers. This direct interaction tends to make consumers feel more valued and build brand loyalty, according to Thompson.

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“If you think of that PR program as a 6,000-foot view, a marketing campaign or advertising might be a tactic within the overall program. They should all be working together in a cohesive manner, and at the end of the day, it’s about helping the organization meet its goals and objectives.”

Image courtesy of Sydney Michelle Photography

to carry a higher level of credibility than paid advertising, Thompson says. “Writers are covering our clients because there is a good, newsworthy story, not because it’s an ad buy,” she adds. PR professional Michelle Renfrew has similar thoughts about the benefits of public relations. Earned media coverage is just as important, if not more so, than paid advertising—especially if it’s positive, says Renfrew, the 2017 president of the Public Relations Society of America’s Alaska Chapter, which has approximately 200 members. Positive PR can produce priceless stories in the media, wordof-mouth by stakeholders, and social media posts. Marketing and advertising, she says, are important tactics in an overall comprehensive PR program, and many of these elements will be carried out simultaneously by organizations. “If you think of that PR program as a 6,000-foot view, a marketing campaign or advertising might be a tactic within the overall program,” says Renfrew, who is also the director of University Relations for University of Alaska Fairbanks. “They should all be working together in a cohesive manner, and at the end of the day, it’s about helping the organization meet its goals and objectives.”

—Michelle Renfrew Public Relations Society of America, Alaska Chapter 2017; President and Director of University Relations for University of Alaska Fairbanks

When helping clients, Thompson likes to turn their social media channel into a story platform. “It’s about helping them curate content that’s not salesy,” she says. “We are story tellers, and effective social media tells a story that engages the audience,” she says. However, social media may not be suitable for every business, especially those that do not target the general public. Still, companies should consider the benefits of social media carefully before they dismiss it, she

says. “In today’s digital world, we don’t have to wait for an article,” Thompson says. “With social media, you have your own news portal. You get the opportunity to control your message and share things about your company that may not fit in the traditional news cycle.” There is a plethora of social media platforms available, and the platforms organizations choose should be based on their target demographic. For example, Facebook could

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be a good choice for reaching an older audience, while Instagram is more popular with the younger generation. And Twitter is increasingly being used by the media. Organizations that do choose to include social media in their PR program should be meticulous in their approach. They need to make sure they have someone with good spelling and grammar skills creating their messages. Presenting well-written, accurate information is critical. “You’re creating a persona for your company, if you will, so you want to be real thoughtful about who is behind your social media,” Thompson says. Denali FCU incorporates a variety of social media channels, particularly Facebook, to communicate with and provide help to its members. Messages sent to the credit union’s

Facebook page are distributed to everyone in the marketing department, which strives to respond quickly—especially when members have a problem or concern. That’s what happened when a customer sent Denali a Facebook message about a critical issue involving his credit card. “We were able to get his card reactivated, so he could continue enjoying his vacation,” Fernandez says. Renfrew says social media engages and builds relationships with customers through real-time interaction—which is especially helpful in a crisis situation. Social media is also a great way to discover what a company’s customers think, like, want, and need. “You can really share your brand and allow your customers to really get to know your organization and what you stand for,” Renfrew says.

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Social media is also relatively inexpensive, making it ideal for small businesses on a tight budget. But a business shouldn’t use social media if it’s not going to maintain a consistent presence. “You should not have an Instagram or Facebook page if you’re only going to post once every two weeks,” Renfrew says.

The PR Process From Renfrew’s perspective, PR is a broad practice that encompasses a number of competency areas: trusted counsel to the leadership team and CEO of the organization; internal communications; media relations; community relations; external communications with customers, investors and other stakeholders, events, issues management, crisis communications, and public/legislative. When properly done, there’s a methodology and process to public relations, according to Renfrew. She divides the PR process into four key parts: research, planning, implementation, and evaluation. Often organizations want to jump right to the tactic, whether it’s building a new website or running an ad campaign. But research first must be done to determine the issue the organization is trying to solve and what it wants to achieve. That research, which can be qualitative or quantitative, can encompass focus groups, surveys, and other tools. From there, planning can help organizations identify the appropriate strategies and tactics to implement. Unfortunately, there’s no one-size-fits-all plan for success when it comes to PR. When the tactics are closely tied to the company’s goals and business objectives, they are much more likely to generate positive results. “Strategic PR planning, when done right, can be very effective in helping an organization reaching their goals and business objective,” Renfrew says. Organizations often will invest money, time, resources, and personnel into different kinds of activities but don’t necessarily stop to evaluate what worked, if they reached their goals, and why. But the evaluation at the end is a critical step, Renfrew says. It’s how they can determine the effectiveness of their PR efforts. However, if a PR campaign doesn’t “move the needle of public opinion” or generate awareness about a product, it doesn’t mean it’s a failure. The evaluation can help the organization determine what worked and didn’t work, and this information can be useful for refining strategies and tactics in the future. “You can’t be afraid of failure,” Renfrew says. “What works for one organization may not work for another.” Importance of PR Maintenance It’s essential for organizations to have an ongoing, proactive public relations program to ensure the success of their brand. Their brand— the mental image that comes to mind when someone talks about the organization—is their most precious asset, Renfrew says. “A company with a strong reputation and strong brand that has built trust with its stakeholders is much more likely to be successful in the long term, especially in a crisis situation,” she says.

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

“A company with a strong reputation and strong brand that has built trust with its stakeholders is much more likely to be successful in the long term, especially in a crisis situation.”

—Michelle Renfrew Public Relations Society of America, Alaska Chapter 2017; President and Director of University Relations for University of Alaska Fairbanks

Reputation is everything, and it’s especially critical for small businesses to manage their PR and carve out what makes them unique and special, Renfrew says. One way they can do this is by providing stellar customer service and building a personal relationship with customers—which is something larger competitors may not be able to do. “If you have a strong reputation and take care of your customers, you will keep them coming back,” Renfrew says. Thompson also feels that companies must proactively manage their PR programs. And PR maintenance is more important now than ever, she says. With so much marketing focused on peer reviews and the advent of “fake news,” it’s essential for PR practitioners to help organizations distinguish themselves as reliable sources of information. This can help them cut through all the noise in the marketplace and present positive messages to the public. “Having someone take your message to the media and have it be credible and trustworthy is crucial,” Thompson says. Thompson adds: “Expectations are high for companies to be community-minded, socially-responsible, transparent, and accessible. In this digital world, consumers demand instant access to information, and a strong PR program can support that.” With an increasingly competitive marketplace, PR is going to become even more important, Renfrew says. Thankfully, it doesn’t take a large department of people or a ton of money to engage in PR. Businesses can devise a well-thought-out plan with inexpensive tactics to effectively strengthen their reputation and customer base. Or if they don’t have the expertise or time, they could outsource their PR to a small agency or independent contractor. Organizations that want to expand their PR knowledge can take advantage of a Communicator’s Exchange that PRSA Alaska is hosting in Anchorage on September 14-15. The event, which is open to the public, will feature national and Alaska-based experts speaking about different aspects of PR. In addition, PRSA Alaska holds informative meetings each month for its members and the public. R Tracy Barbour is a former Alaskan. www.akbizmag.com

August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

MARKETING

Graphic Design III

Image by Jontue Hollingsworth

Jontue Hollingsworth, owner of Headron Collider, designed this poster for “The Big One 2016,” an annual design show for AIGA Alaska.

Beyond just business By Tasha Anderson Note: This is part three of a three-part series exploring the graphic design industry in Alaska. Parts one and two appeared in the April and July issues of Alaska Business.

ontue Hollingsworth, owner of graphic design company Headron Collider, says design “has always been a part of me; I’ve always been creative.” It was while Hollingsworth was attending college to study industrial technology that he learned graphic design is a career “where I could be a professional and be creative at the same time.” He switched his major two years into school.

Creative Balance Creativity is a vital part of graphic design, and Hollingsworth says that he named his company with the creative process in mind. Headron Collider is a play on the Hadron Collider, the world’s largest and most powerful particle accelerator, located in Switzerland. He explains, “That [particle acceleration] process reminds me of the creative 14

“We all have ideas, [but] we can’t physically see them. You share your thoughts, I share my thoughts, and then together we start to gain momentum and we can bring something into existence, something new that we’ve never seen before.”

—Jontue Hollingsworth, Owner of Headron Collider

process. We all have ideas, [but] we can’t physically see them. You share your thoughts, I share my thoughts, and then together we start to gain momentum and we can bring something into existence, something new that we’ve never seen before.” Hollingsworth says the majority of the work that he does for his clients is branding, including logo production and identity systems. He says he dedicates a portion of his time to nonprofit work, as well. For example, he’s been working with the League of Women Voters Anchorage, an organization that promotes political responsibility through education and participation in government. This year he’s helping develop an anti-bullying campaign.

No matter the design project, it’s important to understand its purpose and audience, and there must be a balance between creativity and practical concerns. “It’s a very fine line,” Hollingsworth says. “I get bored really quickly and my mind tends to wander, and there’s a whole creative experimentation process that can go on forever, but you have to understand that it’s not just art, it does serve a purpose, and it has to communicate a message.”

Design on the Side Screamin’ Yeti Designs Owner Mike Kirkpatrick has found a unique way to utilize some of his creative work that might otherwise never see the light of day. Kirkpatrick says that he’ll

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

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Images by Jontue Hollingsworth

Anti-bullying campaign posters (right) and branding/ logo (left) for Anchorage Youth Vote, designed by Jontue Hollingsworth.

often work on designs that ultimately aren’t selected by the client, not because they’re bad but “there are going to be things I think are really great that either don’t fit or aren’t what the client is looking for.” He continues, “In-

Photo by Jontue Hollingsworth

The Beg, Yarrow or Seal label was designed by Jontue Hollingsworth for Broken Tooth Brewing.

stead of having them languish inside of my machine,” he’ll take strong designs and turn them into other merchandise. For example, in addition to Kirkpatrick’s professional design services, he also produces shirts, hoodies, t-shirts, and stickers. He started doing this about twelve years ago— a friend had passed along a very rough idea that eventually became Kirkpatrick’s “Get High in the Chugach” design. He took about $200, ordered a limited run of shirts, and sold them out of a backpack. “People liked that design, so I thought I’d keep that going,” he says. “At the time I had a friend out in Palmer that had a silk screen set up. He had a bunch of ideas but not the [design] skill to get these rudimentary drawings refined. So we worked together for years.” Most Anchorage residents have seen Kirkpatrick’s creative work, though they may not know it. He designs and draws the chalkboard signs that display specials for Moose’s Tooth Pub & Pizzeria. It’s a highly creative project because the pizzeria simply gives him a list of the specials and leaves the design work up to him. “I really have free reign to do whatever, as long as it’s not offensive,” Kirkpatrick laughs. “It’s still graphic design, but it’s more hands on.”

Path-side Graphic Art Chalkboard signs are one of those ubiquitous designs that people see every day, likely without giving much thought as to how they were conceived or who created them. Annie Brace, owner of Corso Graphics, has her work displayed statewide, although the majority her appreciative viewers don’t know who she is. She says, “My whole life I’ve always been an artist—more of a fine art artist—and then when I was in high school I wanted a different outlet for creativity aside from handrendered art.” When Brace moved to Alaska in 2004, she initially worked for a landscape architecture firm through which she built relationships with many of her current clients. “I had fostered great relationships with Parks & Recreation, Anchorage Park Foundation, [and] Great Land Trust... So aside from doing graphics for small businesses—let’s say a logo design which usually branches out to letterhead, business cards, [and] web elements—I

had that relationship with lots of nonprofits in town, so I do a lot of interpretive panels.” Interpretive panels are the informational signs found throughout the state in parks, road pull-outs, at historic sites, and along trails. Corso describes them as “a pause in your walk where you take the time to reflect.” The panels generally describe notable details about the area being visited, such as local wildlife, geology information, plant descriptions, scientific explanations, and historical details. “So if there’s a stream bed, we would show the animals that feed there and how it relates to where you’re standing and how the stream pulls everything together.” Brace explains there’s a methodology involved in creating the signs. She says the signs have about three seconds to grab the viewer’s attention; eight seconds to keep their attention while reading the sub-heading; and “if they’re drawn in they’ll take the time to read the literature below.” A text book on a sign isn’t interesting to anyone. “You want to give them nuggets to inform them without boring them.” Brace’s history with fine art has been a boon for her career, especially in terms of illustrative work, which she says is a “huge facet to my particular style of graphics.” In addition to working digitally, she creates hand-rendered illustrations and watercolors, which she often uses for background on the interpretive panels. “I just did some panels last year at Balto Seppala Park that talked about the serum run, [working with] the Anchorage Park Foundation. There’s a little newly-guided path through Balto Park and there’s five panels, really so kids could engage with the name of the park. I created watercolors of the dogs, and kids love that stuff.” She continues, “Graphic design can spur many [other] facets of design. Some people take their graphic design and they veer into marketing, or they veer into web design or tech stuff; I veer towards illustrative and fine art, and I kind of merge the two in an art/graphic fusion.” Brace also produces prints, stickers, and hats featuring her designs and celebrating Alaska.

Branding for the Branders Hollingsworth, Brace, Kirkpatrick, and George Meyer of Plaid Agency all own their freelance

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

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Annie Brace of Corso Graphics designed this poster for Alaska Clean Harbors, a voluntary, non-regulatory program that works throughout Alaska to help prevent pollution and reduce waste in our harbors and waterways. Image courtesy of Corso Graphics

Joshua D. Hodes

businesses, but in terms of design they’re probably more unique than they are similar. They have different design processes, styles, and mediums, as well as myriad sources of inspiration. Meyer says that the Plaid name was inspired by the cover of the children’s book Elmer by David McKee about an elephant with a patchwork hide. “He isn’t actually plaid,” Meyer says, but inspiration is rarely a direct line. The company’s mascot, a plaid elephant, was conceived from the same place. In addition to traditional business materials and clothing, Kirkpatrick has designed snowboards (in response to “You do a lot of things,” he laughs and agrees). In his younger days he entered a snowboard design contest, and while he didn’t win, one of the judges

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We know Alaska. Image courtesy of Corso Graphics

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Arctic Moon Bakery logo designed by Annie Brace, owner of Corso Graphics.

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

Business cards designed by Annie Brace for Huddle, which provides management, design, facilitation, and public relations services for projects building parks, trails, and other outdoor spaces.

Image courtesy of Corso Graphics

Annie Brace of Corso Graphics designed this poster for the 20th anniversary celebration for Great Land Trust, a nonprofit organization dedicated to conserving the lands and waters of Southcentral Alaska.

Local Presence, Now with National Reach!

called him to compliment him on his ‘screamin’ yeti contribution, which inspired Kirkpatrick’s company name and logo design.

Find the Right Fit Because of everyone’s different skills, backgrounds, and personalities, Hollingsworth encourages businesses, organizations, and individuals in need of design services to shop around for the right designer. “Talk to several designers and find the person that you connect with. A better relationship will work better than just hiring someone that you think is talented because communication is so important—it’s a big part of the process right there.” In order to make sure his clients receive the right designs for their needs, Hollingsworth asks a series of questions: Who is the target audience? What is the message? How does the company want to appear to its clients? Who is the competition? He explains, “Just going through that process you define who you are so you aren’t scattered all over the place trying to appeal to everyone. Usually, when a brand is trying to do that, you appear sort of wishywashy, and you don’t feel very authentic. If you’re trying to appeal to everyone, you can’t. You have to have a backbone and know what you stand for and speak in your voice.” Kirkpatrick emphasizes that a logo and appropriate branding are tools. “It helps set your business apart,” he says. “We live in a world that’s heavily saturated with graphic design all the time; you’re being bombarded daily whether you realize it or not. Good design is a way to make yourself stand out from the competition and say: Look at me—this is what I can do for you.” R

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August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

EDUCATION

Continuing Education for Professionals ‘Experience and education are unstoppable’ By Julie Stricker

n the early 1970s, Charlie Dexter was ready to drop out of college when his dad gave him some advice. “Stay in and get a degree because you never know when the perfect job will come up, and if you don’t have the parchment, you can’t get it,” Dexter recalls his father telling him. Now a professor emeritus of applied business at the University of Alaska Fairbanks Community and Technical College, Dexter says, “I would not be where I am today if I didn’t have my MBA degree.”

Education Builds Careers While starting a business doesn’t require a degree, an MBA is a necessity for moving up in the corporate world, Dexter says. The University of Alaska is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business and students can get degrees at both the Anchorage and Fairbanks campuses. Most courses are available online, which provides more opportunities for those already working who are looking to expand their education. “From my vantage point as a community college teacher, the best way to do it is to get a bachelor’s degree in whatever interests you, then go back and get the MBA on top of that,” he says. “If someone is an engineer, they would be very smart to go back and pick up a graduate business degree on top of their engineering degree. I would not be where I am today if it wasn’t for my bachelor’s degree in tourism and my MBA.” Today, thanks to online courses, anyone can find classes to keep up their accreditation or learn a new skill, but local education entities such as University of Alaska also offer opportunities for continuing education. Packet Networks for Industry Professionals at UAA The University of Alaska also offers several undergraduate and graduate programs designed to offer training for real-world business needs. For example, the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) is setting up a professional development course for network and information technology professionals, according to Terrie Gottstein, special projects officer with the UAA College of Engineering. At the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF), the School of Management offers a degree in emergency and disaster management tailored to the needs of business in a global landscape that sometimes includes natural disasters, potential pandemics, and terror20

“There’s a lot of electrical engineers and working IT professionals that need this training to help them do their actual jobs because technology has advanced so quickly. It’s not just GCI and Alaska Communications and telecommunications companies: things like computer networks are in banks and hospitals. Just about everybody in business now has major computer networks and IT professionals.”

—Terrie Gottstein, Special Projects Officer UAA College of Engineering, University of Alaska Fairbanks

ism. Both programs are aimed at working professionals as well as more traditional students. UAA’s Packet Networks for Industry Professionals is a collaboration between business and the university, Gottstein says. It came about because Mark Ayers, a GCI engineer and adjunct professor in UAA’s Computer Science and Computer Systems Engineering Department, recognized a need for formal education in today’s network systems. The class will focus on computer network engineering and design, a big-picture look at today’s network systems. “There’s a lot of electrical engineers and working IT professionals that need this training to help them do their actual jobs because technology has advanced so quickly,” Gottstein says. “It’s not just GCI and Alaska Communications and telecommunications companies: things like computer networks are in banks and hospitals. Just about everybody in business now has major computer networks and IT professionals.” Ayers says he’s been thinking about the need for a class that gives a broad perspective on the intersection of technology and engineering. “I’m an engineer by education,” he says. “One of the places I continue to see a lack of depth in both academic and industry resources is this field. You have people who go into computer science, who have IT experience from a computer science perspective, who may have a missing piece of information and lack the academic background to put it all together. [This course] really ties everything together in my mind. It’s so critical to everything we do anymore. You can’t have any kind of business without a network connection.” Packet networks are widely used in larger companies, including utilities and healthrelated industries, Ayers says.

The course is focused on industry professionals and will meet twice weekly this fall during the lunch hour; its structure is still being worked out, he says. “We’ve discussed video delivery and having it live-streamed, which is really appealing to me. It would be appealing to people who didn’t want to get into their car and drive across town. They could sit at their desk and eat their lunch and still participate. “You could also market it to rural areas where it’s not cost-effective to fly someone out there.” It will count as continuing education credit, which may be required for professionals in fields such as electrical engineering. Gottstein says the course is a new direction for UAA. “The exciting thing about it is people think of UAA for undergraduate degrees,” she says. “This is something that came out of an industry need and the College of Engineering is helping to meet that need.”

Security and Emergency Management at UAF Real-world applications are behind the UAF School of Management’s bachelor’s degree program in Homeland Security and Emergency Management and Master of Security and Disaster Management, according to program director Cameron Carlson. He is a former combat medic and EMT who served as an Army infantry officer in the Middle East, Africa, Europe, Haiti, and Central Asia. Other faculty members are police officers, firefighters, military veterans, or have experience with government agencies in homeland defense and emergency management. UAF is the only university that offers homeland security and emergency management through its business school, Carlson says.

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

“It makes perfect sense because of the day and age we live in,” he says. Today’s businesses are susceptible to cyber threats, robberies, and even terrorism and natural disasters. To be prepared for disaster, businesses have to plan for the worst case scenario, something governments have been doing for decades. For example, Carlson says, as floodwaters overtook Fairbanks in 1967, UAF became a rallying point for the community. “Individuals who were flooded out were fed, had a place to sleep, and had their health taken care of until floodwaters receded to the point where they could come back.” Many businesses that were flooded out never reopened, he says. The highly interdisciplinary Homeland Security and Emergency Management and Security and Disaster Management program was first approved in 2007 and has been updated to meet changing world needs since then. All of the courses are available online. About 225 undergraduates and 50 graduates are enrolled, many from the Lower 48 via online courses. “We get [students] from three different areas,” Carlson says. “Military veterans transitioning to the workforce, individuals transferring from their bachelor’s degree to graduate school, and members of the work force looking for a graduate program that will get them their next promotion or the next academic challenge so they’re better prepared if another opportunity comes up.” The classes attract students from outside the business school, as well. Computer science students are interested in the cybersecurity management concentration, which is nontechnical, because it has a business management side to it. Others are interested in the all-hazards risk analysis and emergency planning and preparedness courses. When the program first started, it generated interest from firefighters and police officers, but over the years it has seen steady growth in fields such as cybersecurity, he says. Many of the students have worked in technology for years and are largely self-taught on the job, and the program helps provide the academic background they might need for a promotion.

Real World Scenarios It’s not all book learning, either. “Students are actually having to work in the daily duties they would have to perform to go up that ladder at the state, federal, or international work force,” Carlson says. “They work on UN projects or international disaster contracts.” In today’s global economy, it’s not only goods and services that travel but potential pandemics as well. When a flu virus dubbed H1N1 spread around the world in 2009, Carlson was working with the university emergency management team. The virus brought to mind the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic, which infected an estimated 500 million people worldwide, killing up to 50 million. In the United States, more than a quarter of the population fell ill. The H1N1 virus had many of the same markers as the earlier virus. “It was kind of an unknown thing for us how great an effect it would have on the state, how it might affect different parts of the population,” he says. “It really caused us to look at www.akbizmag.com

Engineering the Future, Solving Problems

UAA’s College of Engineering is pleased to announce a new Professional Development course specifically designed for working network, IT and engineering professionals. Packet Networks for Industry Professionals will provide an academic approach to network engineering, design and operation, meeting twice weekly beginning August 28th. Along with our undergraduate degrees, UAA’s College of Engineering also offers an on-line short course in Arctic Engineering required for state professional engineer licensure, and Master’s degree programs in Project Management, and Mechanical and Civil Engineering.

www.uaa.alaska.edu/engineering

August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

“It really caused us to look at how we would safeguard the healthy part of the workforce—things such as social distancing. Do you ask people who are healthy to stay at work, knowing they might be more susceptible to those who are already sick? Or do you keep them at home where they can still do their job, but they might not be as productive, but they’re less likely to get sick?”

— Cameron Carlson, Program Director, Homeland Security and Emergency Management UAF School of Management

how we would safeguard the healthy part of the workforce—things such as social distancing. Do you ask people who are healthy to stay at work, knowing they might be more susceptible to those who are already sick? Or do you keep them at home where they can still do their job, but they might not be as productive, but they’re less likely to get sick?” Fortunately the flu fizzled, but Carlson says it was a great learning experience. He says many people were uncomfortable having to plan how to force quarantine part of the population. The situation came up again with the 2016 Ebola outbreak.

Sometimes, Experience is the Best Teacher A few years ago, Carlson attended a talk given by the man in charge of continuity for Toyota. The company had made a decision to keep the factories making components for its vehicles in Japan to benefit the Japanese work force. But when an earthquake knocked one of its factories making a key component off-line for several weeks, es-

sentially stopping all Toyota automobile manufacturing, they had to re-evaluate that decision. The stoppage cost Toyota $15,000 to $18,000 a minute, Carlson says, and manufacturing stopped for six weeks. “They realized they had to split continuity and move pieces from one continent to another and to the East and West coasts,” he says. “That way, they would not lose everything if something significant were to happen on the east coast. It may not be the most ideal scenario when it comes to lean logistics, but when it comes to long-term sustainability, if another real-world emergency occurred, it would provide for Toyota’s continuous operation.” The same premise applies to information technology in the United States. Companies have different forms of backup and storage facilities, one on the East coast, one on the West coast, and possibly one in the Interior, he says. “In a cyber attack, they might suffer some downtime, but they know they will be able to get a reliable backup so they won’t have lost everything,” Carlson says.

Students in the program learn about these types of real-world scenarios, so when they get a job—whether it’s at a bank, a large corporation, or a government agency—they’re armed not only with a business background but also with a wider world view. Students without a business degree are able to get a jump start on an MBA by taking foundational pre-MBA modules through UAF’s School of Management. The classes offer a foundation in business topics such as statistics, accounting, economics, and management through online, self-study courses. For those who are hesitant about taking the next step in their education, Dexter has some advice. “Take one course a semester and don’t stop,” he says. “In my opinion, experience is more valuable than education, but experience and education are unstoppable.” R Julie Stricker is a journalist living near Fairbanks.

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REAL ESTATE

The Past, Present, and Future of the Anchorage Housing Market An inside look at the current housing market in Alaska’s most populous city

By Connie Yoshimura

hirty years ago, interest rates in Anchorage were 10 percent for a thirtyyear fixed mortgage. The real estate crash hit Anchorage hard, leaving the city with 14,000 empty homes. According to published reports, Anchorage had 30,000 foreclosures and 44,000 more people left the state than arrived. Homeowners simply dropped their house keys off at the bank and drove down the Alcan with what few possessions they had in hand. Forty percent of Alaska’s banks failed during that time period. Today, that same mortgage has a rate of 4 percent, less than 24

half the cost in 1987. For-sale housing inventory is at historic lows, and it’s hard for buyers to find a well-maintained home that’s less than twenty years old at Anchorage’s average sales price of $363,000. Today, Alaska’s foreclosure rate is one of the lowest in the nation at less than 1 percent. The city’s population loss is estimated to be less than 2,000. So for the naysayers in Juneau and the worriers at every coffee shop in Anchorage who believe the sky is falling in on Anchorage’s housing market, it’s not. Not today, not tomorrow, and not in the near future—primarily because Anchorage has a housing shortage. The more than 2,000 oil industry job losses and the minor population loss have had little impact on the housing market in Anchorage, which is the epicenter for the state’s economic activity. According to Thomas E. Aston, economist in the Seattle HUD Regional Office, for the forecast period July 1, 2015–July 1, 2018, Anchorage needs approximately 1,000 new annual housing units, of which 50 percent

should fall within the $300,000 to $500,000 price range. In 2015, Anchorage fulfilled only 75 percent of that projected need. In 2016, Anchorage missed the mark by 75 percent. For the first five months of 2017, only 72 singlefamily unit building permits and 40 duplex building permits were issued. These numbers are almost identical to the historic low of 2016, so it is very likely Anchorage’s housing crisis will continue well into 2018 and beyond.

Lack of Land, Financial Constraints, and Red Tape Both of Anchorage’s two top builders, Hultquist Homes and Spinell Homes, survived the real estate crash of the late 1980s and the milder recession of 2008 and are well-positioned and financed for the future. Even so, through May 2017 Hultquist Homes has only twenty-three single family/duplex units permitted and Spinell has twenty units permitted to build. Aside from Troy Davis, who builds in Eagle River and has thirteen units permitted, all of Anchorage’s other

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

builders’ permits fall into the single digits. Their survival is critical to fulfilling the projected housing needs of Anchorage. Lack of land, self-imposed financial constraints by lenders on speculative building, and the ever-increasing cost of development for roads, water, and sewer extensions, as propelled by the little-known Design Criteria Manual disseminated by the Municipality of Anchorage (MOA) without public review and comment, are all factors contributing to the decline of housing inventory. Additionally, the untimely enactment of the new Title 21 regulations that go far beyond any health and safety requirements and regulate streetscapes and the front elevations of homes adds to the difficulty of new residential construction. More than ten years in the making, the document now faces a series of amendments at the Anchorage assembly to make it userfriendly and eliminate some of the onerous and superfluous design standards, as perceived by many in Anchorage’s real estate world. One example is the required window percentage on front elevations that would force some newly-built ranch homes to possess a fake window inserted into the roof above the garage. What is fascinating about some of these design standards is that a survey of city planners’ and elected officials’ homes (researched by examining MOA tax records) reveals that more than 80 percent of those homes do not meet the current criteria as laid out by MOA documents. A 2012 projected residential land sufficiency study of the Anchorage Bowl projected a total deficit of 8,852 units from 2010 to 2020, and that is only if all the currently available land was built out at its maximum density capacity. Historically this has not been the case in Anchorage as buyers, except for a small percentage, have repeatedly resisted the housing density of R3 and R4 zoning that stacks apartment-style units that ironically cost more on a price-per-square-foot basis due to code regulations and interior corridors that require maintenance. Alaskan buyers repeatedly show a preference for singlefamily living, or at a more affordable level, a duplex unit in which each side is owned by different individuals. Most housing built in R3 and R4 zones also does not accommodate car storage for those Ford 150 pick-up trucks Alaskans love so much.

Building Opportunities New home communities in southeast Anchorage, such as Huffman Timbers and the Terraces, have smaller lots, usually fifty feet to sixty feet wide. In southwest Anchorage, Resolution Pointe, land that was held by Hickel Investments for more than fifty years, offers wider lots, curvilinear streets, and large side yard setbacks, giving it a more luxurious environment. It also has bluff lots, giving it an ambience that most new home communities lack. Other available building opportunities include large-lot, single-family properties located almost exclusively on the hillside. It’s a competitive market, however, and the projected housing demand from 2010 to 2030 www.akbizmag.com

August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

for large-lot, single-family development is only estimated at 362 compared to a capacity of 1,668 units. Clearly, then, in order to meet demand for more moderate homes, up zoning R6 land to higher density becomes a necessity. Along with that comes the need for MOA’s financial participation in the extension of collector roads and water/sewer infrastructure. A lack of buildable and affordable land results in an inadequate supply of new homes, forcing buyers to take a hard look at the resale market, which has remained stable for the past three years. The average sales price continues to hover around the mid-$360,000 range, losing only 1 percent since 2015. That mild drop in value is not area-wide, however. Some locations actually have increased in value during the past year. There are thirteen MLS districts in Anchorage, and the two most expensive areas are De Armoun Road-Potter Marsh with an average sales price of $623,259 and Downtown Anchorage at $408,781. Boniface Parkway to Muldoon Road and Post Road-Glenn Highway are the two least expensive areas to purchase a home at $276,127 and $203,522, respectively. Both of these districts feature aging housing stock and a high proportion of rental housing. Girdwood and Dimond South are both areas with expensive homes and sale prices that average just shy of $400,000. Increases in average sales prices in districts have been propelled by the high cost of new construction homes, which average on

a national basis 20 percent more expensive than resale homes.

Maintenance and Upkeep are Key How well a resale home retains or increases its value depends in large part on an owner’s maintenance and repair commitment, as well as money spent on remodeling. Nationally, only 50 percent of the cost of a remodel can be applied to improving the value of a home, but try to tell that to a seller who has just spent $37,000 replacing thirty-year-old cabinets and countertops. A good remodel makes any home more marketable and appealing to the emerging millennial buyer who, contrary to public perception, actually prefers a single family home in the suburbs. In comparison, a hip downtown loft is more attractive to well-educated, affluent, younger baby boomers, according to the National Association of Home Builders. First time home buyers, in particular, do not have extra funds for a remodel, so when it comes time to sell, the question is whether to remodel or not. One important factor to consider is the home design. Some homeowners—and even builders—learn the hard way that grey and greyish don’t work well as interior colors during Alaska’s dark winters. Styles and colors that are trending today may not be the best remodel choices. During the last week of June 2017, there were approximately 162 fewer single family homes for sale than during the same period a year ago. For-sale inventory remains low, and

buyers’ frustrations are high due to a lack of choice and the high cost of new construction. Millennials, the emerging buyers’ market, frequently ask for seller’s assistance in closing costs because, although they may have been gifted cash or saved for the down payment, they typically lack the additional funds to close. Builders need to build more homes. Lenders need to finance those homes. The MOA needs to build infrastructure before more people and businesses begin migrating out again. And Anchorage residents: take a deep breath. Our housing market is not what you think it is. R

Connie Yoshimura is the Owner/Broker of Dwell Realty and is a former Chair of the Planning and Zoning Commission. She was featured in Anchorage’s Centennial book on Anchorage by Charles Wohlforth. Her avocation is playwriting and she has a Master of Fine Arts Degree from the Writers’ Workshop at the University of Iowa, Iowa City. If you’re interested about real estate in Anchorage and Eagle River, you can read her latest blogs at www.cyalaska.com.

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

SPECIAL SECTION

Energy & Power

Alaska’s Alternative Energy Sources How hybrid and renewable energy power rural communities By Richard Perry

il is and will remain a vital part of Alaska’s economy and a primary source of fuel and energy production. However, as the state’s energy needs grow, so has the need for additional diversified energy sources such as wind, solar, geothermal, and hydroelectric. Diversifying energy options in urban areas such as Anchorage, Fairbanks, and Juneau is ongoing but limited. At the same time, small and rural communities throughout the state are increasingly turning to hybrid energy as a solution to rising oil prices, gaining a reputation for developing hybrid energy systems that are as innovative as they are practical. 28

According to Alaska Energy Authority, 408 MW out of Alaska’s 2,018 MW of installed capacity comes from the state’s renewable energy facilities, including one geothermal, two biomass, four wind power plants, three photovoltaic (or solar), and fifty-two hydroelectric operations.

Defining Hybrid Energy While the term “hybrid” may sound familiar, in this context it has little to do with the popular hybrid electric vehicles. Hybrid power, or hybrid energy systems, consist of two or more energy sources used together to pro-

vide power. In power production for use in utility-scale electric generation or individual homes, the term hybrid describes a combined power and energy storage system. Hybrid energy systems are as diverse as the different methods of power production. In Alaska, communities combine whatever renewable resources are locally available, whether geothermal, biomass, wind, photovoltaic, or hydroelectric, in conjunction with fossil fuels such as oil and gas. Alaska is a world leader in hybrid energy systems, according to the Alaska Center for Energy and Power (ACEP) based at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. With more than thirty installed systems throughout the state, the use of wind-diesel hybrid systems has helped offset the high cost of energy in rural Alaska. As more rural areas struggle with limited infrastructure and inconsistent fuel deliveries, the promise of integrating alternative energy to isolated power grids has proven useful in reducing diesel fuel consumption for heat and power. Economist Mark Foster says, “After having spent some time looking at wind-diesel hybrids across several rural Alaska communities, we’ve been finding more long-term promise with micro- and mini-low-impact hydro- and

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

ENERGY & POWER SPECIAL SECTION

ATV and several turbines at Kongiganak. Photo by Amanda Byrd, Alaska Center for Energy and Power

Photo by Amanda Byrd, Alaska Center for Energy and Power

Fuel tank farms at Kongiganak.

“Alaska seems to be emerging as a technology leader relating to hybrid energy. There are several recent events that have shown we are emerging as important innovators. We are trying to foster best practices for knowledge transfer, based on the Alaska experience, through the newly developed Arctic Remote Energy Networks.”

—Gwen Holdmann Director, Alaska Center for Energy and Power

natural gas as a complement or substitute to diesel. This depends upon local circumstances. Biomass also remains an option, but tends to be both capital and labor intensive.” Biomass can be a more expensive option because the initial www.akbizmag.com

Image courtesy of CIRI

Wind turbine on Fire Island, three miles off the coast of Anchorage.

August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

ENERGY & POWER SPECIAL SECTION

Biomass processing near Tok, Alaska. Photo by Amanda Byrd, Alaska Center for Energy and Power

cost of a biomass boiler is higher than that of a fossil fuel gas or oil boiler. They also require more space than conventional boilers because of their relatively large size and the smell related to burning certain biomass sources. At the same time, biomass offers carbon neutral, renewable energy from sources such as plants, manure, and even garbage. The high cost of energy in isolated communities is paving the way for future hybrid energy exploration. For example, ACEP is leading the way when it comes to developing energy systems for Alaska’s many islands, non-integrated electric grids, and the connected oil-based heating systems. “Alaska seems to be emerging as a technology leader relating to hybrid energy,” ACEP Director Gwen Holdmann says. “There are several recent events that have shown we are emerging as important innovators. We are trying to foster best practices for knowledge transfer, based on the Alaska experience, through the newly developed Arctic Remote Energy Networks.” Arctic Remote Energy Networks members include Alaska Native leaders, utility managers, and community champions from across Alaska. In June, they invited attendees to travel to Alaska from Greenland, Russia, and Canada. “We brought these groups to visit our research laboratory in Fairbanks,” Holdmann says. “They visited projects in Alaska’s interior including Kotzebue and Nome.” She explains that communities using micro-grid systems are quickly developing hybrid energy experts who are finding innovative ways

to bring affordable, reliable, and renewable energy solutions to fruition. Holdmann says that in June the Canadian Off Grid Utility Association (COGUA) traveled to Cordova at the behest of the US Senate Energy and Resources Committee to further their mission of advancing off-grid utility systems and promoting best practices in rural Alaska. “Of our 150 communities in rural Alaska, there are about 70 projects that incorporate grid-scale renewables on community microgrids,” she says. “These are not demonstration projects. Alaskans are adapting to provide more reliable energy services that can endure the remote and harsh conditions.”

Identifying Greater and More Diverse Energy Resources Cook Inlet Region, Inc. (CIRI) subsidiary Fire Island Wind has developed the Fire Island Wind project, with the capacity to power approximately 7,000 homes in Southcentral Alaska. The company has a twentyfive-year agreement with Anchorage utility Chugach Electric Association to sell power to Chugach for a flat rate. Eleven wind turbines are located on Fire Island, three miles off the coast of Anchorage. This is a commercialscale system consisting of General Electric XLE 1.6 MW wind turbine generators with an 82.5 meter diameter rotor. The Fire Island Wind operation has the capacity to generate 17.6 MW of power and is expected to supply more than 50,000 MW

“Of our 150 communities in rural Alaska, there are about 70 projects that incorporate grid-scale renewables on community micro-grids. These are not demonstration projects. Alaskans are adapting to provide more reliable energy services that can endure the remote and harsh conditions.”

—Gwen Holdmann Director, Alaska Center for Energy and Power

hours of power to Chugach Electric Association annually. The operation has the capacity to expand nearly three times its current size with a total of thirty-three turbines and a generation capacity of 52.8 MW. CIRI worked with nearly one hundred local businesses during development and construction of the Fire Island Wind project. CIRI and other Alaska Native corporations are exploring emerging opportunities that benefit their respective region’s shareholders. For example, the region represented by Calista Corporation is burdened with some of the highest energy rates in the nation. Escalating energy costs compounded with food and transportation prices that are significantly higher than the national average, along with one of the highest unemployment rates in the United States, make finding less expensive methods of obtaining fuel vital to this region. To help alleviate some of these costs, Calista Corporation unveiled a grant-funded project to identify and meet energy needs across the region. Working with the Association of Village Council Presidents at the AVCP Energy Conference last winter, they focused on improving energy use in Western Alaska. George Owletuck, a government liaison, presented the Calista Energy Management Assistance Initiative. While there he explained the overarching goal is to identify greater and more diverse energy resources such as wind, solar, and other types of energy infrastructure, with the goal of reducing or eliminating diesel generators and tank farms. Through companies such as Calista subsidiary STG Incorporated, project development is ongoing throughout Alaska.

Biomass Hybrid Energy The Alaska Energy Authority (AEA) is a statewide program tasked with reducing the cost of energy. They assist with practical projects such as building new bulk fuel tanks to code, upgrading rural powerhouse systems, and incorporating renewable energy projects with existing systems. One of the fuel sources used is biomass. AEA’s biomass program includes fourteen wood heating systems that are reducing

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

ENERGY & POWER SPECIAL SECTION

heating costs throughout Alaska. According to AEA, through grant funding there are fifty-three smaller biomass projects currently underway with eleven biomass systems in design and construction. Numerous projects are in the development phase with five pre-feasibility studies recently completed through the Alaska Wood Energy Development Task Group. AEA was just awarded a USDA grant to develop a best practices handbook to help Alaska schools build biomass-heated greenhouses. AEA also provides rural Alaska with technical and community assistance to improve infrastructure and provide more reliable access to power supplies. The aim is to diversify Alaska’s energy sources and influence relevant policies. Alaska currently uses diverse sources of biomass fuels including wood, sawmill waste, fish byproducts, and municipal waste. AEA’s focus is on reducing oil use, especially for heating public facilities. There are many innovations occurring, some of which may be less commonly known such as a demonstration project for fish oil for biodiesel.

Tax Incentives Increase Demand for Photovoltaic Hybrid Energy The impact of fluctuating oil and gas prices is more significant for small and remote communities. While large private and state level projects are underway, the benefit and acceptance of renewable and hybrid energy use may be driven by federal tax incentives. New projects, especially subsidized affordable housing complexes, remote communities, and micro-grids, are taking advantage of the emerging trend of hybrid energy systems. According to Energy Saver, a consumer resource from the US Department of Energy, those who make use of renewable energy technologies—such as solar energy systems— are eligible for federal tax credits of 30 percent through the 2019 tax year, 26 percent for 2020, and 22 percent for 2021. The renewable energy tax credits expire December 31, 2021. With recent falling prices for photovoltaic panels, use of solar power in Alaska has increased rapidly, and demand for solar and other hybrid energy systems is expected to continue to grow as prices fall, especially for Alaskans wanting to live off the grid. Where Hybrid Systems Are Being Used Chugach Electric Association, headquartered in Anchorage, is one of Alaska’s largest electric utilities and uses three primary fuel sources: 86 percent natural gas, 11 percent hydro, and 3 percent wind, according to the association’s annual report. Chugach recently joined Railbelt partners Anchorage Municipal Light & Power and Matanuska Electric Association to sign the Power Pooling and Joint Dispatch Agreement. The Railbelt electrical grid service areas include six public utilities from Fairbanks to Anchorage and extending to the Kenai Peninsula. The Railbelt region includes about 65 percent of Alaska’s overall population. According to the annual report, this agreement is expected to reduce fuel consumption, www.akbizmag.com

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operations, and maintenance costs, as well as reducing CO2 emissions as much as 90,000 to 120,000 tons per year. Outside the Railbelt, Alaska Village Electric Cooperative (AVEC) provides services throughout Interior and Western Alaska in fifty-seven communities. According to the AVEC 2016 Annual Report, wind turbines generated 5,473,059 kWh of net power and displaced an estimated 385,211 gallons of diesel fuel. That amounted to a savings of $1,073,322 from 2006 through 2016 in diesel generating costs. As of December, AVEC delivers electric power to 10,862 metered consumers in Alaska communities. AVEC’s consumers have saved more than 2.5 million gallons of fuel with a significant reduction in fuel costs over the past ten years. P O R T O F J U N E AU C R U I S E S H I P B E R T H S

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The Future of Hybrid Energy Solar panels can be spotted all throughout the state as more consumers choose solar systems over conventional energy options. In Anchorage, Cook Inlet Housing Authority (CIHA) has solar-powered or hybrid energy developments in Mountain View, East Anchorage, and just recently in Spenard. Through the use of solar and geothermal hybrid systems, CIHA offers improved energy efficiency in their developments, which focus on providing affordable housing solutions in Alaska. Using alternative energy systems helps keep apartments economical, and those savings are passed on in the form of lower rent and a decrease in overall costs. Additionally, two CIHA properties in East Anchorage located off Muldoon and DeBarr Roads are equipped with solar paneled roofs. These may well be an indicator of how the Anchorage cityscape will look in the years to come thanks to the increased prevalence of affordable solar panels. Last year, renewable energy sources accounted for about 10 percent of total US energy consumption and roughly 15 percent of electricity generation, according to the US Energy Information Administration. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration supports the idea that the use of hybrid power, including wind and solar power, could eclipse fossil fuels for electric power by 2030. Alaska’s goals align with this prediction. For example, the state’s energy policy, established in 2010 through House Bill 306, calls for the Alaska to receive half of its electric needs from renewable and alternate sources by 2025. It also lays out a comprehensive approach to supporting energy efficiency and conservation by decreasing energy consumption, among other measures. To that end, the Emerging Energy Technology Fund provides funding to build renewable and alternative energy projects in Juneau, Fairbanks, Kodiak, Delta, Junction, Nenana, Nikiski, Igiugig, Tuntutuliak, Kwigllingok, and Kotzebue, with the ultimate goal of creating viable alternative energy sources for each community. R Richard Perry is a freelance writer and photographer in Anchorage.

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

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Energy & Power

Image courtesy of Alaska Village Electric Cooperative

AVEC project in Kasigluk including new power plant, new bulk fuel tank farm, a new intertie to Nunapitchuk, and installation of 100 kW wind turbines.

The State of Renewable Energy in Rural Alaska Renewable energy delivers benefits to rural areas of Alaska By Judy Mottl

laska, with its 33,904 miles of shoreline—which climbs to 47,300 miles including all its bays, inlets, and islands—is ripe ground for deploying renewable energy for the 238,732 residents living in the state’s rural communities. The past couple of years show marked growth when it comes to renewable energy projects, with sixty-six projects saving an estimated 30 million gallons of diesel fuel in 2016 alone. In just three years a wind farm eliminated the need to use 3 million gallons of diesel fuel in Kodiak. Solar energy efforts, along with continuing build-outs of wind turbines and hydro power, are all being driven by the need to reduce consumer energy costs and dependence on expensive fuel consumption. Chester Dyson, Lime Solar owner and cofounder, says the country’s largest state is on 34

“the cutting edge of the renewable energy boon” thanks to its 571,951 square miles of land, an urgent need for affordable energy, and an increasing interest in tapping new ways of producing energy, in part to meet the state’s energy mandate to derive 50 percent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2025.

Defining Renewable Energy and its Importance Renewable energy is a naturally-occurring and “theoretically inexhaustible” energy source not derived from fossil or nuclear fuel. “Fossil fuels like gas and oil are finite and get depleted so they are not considered renewable,” explains Meera Kohler, president and CEO of the Alaska Village Electric Cooperative (AVEC). “Although if you stretch that, one could say that organic matter is a renewable resource and over time would self-replenish, but we are using it faster than it can regenerate, so we don’t regard it as renewable.” Alaska is bountiful with naturally replenishing, renewable energy sources. “Depending on the location, what’s available in Alaska today is biomass, biofuel, geothermal, heat recovery,

“In the last fifteen years, we have been adding small amounts of renewables— primarily wind—but diesel continues to be the primary energy source. The challenge presented by renewables is that the installation cost is very high [three times the cost of diesel generation] and its intermittency means that expensive and complex technologies must be used to stabilize the power.”

—Meera Kohler, President and CEO Alaska Village Electric Cooperative

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

Photo by Dawne Mangus

hydro, tidal/river in-stream, solar, and wind,” says Tina Grovier, a natural resources partner at the law firm of Stoel Rives in Anchorage. Such robust renewable energy options bode well for Alaska’s businesses and residents as its electricity costs are among the highest of any US state and fuel oil is a pricey option for remote and rural areas.

“In the last fifteen years, we have been adding small amounts of renewables—primarily wind—but diesel continues to be the primary energy source,” says Kohler. “The challenge presented by renewables is that the installation cost is very high [three times the cost of diesel generation] and its intermittency means that expensive and complex technolo-

gies must be used to stabilize the power.” The Alaska Energy Authority (AEA), a public corporation under the Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development which is focused on reducing the cost of energy, believes it’s important, when defining renewable energy, to note the distinction between “alternative” and “renewable.”

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ENERGY & POWER SPECIAL SECTION

Alaska Village Electric Cooperative’s 100 kW wind turbines at Toksook Bay.

Hooper Bay wind turbines. Photo by Barry Bryan

“The communities we serve have historically benefited from grants and direct capital appropriations. In light of the shifting budgetary reality, we are now more strongly focusing our efforts to guide project development, act as a funding and financing conduit, and continuing to provide critical technical assistance, including for the development, construction, and on-going care of renewable energy projects.”

—Katie Conway Government Relations, Outreach, and Efficiency Manager, Alaska Energy Authority

Photo by Amy Murphy

Alternative energy is energy or fuel, used for heat, electricity or mechanical power, which is derived from renewable or local sources other than liquid petroleum. The two energy strategies are often cited specifically in funding and grant programs. “One such example is the Renewable Energy Fund [REF] grant program, which was created by the legislature in 2008 and which has funded approximately $257 million in projects over eight rounds of funding between 2008 and 2015,” says Katie Conway,

Three 100 kW turbines at Quinhagak.

AEA government relations, outreach, and efficiency manager. “The communities we serve have historically benefited from grants and direct capital appropriations. In light of the shifting budgetary reality, we are now more strongly focusing our efforts to guide project development, act as a funding and financing conduit, and continuing to provide critical technical assistance, including for the development, construction, and on-going care of renewable energy projects,” says Conway. Alaska’s primary renewable energy is hydropower, with an increasing amount of wind and localized biomass as well as a small scale of solar, according to Conway, who notes that not all renewable resources can be developed in an economic way. “Some resources are located far from population centers and not all are available in all communities,” she explains. According to the Alaska Energy Data Inventory, which details the location of renewable resources, the western parts of the state have attractive wind resources, the southeast has substantial hydro potential, and biomass is more readily available in the forested parts of the state.

The Renewable Energy Landscape: What’s in Play and What’s to Come Alaska is brimming with renewable energy options. In fact, it may be a global leader in the renewably energy arena, according to Shaina Kilcoyne, energy efficiency director at the Renewable Energy Alaska Project (REAP). “Alaska has some of the best renewable energy potential in the world. With over 200 ‘islanded microgrids [40 percent of rural mi-

crogrids worldwide], Alaska is a leader in the development of small successful grid hybrid systems,” says Kilcoyne. Currently seventy Alaska communities offset high electric costs using wind and other renewables tapping diesel systems, she says, and Alaska has more than 150 standalone electrical grids serving rural villages. AVEC has been using wind energy since 2003 and operates eleven wind farms, all utility-owned, serving fifteen communities in western Alaska. “We are building two more projects that will then serve another five communities. We have two modest solar projects as well. Renewables provide between 3 percent and 35 percent of diesel displacement in the communities that have them,” says Kohler. Despite all the big steps to tap renewable energy, future potential could be hampered due to declining government support. The REF, for example, has not received legislative funding since 2015. “We think the sector is growing cautiously. Of course, most of the

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

Map courtesy of Alaska Energy Authority

“Alaskans pay some of the highest energy prices in the country. Our commitment to renewable energy and diesel integrated projects in remote communities has the potential to benefit rural community members with the highest energy costs, keeping money in the local economies and creating clean energy jobs. The biggest winners are businesses and facility owners paying the full price of energy.”

—Katie Conway, Government Relations, Outreach, and Efficiency Manager, Alaska Energy Authority

growth was instigated by grant funds from state and federal sources, which have diminished greatly in recent times. As a result, expansion of the renewables segment in Alaska has slowed but not stalled,” says Kohler.

How Renewables Benefit Rural Communities, Businesses The primary benefits from renewable energy are cost-effective and affordable energy for residents and businesses—specifically in rural areas where using fuel, diesel mostly, is an www.akbizmag.com

exceptionally expensive proposition. About three-quarters of Alaska’s population live within the Railbelt region, says Conway, while another 10 percent live in southeast Alaska. The remaining eighteen percent live throughout about 200 rural communities, mostly remote, most of which are powered by diesel generators. “Many southeast communities are powered in part or whole by hydropower, while a number of rural communities around the state have integrated wind power as well,” she says.

For energy providers, renewable energy is also a win. “When AVEC deploys renewables, the entire community benefits,” says Kohler. “Since we burn less diesel, the fuel cost component of the rate goes down, thereby reducing the cost of all kilowatts in a community,” she adds. It’s also a win for energy cooperatives as some rural utilities are owned by a tribe or local government. “In most small rural communities, renewable is a small percentage of total generation;

August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

Statewide Electrical Generation in Alaska by Energy Source - 2013

Maps courtesy of Alaska Energy Authority

ENERGY & POWER SPECIAL SECTION

Infrastructure: Fairbanks to Kodiak

Infrastructure: Southeast Alaska

however, there are some communities in which it plays a larger role,” says Conway, noting the city of Kodiak is nearly 100 percent reliant on renewable energy. “Kodiak is a good example of a community that has transitioned to renewable energy successfully; that system uses hydro, wind, and batteries to generate power almost exclusively with renewable resources,” says Conway. There’s also a positive economic benefit to providing cheaper energy options. “Alaskans pay some of the highest energy prices in the country. Our commitment to renewable energy and diesel integrated projects in remote communities has the potential to benefit rural community members with the highest energy costs, keeping money in the local economies and creating clean energy jobs,” says Conway. “The biggest winners are businesses and facility owners paying the full price of energy.”

Going Forward: What Renewable Energy Needs to Keep Growing Renewable energy efforts in Alaska, whether in urban settings such as Kodiak or in remote areas, has surged and ebbed over the past several decades. 38

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

neau, and soon Sitka,” she says, adding tidal power is being tested in Yakutat and Cook Inlet, while a river site is being tested by Alaska Center for Energy and Power in Tanana. “With thousands of miles of coastline, tidal and wave have great potential to progress from an emerging energy technology into commercial viability,” says Kilcoyne. “With 1.5 billion people without any electricity and over 700 million others who are diesel dependent, Alaska is emerging as a global leader in the development and operation of microgrids.” R

Photo by Charles Green

Judy Mottl writes about important issues country-wide with an affinity for Alaska.

Former Power Plant Operator Charles Green in front of Toksook Bay turbines that provide renewable energy power to Tununak and Nightmute via an electric intertie.

In the early 1980s interest in wind energy grew due to federal tax reforms providing incentives for renewable developments. But wind energy in Alaska didn’t work as well as it did in California, for example, which can easily house wind farms—which is not the case in Alaska. “No machines existed that were practical in Alaska’s arctic conditions,” explains Kohler, and those failures dampened enthusiasm for renewables in Alaska for a couple of decades. While a better designed wind turbine was developed in the late 1990s, ongoing mechanical issues stymied efficiency. Yet AVEC has about thirty 100 kWh machines working with “fairly good results,” says Kohler, leading the company to consider larger machines. Robust renewable energy efforts, says Kohler, will take place when new technologies can “smooth out the intermittency of renewables.” “This means affordable energy storage and interface technology that prevents the efficiency degradation that comes from operating diesel generators at low loads in order to assure continuity of power supply,” she says. Conway, who notes renewable energy in Alaska predates its statehood, cites large hydro projects in the 1980s and early 1990s and the state’s first utility scale wind farm as big markers in Alaska’s renewable energy legacy. Much of those efforts were funded by the Department of Energy as well as state funding. “Prior to the creation of the Renewable Energy Fund in 2008, the state did provide periodic direct appropriations to support the development of additional renewable projects. The $257 million invested by the state through the REF, and matched with hundreds of millions in additional federal, private, and other funds, jumpstarted the renewable energy industry throughout the state,” she explains. www.akbizmag.com

August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

ENERGY & POWER SPECIAL SECTION

“The loss of funding to the REF coupled with lower diesel prices could lead to reduced investment in renewable projects in Alaska,” says Conway. Meanwhile AEA is working on expanding capacity at the Bradley Lake hydro facility to bring more renewable power on to the Railbelt system. Kilcoyne cited the Salmon Creek Dam in Juneau, built in 1914, which provides hydropower and drinking water, as an historic achievement in Alaska’s renewables energy journey. “Since then, Alaska has implemented wind energy in high-energy cost communities on the west coast and geothermal projects [mainly in the Aleutians], and seawater heat pumps to heat commercial buildings in Seward, Ju-

OIL & GAS

The Trans Alaska Pipeline System near Dearhorse: the 800-mile pipeline travels from here to Valdez.

TAPS After Forty Years By Garrison Wells

here are few, if any, in Alaska who can say they haven’t been affected by the Trans Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS)— in one way or another. To be sure, there’s the massive economic impact of an 800-mile, 48-inch diameter pipeline that transports crude from North America’s largest oilfield, Prudhoe Bay. At its peak, the pipeline pumped more than 2 million barrels of oil a day over Alaska’s tough terrain: frozen ground, mountain ranges, rivers, and earthquake faults. And though throughput has dwindled to roughly a quarter of that heyday delivery in the late 1980s, the pipeline remains the state’s economic heart, forty years on. 40

“The past four decades did a lot more than just build the fields,” says Janet Weiss, president of BP Alaska. “Four decades of oil and gas development in Alaska have changed Alaskan lives and provided opportunities for people across the state. Prudhoe Bay will continue as an important foundation for Alaska’s oil and gas industry well into the future.”

Employment for Tens of Thousands The pipeline’s first impact was the creation of jobs. From 1969 through 1977 alone, 70,000 individuals worked on the huge construction project, from engineers and carpenters to construction workers. Among those who toiled on the pipeline are a virtual who’s-who of Alaska’s upper crust. Governor Bill Walker worked on the pipeline as a youth and during college and even met his wife, Donna, while working there. Dave Norton, owner at Hawk Consultants, worked as a field engineer during the pipeline’s construction. Charlie Riddle, senior vice president at R&M Consultants, also was among the thousands of Alaska residents who worked on the pipeline.

Image courtesy of Hawk Consultants

Increased output key to recovery, says Governor Walker

Dave Norton, Principal/Owner at Hawk Consultants and former field engineer during construction of the TAPS pipeline.

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

Photo by Bill Bailey / Courtesy of Alyeska Pipeline Service Company

Alyeska Pipeline Service Company leadership doing a walkdown of shutdown work at Pump Station 1 in late 2016. From left: John Baldridge, Senior Director Pipeline Operations; Rod Hanson, VP Pipeline Operations; Don Neff, Construction Manager; Mike Hale, Prudhoe Bay Area Manager; and Dave Welsh, ExxonMobil Owner Representative.

For some, it has been a family affair. Julie Redington, director of projects for Alyeska Pipeline Service, which is made up of the major oil companies that own and operate the pipeline, is one of four family members who work on the pipeline. There are her brothers, Dan and Ron Flodin, and her father, Steve, who was a contractor for the SERVS Vessels of Opportunity Program. Dan is supply chain management director and Ron is the system’s pipeline and civil maintenance coordinator and works mostly in the field. “Alyeska,” Redington says, “is a great company to work for and the pipeline is really significant and iconic in the state. It’s a meaningful job, great for jobs for the family, and it helps the state.” Redington aptly sums up how those who worked for the pipeline feel about it even today. There are pipeline memories floating all over Alaska. “I’ve been here going on sixteen years and have spoken to a lot of people who worked here and have gone on or retired,” she says. “There’s really a sense of loyalty. There’s almost like an ownership to contributing to the success of the performance of the pipeline.” Alyeska President Tom Barrett in a company report shares Redington’s feelings. “We feel TAPS pride,” he says. “TAPS people are special. We know our work, what we do, and how well we do it matters all across Alaska.” The pipeline’s economic run continues, as it enters the territory of the middle-aged with www.akbizmag.com

its 40th birthday, and there’s plenty of promise for the next forty years. “TAPS,” Weiss says, “laid the foundation for further oil and gas development on the North Slope.” “Another promising part about the future of Alaska’s North Slope is the list of companies operating successfully and the list of companies exploring: Caelus, Hilcorp, Eni, Repsol, and Armstrong. The interest of these companies demonstrates that Alaska is open for business,” she says. “It’s important for the future that we keep Alaska open for business.”

Where It All Began Everything started with Alaska’s life blood: oil. With the discovery of Prudhoe Bay’s massive oilfield—North America’s largest— in 1967, the stage was set for Alaska to undergo major change. The 213,543-acre oilfield triggered actions by multinational oil companies, Alaska, and Congress that resulted in the construction of the 800-mile pipeline to funnel crude oil from the North Slope to Valdez, the state’s northernmost ice-free port. The field is about 650 miles north of Anchorage—between the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and the National Petroleum Reserve–Alaska. The land is owned by the state and operated by BP. Other major players in the oilfield include ConocoPhillips and ExxonMobil.

The motto of the first employees charged with taking on the world’s largest privatelyfunded construction project was simply: “They didn’t know it couldn’t be done,” according to Alyeska. Nonetheless, obstacles were everywhere. Among them were fault lines, rivers, and steep mountain ranges that had to be crossed, and Alaska’s frozen permafrost meant that much of the pipeline had to be built above ground. To get the job done, construction camps were built along the pipeline’s path for workers. The biggest obstacle at the front end, says Riddle, was land ownership and rightof-way status. The company he works for, R&M, was formed because of the pipeline and has provided many services throughout the years. Permits to build the pipeline, Riddle says, could not be granted until Native land claims were settled. That issue was resolved in 1971 with the passage of ANCSA (Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act). The legislation, he says, didn’t just pave the way for construction. “It provided land and money to the various Native corporations that were established under ANCSA,” Riddle says. Land ownership rights were settled in 1973 when the US Senate approved construction of the pipeline in a tight vote, he says. “The initial vote was a 49-49 tie with Vice President Spiro Agnew casting the tie-breaking vote to approve the Trans-Alaska Pipeline Authorization Act,” Riddle says.

August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

“We need to diversify, but we are a resource-rich state—oil, gas, [and] coal. It’s all about the development of our resources.”

‑Bill Walker Governor, State of Alaska

Experts: Pipeline is forty years old, but the pipe itself has unlimited lifespan. Steel doesn’t age as long as it is maintained. © Alyeska Pipeline Service Company

But those were hardly the only issues, he adds. Among the most severe technical problems: About 600 miles of the pipeline are within areas of perennially frozen ground, which meant there had to be multiple designs drafted. “Should heat transmitted from the hot oil pipeline or any ground surface disturbance created by construction activities cause thawing of the underlying permafrost soils, subsequent thaw settlement of the pipeline would create pipeline stability concerns,” Riddle says. “Different construction modes were established for different soil and permafrost conditions anticipated along the alignment. Conventional buried pipe was specified for most areas where permafrost was not anticipated or where permafrost was considered thaw-stable. An elevated pipeline mode was designed for areas of thaw-unstable permafrost. Several areas required special refrigerated burial.” It was no easy feat. But, according to Alyeska, construction on roads and facilities, as well as the pipeline, started in April 1974. About three years later, in June 1977, the project was completed. Oil first started flowing June 20, 1977 and the first tanker loaded with Alaska North Slope crude left Valdez August 1.

It was a staggering accomplishment. Norton remembers the successes and some key moments as pipeline construction rolled on, both as an early employee and as a current contractor for Alyeska providing embedded professional staff when needed. In 2002, for instance, when it came time for the renewal of the thirty-year lease of right-ofway from federal and state governments, a new environmental impact statement was required, including a retrofit of the seismic design. “Thirty years later, the government was saying that the state-of-the-art seismic had changed. We said nothing needs to be retrofitted. We were at a standstill not knowing how to convince the government it was okay and the government was not willing to take our word for it,” Norton recalls. That’s when nature stepped in. Alaska was hit by a 7.9 earthquake on November 3, 2002. “It was the biggest at that time since the big one in 1964,” Norton says. “The Denali fault slipped like a dozen feet. The pipeline was specially designed, crossing that fault on sliding skids. The fault slipped and the pipeline performed like it was supposed to. This was like a fullscale bench test and it worked, which was

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funny in a way, but also good for the pipeline and successful. After that, there wasn’t any more talk about seismic retrofitting.”

Supercharging the Economy Walker calls the pipeline, “one of the most significant events that impact Alaska in many ways.” “I can’t think of another one that has had a greater impact on our economy than the pipeline,” he says. He should know. He was there at the start, loading ships in his hometown of Valdez, when the first ships started coming in. During college, he worked on coating the pipe and worked as a journeyman carpenter in a pipeline camp. “I’ve had a long history with the pipeline,” Walker says. It was, he remembers, critical to get the pipeline built, but not just for Alaska. There was a gas crisis in America. “For a time, Alaska was providing a significant portion of the crude oil to the Lower 48,” Walker says. “There was a time when cars were lined up, you had to queue up, [and] license plates had odd and even days to go to service stations in various states. It was very critical for the continental United States to have this pipeline built.” BP first began working in Alaska in 1959, according to a written statement. BP started drilling at the Prudhoe Bay oil field in 1968 and helped build TAPS in the mid-1970s. Since Prudhoe Bay began production, it has generated more than 12.5 billion barrels of oil—an increase of 30 percent from the original projected ultimate recovery of 9.6 billion barrels and planned field life of thirty years. Four decades after start-up, Prudhoe Bay is the most prolific oilfield in US history and supports thousands of American jobs. TAPS oil recovery has been influenced by an evolution of technology through increased use of the produced gas for reinjection and cycling; enhanced drilling, multilateral, coiled tubing; Prudhoe Bay’s large scale EOR—enhanced oil recovery using enriched gas; gas cap water injection; and the application of 3D seismic. BP’s Alaska operations have resulted in significant contributions to Alaska’s fiscal health and economy. For instance, today Prudhoe Bay supports more than 16,000 Alaska direct and indirect jobs and BP employs 1,700 workers in Alaska, 78 percent of whom are Alaska residents. “Recruiting, training, and hiring Alaskans remain among our top priorities,” says Dawn Patience, BP press officer. “There are also nearly 5,000 contractors doing work for BP in Alaska.” Beyond jobs, in 2016 BP spent nearly $1.3 billion with 300 Alaska vendors. Says Weiss: “Prudhoe Bay produces 55 percent of all the production in the Trans Alaska Pipeline System. That’s a huge responsibility—one I do not take for granted, not just as the first woman in the job, but the first longtime Alaskan to earn this job.” The best way to measure the economic impact of the pipeline is to look at the economic impact of oil on the state’s economy. “The impact on the state treasury and the economic activities that resulted from it [are] extremely www.akbizmag.com

significant,” Norton says. “Look around the state. Look around Anchorage. The infrastructure, the library in Anchorage, the arts center, the university system, all resulted from the revenue generated by the pipeline, not to mention the jobs.” The McDowell Group was recently charged with assessing the statewide and local impact of oil and gas industry spending in the Municipality of Anchorage; Fairbanks North Star Borough; Kenai Peninsula Borough; Mat-Su Borough; North Slope Borough; and the City of Valdez. Additionally the group studied and reported on the statewide employment impacts of taxes and royalties paid by the oil and gas industry in 2016. According to the report, released at the

Alaska Oil & Gas Association’s 2017 Annual Conference, the industry’s fourteen primary companies employed 5,033 workers in Alaska, including 4,275 Alaska residents who earned $749 million in wages in 2016. Alaska residents represent roughly 85 percent of hires by the primary companies. Including all employment and wages, direct, indirect, and induced, industry spending accounted for 45,575 jobs and $3.1 billion in total wages in the state’s private sector last year. Overall, the study measured 103,875 oil and gas industry-related jobs and $6 billion in wages in 2016. The group reports that 32 percent of all wage and salary jobs and 35 percent of all wages in Alaska can be attributed to the

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oil and gas industry. State and local government impacts include state agency operations that comprise 19,500 jobs; state programs that created 19,600 jobs; capital spending responsible for 10,400 jobs; Permanent Fund Distribution created 4,200 jobs; and local government operations and projects were responsible for 4,600 jobs for a total of 58,300 jobs and $2.9 billion in wages in 2016. The fourteen companies included in “The Role of the Oil and Gas Industry in Alaska’s Economy” are:  Alyeska Pipeline

 Furie

 Blue Crest Energy

 Glacier

 BP

 Great Bear Petroleum

 Caelus Alaska

 Hilcorp

 Chevron

 Petro Star Inc.

 ConocoPhillips

 Shell

 ExxonMobil

 Tesoro

TAPS: The Next 40 Years While declining throughput has affected pipeline performance, experts nonetheless see promise ahead. But the answer for the future is the same answer that got things started in the first place: oil. The lower volume means oil moves slower through the pipeline, which has translated into problems for a pipeline designed

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for max performance and load. As a result, pipeline temperature has dropped. Heaters have been installed to protect against the cold, which allows water in the crude to separate. Another issue is the fall in oil prices. “It’s a challenging environment today, where hydrocarbons are actually more abundant and therefore low-cost oil is the name of the game,” says Weiss. “Like other Alaska oil and gas companies, BP is challenged to become more competitive in a low oil price environment.” Alaska’s oil and gas industry, she says, “cannot wait for oil price to save us. We need to ensure that we continue to have options that compete at these lower oil prices. I believe it takes three things to make this change: it takes efficiencies; it takes technologies; and it takes Alaska fiscal policies that keep us competitive.” There’s a simple solution, says Alyeska spokeswoman Michelle Egan. “Increase the throughput—or, add more oil,” she says. “Engineering work continues as we look for solutions to the challenge posed by declining throughput. In the near term, that includes things like adding heat to the pipeline, changing our pigging regime, and applying new technology to our operation. Teams are working on longer range solutions.” The goal, says Walker, “is to increase the thoughput of oil, now that [TAPS is at] 25 percent of capacity.” “We need to diversify, but we are a resourcerich state—oil, gas, [and] coal. It’s all about the development of our resources,” he says. A recent order by Interior Secretary Ryan

Zinke that calls for more input in North Slope oil and gas development from local and state entities should help. The move, Walker says, gets rid of obstacles “so Alaska can play a greater role in securing the nation’s energy dominance.” Egan notes that key to success is creating policies that increase access, streamline regulation, and create a favorable fiscal climate for the industry and for TAPS. “Alaska’s North Slope contains considerable oil resources that have not yet been produced and TAPS is proven infrastructure for moving that oil to market,” she says. A lot of work has been done on the pipeline to deal with the oil decline and prepare for the future, Norton says. Jet turbines that were initially installed on the pipeline to run pumps have been replaced with variable speed electric drives that adjust for varying flow. All the electronic control systems, he says, have been upgraded. “We got the pipeline basically ready for another thirty years of operation with variable outputs.” The pipeline now also has new instrumentation that allows for constant monitoring. “The pipeline is forty years old, but the pipe itself has unlimited lifespan. Steel doesn’t age as long as it is maintained,” Norton says. “And now that the pumps and the equipment that [go] with it have all been upgraded, the system is ready for another forty years. It’s state-of-the-art.” R Garrison Wells is an award-winning business writer.

August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

OIL & GAS

AOGA, BP, and ConocoPhillips on the State of Oil in Alaska Experts answer ABM questions about the oil industry today and tomorrow By Kathryn Mackenzie and Tasha Anderson

he current state of the oil industry in Alaska is under constant discussion. From fluctuating production and prices to legislation and the hopeful prospect of new discoveries, oil permeates the very fabric of Alaska’s businesses and communities. The oil industry faces a wide range of challenges: pricing and production fluctuations, the threat of increased taxes combined with environmental constraints, competition, and the high price of conducting business here all make for a challenging environment. But none of these are insurmountable problems. As Alaska has shown, decade after decade, the market will rebound, oil production will continue, and Alaska will thrive. The question is: when and how? We, like most businesses, want to know what the experts think about the current state of the industry. Who better to give us all some much-needed insight than BP, ConocoPhillips, and the Alaska Oil and Gas Association (AOGA)? We asked, and here are their answers: ABM: How does oil exploration and production in Alaska on the North Slope differ from other operations in the Lower 48 or around the world? ConocoPhillips: The North Slope is a very high cost place to do business mainly due to its remote location, environmental constraints, and extreme weather. The Slope’s distance from market requires an 800-mile pipeline as well as a fleet of oil tankers—both expensive to operate and maintain. Being far from market increases the cost of labor, transportation of materials and supplies, and the logistics complexity. Then one must consider that most exploration is done in a 120-day winter season on expensive ice roads and pads to minimize impacts to the environment. Any facility construction work that requires access to the tundra is also constrained to the winter season and the use of ice roads. Conversely, Lower 48 exploration and development can be done year-round, producers have much greater access to infrastructure and labor pools, and production sites are much closer to market. 46

AOGA: Unsurprisingly, Alaska is often an expensive place to do business. The same logistical challenges that lead to higher prices for a gallon of milk also apply to Alaska oil and gas projects: it costs more to move equipment across long distances, over environmentally sensitive terrain, into areas with very little or even no permanent infrastructure. Those extensive logistical issues, coupled with a shorter drilling season and stringent permitting requirements, illustrate why drilling in the Lower 48 or in other parts of the world often makes far more financial sense for investors. That said, Alaska is still home to incredible oil and gas potential, which is why we could see continued interest from both legacy and new oil and gas companies, assuming prudent fiscal policies are in place. ABM: What is the most significant challenge in new development on the North Slope? ConocoPhillips: While the environment of the North Slope provides physical and cost challenges to exploration and development, the main challenges we face today are regulatory and fiscal in nature. The most significant challenge is the constant threat of higher oil taxes. There is intense competition for investment dollars right now and Alaska’s high-cost environment puts it at a competitive disadvantage to many other locals. The threat of increasing taxes on an industry that even in today’s low-price environment is paying 60 percent to 70 percent of the state’s budget does not bring more investment to the state. The regulatory environment, particularly on federal lands, is also a challenge. We have seen a continuing escalation of federal regulatory constraints over the last eight years that create uncertainty and increase costs. We have also seen the federal government continue to reduce the acreage available for leasing. We are encouraged that under the new administration we will see the regulatory environment stabilize and potentially more federal lands made available for oil and gas exploration and development. ABM: What is your current oil and gas activity in Alaska? What exploration/ production projects or programs do you have planned for the remainder of 2017 or for 2018? ConocoPhillips: We continue to progress the expansion of the Alpine CD5 development (includes about eighteen new wells, thirtythree in total), the start-up of Kuparuk viscous

oil development 1H NEWS, and construction of GMT1 in the National Petroleum ReserveAlaska, continued coiled tubing drilling in Kuparuk, and support for development drilling at Prudhoe Bay. This past winter we began the process of appraising the Willow discovery in NPR-A using 3D seismic. Toward the end of this year when our capital budget is approved, we will have more information on additional plans for 2018. BP: BP operates Prudhoe Bay, which produces 55 percent of all Alaska oil production. There is one scheduled turnaround this summer at Prudhoe Bay’s Gathering Center 1. Summer maintenance is planned to minimize impacts by taking advantage of other temporary facility or pipeline shut downs and the milder arctic climate. Prudhoe Bay remains one of North America’s largest oil fields and has less than 1 percent production declined over the past year, averaging 281,800 barrels of oil equivalent each day. The Trans Alaska Pipeline System grew its overall throughput by 2 percent, at 517,868 barrels a day. Prudhoe Bay will continue as an important foundation for Alaska’s oil and gas industry well into the future. ABM: What can Alaska do to attract oil and gas exploration and production? AOGA: The State of Alaska cannot control the price of oil. What the State can control, however, is its policy surrounding oil and gas exploration and production. It is up to lawmakers and policymakers to decide what kind of behavior they wish to incent: more investment in Alaska, or less? To achieve the former policy goal, a stable, predictable tax and permitting system is necessary to compete with other oil-producing regions around the globe. Certainly, state government can decide (and has done so repeatedly) to increase industry’s costs to take more revenue for the State. Such actions guarantee that Alaska project economics become more challenged and investment harder to attract. This is especially true in periods of low oil prices when capital dollars are tight and competition for those dollars among regions is fierce. BP: “There are three key principles that will determine if Alaska’s oil and gas industry is the economic engine that continues to drive the state. The state must encourage (not discourage) more oil down TAPS. Next the state needs to keep the new explorers and new operator companies on the North Slope. That means

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

keeping them there with good policy, don’t drive the new entrants away. Finally, the state should not shorten the life of the backbone fields, Prudhoe Bay and Kuparuk. We need Prudhoe Bay and Kuparuk to continue to build upon. A shorter economic life comes from diminishing the competitiveness of the opportunities or excessively penalizing the base economics of these fields,” BP testimony in the Juneau 2017 legislative session. ConocoPhillips: Keep the current base tax framework in place that has encouraged us to invest, which has in turn increased oil production and created jobs for Alaskans. ABM: How does the lower-for-longer oil price environment affect how the company proceeds in developing a potential find? AOGA: The lower-for-longer oil price environment means that companies will continue looking for efficiencies. On the plus side, companies in Alaska often take a longer-term view of investments; it is not unusual for projects to take five to seven years to move from exploration to development and into production. Because no one can predict what oil prices will look like next year, much less in five, investment decisions in Alaska are typically viewed through a longer lens than some of the Lower 48’s oil fields, where projects can ramp up and down relatively quickly in reaction to the market. Because oil prices

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are so fluid, it falls back to the governments of oil-producing regions to provide whatever stability they can, namely tax and permitting policy. Investors with limited dollars to spend are unlikely to gamble on a project whose economics could literally change overnight. If Alaska wants to see the various, exciting new oil finds moved from the “maybe” into the “yes” column, establishing competitive, stable policies that encourage investment will be necessary. BP: “It’s a challenging environment today, where hydrocarbons are actually more abundant and therefore low-cost oil is the name of the game. Like other Alaska oil and gas companies, BP is challenged to become more competitive in a low oil price environment. The Alaska oil and gas industry cannot wait for oil price to save us; we need to ensure we continue to have options that compete at these lower oil prices. I believe it takes three things to make this step change: it takes efficiencies; it takes technologies; and it takes Alaska fiscal policies that keep us competitive.”—BP Alaska President Janet Weiss ConocoPhillips: Capital investment will continue to be challenged in this price environment. The company’s goal is to maintain capital flexibility even in today’s low-price environment and operate efficiently and profitably at less than $50-barrel Brent oil. The projects in our portfolio that get

funded will have the lowest cost of supply and make the most sense economically. That said, we believe that many of our current exploration projects in Alaska will ultimately be competitive with our 14 billion barrels of global resources that have a cost of supply of less than $50/bbl Brent. ABM: In that same vein, established oilfield producers have found ways to increase efficiency and reduce costs in their operations; how does one increase efficiency or reduce costs in a project that is still undergoing exploration? BP: In the low-price environment, we’ve reduced our activity down to two rigs at Prudhoe Bay and improved our efficiency. We are pursuing wellwork which can be done less costly and more efficiently by nonrig equipment such as coil tubing. ConocoPhillips: Since the oil price downturn, we have worked diligently to lower costs company-wide and to focus on how we can operate more efficiently. For projects still in the planning stages, we have been successful in challenging the status quo for project design. For instance, we changed the electrical scope on one project and reevaluated the design for multiple scenarios; the result was a cost savings of about $40 million. Through innovative thinking and thoughtful risk management we are successfully lowering the costs of our operations. R

August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

SPECIAL SECTION

Environmental Services

Recycling in Alaska Slow, steady growth By Tom Anderson

hen we hear or see the word “recycling,” we often think of a soda can, glass bottle, or plastic wrapping being tossed into a large, green receptacle emblazoned with the ubiquitous recycling symbol. But there is much more involved in implementing a community recycling program than placing a few recycling bins around city parks and in public gathering spots, especially in Alaska. Logistical and economic barriers have hampered recycling efforts in Alaska in the past, but the goal of reducing the state’s environmental footprint—while saving money and resources by recycling and reusing products—has made recycling more than just a passing trend. Recycling is slowly but steadily becoming more commonplace throughout Alaska as residents in communities throughout the state work together to find and implement innovative programs designed to solve the logistical barriers that have previously kept recycling from becoming a regular part of Alaskan’s daily lives. The 2016-2017 “Guide to Recycling: Recycling in Anchorage and Statewide” was created and published by Alaskans for Litter Prevention & Recycling (ALPAR). During its thirty-two-year advocacy, ALPAR has worked with communities by partnering with the private sector and residents to encourage recycling efforts and make recycling in Alaska economically viable. The most recent report highlights ALPAR programs, reminding Alaskans of numerous marketing and branding materials created to inspire communities to organize their recycling efforts to meet the nationwide call to action to “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle”—from litter patrols to spring cleanups and holiday event recycling to Adopt-a-Pathway—new programs are enhancing recycling efforts throughout the state. But many people still wonder, when it comes to our homes and businesses in Alaska what encompasses recycling and what exactly can be recycled? Further, where do recycled items go and what happens to them?

What is Recyclable? The National Recycling Coalition (NRC) is a nonprofit organization based in Washington DC centered on the promotion of recycling throughout the United States through education and networking. Waste reduction and sound recycling management practices are 48

two of the many calls-to-action NRC strives to accomplish. To acquaint the public with the most commonly recycled discarded items, NRC performed nationwide research to determine who is disposing of what and how. The results of the study are published online by Care2. Of all recyclable materials, aluminum is at the top of the list, according to the NRC report. Aluminum is 100 percent recyclable and it takes 95 percent less energy to recycle an aluminum can than to manufacture a new one. PET plastic bottles are also high on the NRC’s recycling list, especially because it is estimated that Americans purchased 25 billion single-serve bottles of water in 2015, and that number will undoubtedly be even higher in 2017. Polyethylene terephthalate, also known as PET or PETE is most easily recognized as the clear plastic used for water and soda bottle containers. Like aluminum, PET is said to be a safe, non-toxic, strong, lightweight, flexible material that is 100 percent recyclable. Also on the “Top 10” list of most important materials to recycle are newspapers, corrugated cardboard, steel cans, HDPE plastic containers, glass, magazines, mixed paper, and computer equipment. To properly recycle each of these items requires receptacles, transportation, intake, storage, processing, and redelivery or manufacturing. High-density polyethylene (HDPE) #2 is one of the most commonly used plastics in the US. HDPE #2 is found in milk jugs, plastic bags and refillable plastic bottles. Recycled HDPE can be used to manufacture a range of products including lawn and garden chairs, tables and other products, plastic buckets, office products, and some automobile parts. All of these items are accepted at most Alaska recycle centers, even if they’re not actually processed in state. Additionally, there are companies that focus on equipment, appliances, tires, scrap metals, construction materials, vehicles, and liquids.

Recycling in Anchorage The largest city in the state is also its largest recycling hub. Travis Smith, the Recycling Coordinator for the Municipality of Anchorage (MOA), says one of the primary reasons the Municipality prioritizes recycling is because it will extend the lifespan of the Anchorage landfill. The longer the landfill works for the community, the better, because constructing a new landfill is costly, especially in Alaska due to our particular geographical challenges. Under the leadership of Mayor Ethan Berkowitz, MOA’s Solid Waste Services (SWS) offers curbside recycling collection to

more than 10,000 residential customers. Almost 6,000 tons of recyclable materials were picked up through the curbside program in 2016. Smith notes that glass can’t be picked up curbside; however, the Anchorage Recycling Center, Anchorage Regional Landfill, and Central Transfer Station all accept glass jars and bottles. MOA notes that acceptable drop-offs at the three aforementioned locations include cardboard, newspaper, mixed paper, steel/tin/aluminum, plastics, glass bottles, and specialty items such as electronics, auto batteries, scrap metal, cooking oil, CFL bulbs, used motor oil, and demolition and construction debris. All of which are commensurate with the types of materials other big cities are collecting for recycling.

Handling the Big Jobs An important area for waste recycling and management is construction and demolition (C&D). Because these projects are often large and comprehensive they tend to produce voluminous amounts of waste. Waste management planning, collection services, diversion and recycling, and reports and regulatory compliance are all integral steps to C&D waste management. Central Recycling Services (CRS) has been in the waste recycling business since 2009. With offices in Anchorage and Fairbanks and thirty-five employees, the company services the entire state, from urban centers to rural remote communities and oil fields. Nate Kruk has been in the waste management and recycling industry since 2004, specializing in metals. “CRS is a full-service recycling company,” he says. “We’re the only company in the state that operates a comprehensive C&D recycling center in Alaska. C&D is our niche. We can recycle wood, cardboard, sheetrock, glass, paper, plastics, concrete, asphalt, metals, batteries, household appliances, and all types of electronics.” Kruk says differences in the mentality and economies of recycling in Alaska compared to other states are primarily based on the size of Alaska and cost of transportation. Glass, for instance, doesn’t have the same utility as it does in other states. MOA and the private Anchorage Recycling Center send donated and retrieved or discarded glass products to CRS. While most states have a facility that sorts glass by color and grade, re-melts the materials, and then transfers that material to a glass plant for new production, no such facility exists in Alaska. Instead, aggregates like concrete, asphalt, and glass are crushed and processed. CRS processes up to 2,000 tons per day of construction debris with state-of-the-

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

Redefining Waste Management As regulators, advocates, and trade associations are busy doing their part to further recycling efforts in Alaska, trash collection companies head out day-after-day to retrieve garbage at homes and businesses throughout the state’s communities. There are approximately eleven refuse retrieval companies in the state, and the largest by far is Alaska Waste. “We provide solid waste and recycling services to Alaska customers ranging in size from single family residential homes to large commercial front-load and roll off customers,” says Alaska Waste’s Sales Manager, Craig Gales. The company also has a biodiesel processing facility and commercial composting division. Alaska Waste employs 175 workers statewide, providing regional services in Anchorage and Eagle River, Wasilla, Fairbanks, Girdwood, Whittier, Kenai, Seward, Homer, and Kodiak. Gales says the company’s focus is to target recycling as a signature service. “Alaska Waste offers convenient Anchorage recycling services including curbside recycling, office recycling, and commercial recycling for residents and businesses of Anchorage and the surrounding area.” The company provides three categories of recycling

ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES SPECIAL SECTION

art equipment. In a video on the company’s website, Project Manager Shane Durand says their goal is to take all C&D waste, divert it from the landfill, and use the waste to create recycled, sustainable materials for new construction. Up to fifteen employees—referred to as “pickers”—remove trash from the line, isolating the wood, which is then made in to mulch or fuel product. The goal is to recycle more than 75 percent of the debris into another product.

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 Residential Curbside Recycling is offered to 40,000 households in Anchorage and Eagle River with every-other-week collection of mixed paper, aluminum and steel cans, and plastic bottles in a 96-gallon roll cart; all recyclables can be co-mingled in one container.  The Anchorage Office Recycling program is aimed at assisting small businesses reduce waste. Every week Alaska Waste retrieves mixed paper (cardboard, magazines, newspapers, and office paper), aluminum and tin cans, and plastic soda and water bottles.  Commercial Dumpster Recycling offers commercial customers and businesses that produce large amounts of recyclable items receptacles including dumpsters, roll-offs, and compactors designed exclusively for recyclable materials.

Recycling Solutions in the Mat-Su Valley Community for Recycling Solutions (VCRS) operates a nonprofit community recycling center for Alaska’s second-largest population in the Mat-Su Borough. VCRS serves about 102,000 residents and businesswww.akbizmag.com

August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES SPECIAL SECTION

es, along with area communities connected by the highway system such as Denali National Park. Since December 1997, VCRS has focused on comprehensive services and public education. The organization’s first recycling facility was designed, constructed, and certified as “Gold” level by the US Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED). The facility was the first commercial industrial building in Alaska to receive this level of certification and the third recycling center in the nation to do so. VCRS has been in its permanent facility located next to the MSB Central Landfill since 2010 and is open five days a week. The capacity of this 20,000-square-foot facil-

ity, with an in-floor conveyor designed into the floor plan that feeds the two-stroke horizontal auto-tie baler, has grown significantly. “Our recycling center is ready to handle the growing needs for recycling as landfill costs rise and resources recovered from the waste stream become more valuable,” says Executive Director Mollie Boyer. VCRS accepts numerous materials for recycling, including corrugated cardboard, newspaper, mixed paper, phone books, kitchen and aluminum beverage containers, steel cans, PET#1 plastic bottles, HDPE#2 jugs and bottles, PP#5 plastic gallon-sized containers, and HDPE#2 and LDPE#4 plastic bags and film. LDPE or low-density polyethylene is used in plastic grocery bags, garbage bags,

and household plastic wrap. Polypropylene 5 (PP#5) is in drinking straws, plastic food bottles (such as syrup and ketchup bottles), and diapers. Boyer says the program’s success comes from community members’ belief in the VCRS mission and program. Residents participate by bringing their sorted recyclables to the facility. “You need quantity and quality in recycling,” she says. “This ensures you’re able to sell your material for top dollar, and when commodity pricing is low, the material will be the first to be purchased. This also enables us to encourage the use of our material locally for manufacture by being able to provide a reliable clean feedstock,” she says.

Large and Unique Recyclables Chris Fedele brings thirty years of industry experience to his current position of buyer and logistics supervisor for Alaska Scrap and Recycling, which started in Anchorage in 2008. Fedele says at least 70 percent of the materials the company recycles are automobiles. Automobile recycling is not a simple process, says Fedele, particularly because safety and environmental protocols require the removal of all fluids. The company even recycles those liquids, extracting the scrapped vehicles’ oil to heat its shop and filtering fuel for their equipment. The auto scrap is crushed into cubes and shipped to the Seattle market where it’s ground into hand-sized pieces and placed onto a magnetic conveyor belt that separates piles of brass, copper, plastics, seats, and other materials. Every week during the summer, 3,000 to 7,000 tons of scrap material is barged from the Port of Anchorage to Puget Sound, a process that requires more than fourteen employees. Along with vehicles, Alaska Scrap and Recycling also accepts and prepares heavy iron from oil rigs and construction projects that goes to mills for smelting to make new steel. Rebar made from vehicle steel is shredded at a facility in Tacoma, Washington, that can compact up to 350 tons per hour. “The process is ultimately less expensive than mining iron ore,” says Fedele. He says it’s an incredibly complex commodity because if the price of iron ore on the global market is high, scrap metal is sought after and his business booms; however, if it’s low, as it has been for the past three years, mills don’t see as much work. The West Coast typically sells to the Asian market, while the East Coast sells scrap metals primarily to Eastern Europe and Turkey, he adds. Fedele says the company targets the road system in Alaska because the logistical challenges of the weight, size, and transportation costs of scrap metal—along with weather and geography—make for an expensive endeavor. He points out that the rural community of Bethel has a quite a few junk cars, for instance, but it’s cost-prohibitive to remove them. For two years the company recycled scrap metal out of remote communities like Adak, in the Aleutian Islands, and Cordova, but low prices have halted those services. “Everyone with junk equipment and appli-

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

Liquid and Solid Waste NRC Alaska has been processing discarded liquid and solid wastes for Alaska businesses and communities since 2000. It has almost one hundred employees and numerous facilities statewide. The company operates a household hazardous waste collection program in several communities, including MOA. NRC Alaska’s Viking Drive facility in Anchorage is a 16,000-square-foot, non-regulated waste processing plant. Non-regulated liquid wastes, non-regulated oil sludge, petroleum contaminated materials, and contaminated absorbent materials are processed at this facility. The Viking facility is also allowed to accept and process benzene contaminated wastewaters under an exclusion permit from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the terms and conditions imposed by the EPA’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Final Storm Water Phase II Rule. The Anchorage facility can process oil and fuel for energy recovery and accepts recyclable and reusable materials. It also processes contaminated water, sludge, and solids, and collects glycol and recycles by fractional distillation. “NRC Alaska is the first and only operator of fractional distillation equipment and technology that consistently produces high-quality recycled glycols. The system consists of both a flash and fractional distillation column heated by a natural gas fired boiler and state of the art computer control system,” says Paul Nielsen, director of sales and marketing for Alaska. He adds that the company also works with remanufactured antifreeze, to formulate several universal recycled antifreeze products to meet ASTM and/or OEM manufacturer specifications for engine coolants. In addition, they can custom-blend recycled antifreeze to customer specifications. NRC does the same for HVAC coolants.

ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES SPECIAL SECTION

ances would utilize an annual barge run in rural Alaska communities when scrap metal value was higher, but it’s simply too expensive now, and cost prohibitive.”

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Trihydro is a consulting firm that provides engineering and environmental solutions to meet the needs of the petroleum industry. EVERYONE NEEDS PRINCIPLES TO GO BY. Learn more about how we do business at trihydro.com

312 Tyee Street | Soldotna, AK 99669 | 907-262-2315

Recycling Refrigerators, HVAC Equipment, and More Total Reclaim launched in 1991 to assist government agencies and other industries recycle refrigerators and HVAC equipment. After twenty-five years in the business, the company’s growing menu of services encompasses the spectrum of recyclable goods. One notable milestone for the company was in 1995 when it became the first reclaimer of refrigerants in the Pacific Northwest pursuant to 1990 amendments to the Clean Air Act. This service allowed businesses to remain compliant with federal law, including companies in Alaska. “Total Reclaim’s Alaska facility is mainly a collection and transfer site,” says Jake Sneddon, Alaska general manager, “but we also assist with consolidation and shipment to our Seattle facility, which includes electronics, mercury-bearing lamps and devices, inwww.akbizmag.com

August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES SPECIAL SECTION

KEEPING ALASKA CLEAN

■ ■

Thermal treatment of petroleum-impacted soils since 1988. Now accepting soils with chlorinated compounds. 907-349-3333 www.anchsand.com

Where Engineering Meets the Environment.

Specializing in: • Bridges • Roads • Site Work • Environmental Cleanup

Step by Step As Alaska’s recycling efforts blossom, and more residents and businesses participate in the growing number of opportunities to recycle every day household items, there is there demonstrable momentum in the recycle-Alaska movement. “A state like California or Minnesota may have as high as 50 percent to 60 percent residential recycling to some degree or another because they’ve been deploying the philosophy for decades, whereas we have about 25 percent using our recycle services in Anchorage in 2017,” says Gales with Alaska Waste. “Yet ten years ago, we only had 10 percent to 15 percent of Alaskans recycling through our programs. We’re much newer to recycling technologies and programs here in Alaska, and geography and costs play roles in determining viability, but it’s definitely growing in a good way. It certainly matters to our company and employees.” Gales believes that more Alaskans and their businesses will pursue recycling when offered opportunities and when they fully recognize the benefits. He notes that Alaska Waste’s growing clientele is indicative of a recycling and ecosystem-friendly state-ofmind. “Recycling may not generate a large profit margin for us, but it’s the right thing to do for our environment. Clean, green communities are what make the state so vibrant. To that end, Alaska Waste is proud to be a large part of the effort to recycle, reuse, and limit the footprint of waste in the state.” R

(907) 357-2238 | www.tutkallc.com SBA Certified HUBZone & DBE

dustrial batteries, refrigeration products, and nonferrous metals.” Sneddon adds that Total Reclaim also handles on and offsite refrigerant recovery; logistical support for communities shipping from rural parts of the state; backhaul consultation for rural communities to ensure safe collection; staging, handling, and packaging practices for recyclable products; and on-ground support for collection events and various recycling field projects. The company’s website is comprehensive and offers online scheduling for pick-up of recyclable items including computers and electronics, tubes and light bulbs, large and small batteries, HVAC and appliances, and cylinders and refrigerants. The website also has a weight counter that is constantly calculating the weight of Total Reclaim’s recycled products; as of early August the weight was at more than 535 million pounds. The environmental protection facet to the company is also manifested in its company culture. “Our commitment to environmental responsibility is at the core of everything Total Reclaim does—in our company mission, every service we offer, how we train our employees, and in every facet of our operations.”

Tom Anderson owns a public relations firm and is a freelance writer in Alaska.

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

Delivering professional environmental, health, and safety consulting services to companies throughout Alaska

s a full-service environmental health and safety consulting firm, Environmental Contracting Solutions (ECS) has the ability and expertise to complete complex projects statewide. ECS—which is based in Kodiak and also operates in Auburn, Washington—has the market insight to create strategic agreements with other industries to solve the most challenging problems while remaining fiscally responsible to its clients. “We have the industry knowledge to complete an array of projects anywhere in the state of Alaska or Washington and complete them with outstanding service and trend-setting precedence,” says CEO Ryan Sharratt, CSP. Within its extensive solutions, ECS offers an array of professional consulting and physical remediation services. It provides professional civil services for project management, site superintendent, contractor quality control, management, and site safety health officers. ECS also offers health and safety training programs facilitated by a board-certified instructor and designed according to construction industry standards, general industry standards, and the American National Standards Institute. Recently, ECS was approved to provide asbestos abatement certification training by the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development,

with similar approval pending in Washington. PROFESSIONALISM AND CERTIFICATIONS ECS also differentiates itself through its professionalism—which extends to clients throughout the life cycle of their project—and highly skilled staff. ECS has a professional management team of eight project managers with specialized expertise to address any tasks or work conditions that may arise. And many ECS employees have diverse qualifications and experience as well as professional board-recognized certifications. The firm’s health and safety professionals are certified through the Board of Certified Safety Professionals and The American Board of Industrial Hygiene. Additionally, its environmental-based services utilize professionals who are approved by the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation and have backgrounds in geology, hydrology, and contaminated sites. In fact, ECS attributes much of its success to the proficiency of its eighteen-member staff. “By providing a workplace with full benefits, we are able to attract and retain industry leaders and subjectmatter experts,” Sharratt says. “Our subject-matter experts have been trained by industry and outstanding mentors throughout their careers.” – PA I D A D V E R T I S E M E N T –

EXPANSION PLANS Through its adeptness, logistics savvy, remote capabilities, and ability to adapt to different situations, ECS has successfully completed projects from Shemya to Barrow to Craig. Clients of ECS include the United States Air Force, Kodiak Electrical Association, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Wells Fargo, and The Salvation Army. As an industry leader, ECS is not afraid of taking risks to achieve the best possible results for clients. It’s also not averse to the challenge of expanding its capabilities and operations. In the future, ECS plans to open new offices throughout the West Coast, including in Oregon and California. By 2020, the company aims to have 95 employees: 50 in Alaska, 20 in Washington, 10 in Oregon, and 15 in California. But for now, ECS will continue focusing on delivering professional environmental, health, and safety consulting services to benefit professional companies throughout Alaska.

Ryan Sharratt, CEO 5353 West Rezanof Drive Kodiak, Alaska 99615 (907) 512-6827 www.ecsak.com

SPECIAL SECTION

Environmental Services

Hazardous Waste Disposal in Rural Alaska It’s not as easy as taking out the trash By Tom Anderson

ost of us are familiar with how typical garbage disposal works. Whether you have a pick up service to empty your trash barrels or receptacle or you drive to and empty your refuse at a local landfill, if you’re in any of Alaska’s regional urban zones there are plenty of options for trash disposal. Discarding hazardous waste can be more complicated. In Alaska’s larger cities including Anchorage, Fairbanks, and Juneau, and even moderate-size communities such as Ketchikan and Kenai, there are multiple options to rid your property of that old refrigerator, dead batteries, or broken computer monitors. But what about rural Alaska? How do residents and businesses in small, isolated communities discard hazardous waste materials, and what options are available when it comes to related services?

Sustainable Statewide Backhaul Program Lawmakers, analysts, and community members agree that there is a definite need to address the logistics involved in removing hazardous waste from rural communities. “There is no safe way to dispose of hazardous waste in the rural Alaskan setting, and backhauling is expensive and logistically difficult for many small communities. A wellcoordinated statewide backhaul program will reduce risks to health and the environment, stretch rural Alaska’s limited dollar, and protect subsistence resources,” reports The Backhaul Alaska Program in 2017. Zender Environmental Health and Research Group is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that provides environmental program services for isolated, rural populations and Alaska Native Villages statewide. The firm is led by Executive Director Dr. Lynn Zender, who specializes in solid waste management and health risks. Deputy Director Simone Sebalo, MS, has a background in engineering and studies solid waste issues on a daily basis. International management firm Booz Allen Hamilton retained the Zender research team to help plan a coordinated statewide system for recycling hazardous waste from rural Alaska communities. The program—called “Backhaul Alaska”—is funded by the Environmental 54

Protection Agency (EPA). Backhaul Alaska’s website says, “A pilot program for community electronics, lead acid batteries, and fluorescent light bulbs is targeted for summer 2018. The program will develop over the next ten years.” The idea for a statewide backhaul program (originally coined as “Adopt-A-Barge”) was conceived by US Senator Lisa Murkowski to ensure the backhaul process is affordable. The Solid Waste Alaska Taskforce (SWAT), which through research and other work is facilitating the launch of Backhaul Alaska, is comprised of several statewide organizations including Kawerak, the State of Alaska’s Solid Waste Program, Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, and the aforementioned EPA and Zender. “When it comes to hazardous waste in remote Alaska, the priority materials for backhaul are lead acid batteries [from vehicles like ATVs and snow machines], fluorescent light bulbs and ballasts, and various electronic waste like discarded TVs, computers, laptops, VCRs, and fax machines,” says Sebalo. “Backhauling these materials removes the bulk of mercury and lead from landfills.” She adds that while scrap metal can make for an unattractive landfill, as long as batteries, mercury switches, fluids, and other non-inert items are removed, it doesn’t pose much of a threat to the surrounding environment. Zender and Sebalo add that waste products like tires are less of a priority in rural Alaska. Though villages have shipped tires out of their communities, it’s not common because of the expense and difficulty of finding an appropriate recycling facility. Tires are toxic when burned and can make a landfill fire burn out of control, but they are easily separable. Adopting strict burning rules and maintaining an organized landfill can minimize the risk of out-of-control fires. Further, electronics, batteries, and lights leach contaminants into the ground, and they are being generated at greater and greater volumes. Zender and Sebalo add there is some market for the component materials that make backhaul possible, even if at a cost. Backhaul Alaska has a five-prong framework crafted to address the process of reducing hazardous waste in rural Alaska. Those five prongs are logistical coordination of the hazardous waste transportation via plane, barge, truck, and rail; village preparedness, including the tools to backhaul waste such as conex containers, shrink wrap, totes, and lifting equipment; village coordination to include training, supplies, and technical support with designated regional managers; uni-

“We take hazardous waste removal and disposal seriously. The rural dynamic of geography and remote communities make the logistics complicated, but we strive to be comprehensive and efficient, which keeps us busy with clients as a result.”

—Jake Sneddon Alaska General Manager, Total Reclaim

formity to minimize inefficiency and federal, state, and local regulatory compliance; and partnership opportunities where charitable businesses, particularly in construction and building trades, can support their communities to modernize and expedite hazardous waste containment and elimination. According to a March 2017, 105-page report called “Sustainable Statewide Backhaul Program Draft Plan,” researched and compiled by Zender and funded by the EPA, the ten-year plan outlines an initial pilot program including up to 35 villages in rural Alaska that will launch in 2017 and 2018. The model blossoms into a full program of up to 100 villages, with development and marketing phases in the sixth or seventh year encouraging as many as 180 villages to collaborate in efficient waste disposal.

Logistics Complicate Hazardous Waste Disposal Zender notes that the report and findings center on rural Alaska communities off the road system. Considering the sheer number of small communities and villages, the logistics (and trash) can become overwhelming if not managed properly. Specifically, the Zender report points out that the Yukon-Kuskokwim region has approximately forty-seven communities that can be served by the recommended hazardous waste removal program, while the Bristol Bay region has as many as twenty-six communities, Norton Sound has fifteen, Northwest Arctic has eleven, the Peninsula region is home to seventeen, and the Interior region has as many as forty communities. Zender says there is a vital need for solidarity in focus and function. “When the program

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

The Business of Hazardous Waste There are a handful of Alaska businesses that participate in waste removal. Although the geography of the state, transportation costs, and logistical barriers create significant challenges for hazardous waste enterprises, these skilled Alaska businesses have found success. Total Reclaim Total Reclaim (TRI) is a Seattle-based environmental services company with satellite branches in Anchorage and Portland, Oregon. TRI was established in Seattle in 1991, mainly as a refrigerant and HVAC recovery and reclaiming facility. It has since expanded services to include recycling electronics, fluorescent lighting, mercury bearing devices, and batteries, among other materials. The Anchorage branch opened in 2005 and currently provides recycling services for communities throughout the state. Jeff Zirkle and Craig Lorch are the founders and owners of TRI. The Seattle facility has approximately eighty employees and the Anchorage branch has five. “We take hazardous waste removal and disposal seriously,” says TRI Alaska General Manager Jake Sneddon. “The rural dynamic of geography and remote communities make the logistics complicated, but we strive to be comprehensive and efficient, which keeps us busy with clients as a result.” TRI is mainly a collection and transfer site, but the company also provides consolidation and shipment of electronics, mercurybearing lamps and devices, industrial batteries, refrigeration appliances, and nonferrous metals. The company handles logistical support for rural communities, including backhaul consultation to ensure safe collection, staging, handling, and packaging practices. “We can help with the ground support for collection events and various field projects such as cleanups, junk vehicle preparation, and refrigeration recovery, as well as hands-on trainings for refrigerant recovery, recycling backhauls, and vehicular removal,” adds Sneddon. TRI has received recyclable material from no less than 125 Alaskan communities, notes Sneddon. He says most coastal communities now have the experience to perform their own collections and ship directly to their Seattle facility. Each year TRI performs a number of activities within communities outside of Anchorage. While these are often collection events, the company provides refrigerant recovery certification testing and training, recycling and backhaul training, and junk vehicle preparation education services. “We partner with a number of other solid waste/recycling companies, nonprofits, and www.akbizmag.com

state and federal agencies, often participating in conferences, trainings, and workshops so we’re all on the same page.” And monetarily, these efforts can add up, he says. The list of materials the company has disposed of from rural Alaskan communities includes TVs, computer monitors, towers and LCD screens, clean panel and lead glass, steel, aluminum, copper and other nonferrous metals, circuit boards, plastics, batteries, light bulbs, refrigerants, various machines with coolants and oils/gases, and non-PCB ballasts. Add together all the communities, diverse populations and products, and suddenly there is a huge spectrum of disposal and safety requirements that must be taken into consideration.

National Response Corporation Alaska NRC Alaska, formerly known as Emerald Alaska, has been managing liquid and solid wastes for Alaska businesses and communities since 2000. The company has close to one hundred employees in nine locations across the state, including Prudhoe Bay, Fairbanks, Kenai, Palmer, and Anchorage. Led by Senior Vice President Blake Hillis, NRC Alaska has evolved into a signature source for management of recyclable liquids including used-oil, off spec fuels, spent glycol solutions, and petroleum impacted water in rural Alaska. “Hazardous waste management issues in Alaska can often be resolved by tailoring elements of an operation to address minimization,

Full service comprehensive Environmental and Construction Contractor for every phase of Program and Project Management

A provider of Architectural, Environmental Consulting, and Management Services

Engineering, Construction

Proud Calista Corporation Contractors ` Alaska Native Corporations (ANC) ` ANC 8(a) Advantages ` Working in Alaska, Hawaii, the Pacific, and nationwide ` Over $3 million in equipment and resources at Wake and Shemya Islands ` $76 million in equipment and marine resources ` $150 million bonding capacity ` Extensive remote and arctic experience ` Program/Project Managements ` Brice-AECOM Joint Venture

Heavy Civil Contractor, Marine Construction, Site Preparation, Erosion Control, Infrastructure, and Dredging Services

Construction Contractor specializing in Bulk Fuel Storage, Power Generation, Bridges, Pile Foundation Systems, Sheet Pile Shoring, Communication Tower Systems, and Wind Turbine Installation August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES SPECIAL SECTION

comes into fruition and operates efficiently, beyond local businesses and entrepreneurial support, federal agencies like SBA, USDA, FAA, USFWA, USPS, and our US senators and congress persons will be integrally involved, as will State of Alaska departments and agencies and the boroughs and local communities affected. This is an enormous and concerted effort to keep Alaskans healthy and safe from environmental hazards.”

ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES SPECIAL SECTION

recycling, and cost management objectives,” says Paul Nielsen, the company’s director of sales and marketing. “NRC Alaska stands alone in this area by maintaining an experienced, highly-trained staff of environmental professionals who respond to hazardous and non-hazardous materials waste management requests from our clients.” Nielsen adds that the company’s personnel possess an extensive working knowledge of all aspects of waste management, allowing NRC Alaska to provide complete containerized waste management services in rural Alaska that include hazardous waste transportation and disposal. The company handles non-hazardous waste recycling technology and treatment as well as vacuum truck and tanker services. “NRC Alaska operates the largest and longest tenured waste treatment and disposal facility in Alaska,” says Nielsen. “From our Anchorage location, we routinely collect, store, transfer, process, and recycle hundreds of regulated and non-regulated waste streams from private sector and public sector government clients in rural communities. We have managed recyclable wastes from Kaktovik to Point Hope including Prudhoe Bay, Barrow, and all villages in the North Slope Borough; Northwestern hub villages of Nome, Kotzebue, and Unalakleet; Southwestern hub villages of Bethel, Dillingham, and King Salmon plus the surrounding Bristol Bay villages; the entire Aleutian chain including the Bering Sea communities north to Gambell and Savoonga; Interior river villages from the Y-K Delta up to Galena and Fort Yu-

kon; and all of the Southcentral Railbelt communities, and Southeastern Alaska.” NRC operates Household Hazardous Waste Collection programs in several communities, including the Municipality of Anchorage and the Kenai Peninsula Borough, and supports other boroughs’ programs including the Matanuska Susitna and Fairbanks North Star Boroughs.

Carson Dorn Steve Haavig has been in the household hazardous waste business for twenty-five years in Southeast Alaska. His focus remains the safe and compliant removal of these materials to keep communities in Alaska environmentally safe. Haavig works with Juneau-based environmental consulting company Carson Dorn to remove hazardous household goods from rural communities that include paints, cleansers, acids, bases, pesticides, motor oil, antifreeze, gasoline, and diesel fuel. Collection occurs at more than fifteen annual events in communities in Southeast Alaska. Items are then shipped to Seattle for recycling or disposal. Haavig says his business’s focus is rural and non-urban communities off the road system like Sitka, Craig, Klawock, Wrangell, Petersburg, Haines, Cordova, and Unalaska. The group also services larger communities like Ketchikan and Valdez. Rural village residents and community members are notified when collection events are scheduled so they can bring in their household hazardous waste materials for disposal.

Haavig explains that collection events typically occur over a weekend, after which drums and containers are filled with disposed of materials and placed on a transport barge headed to Seattle. He notes that businesses can also participate depending on the amount of the waste delivered during an annual cycle. He says the community programs accept residential, business, and even government agency waste. In terms of weight and amounts, “It depends on the size of the rural community,” says Haavig. “Whereas Ketchikan has over 16,000 people and may bring over 50,000 pounds of household materials, Craig, Alaska, has 2,200 people and may bring 25,000 pounds of disposables.” He adds that the communities served are part of the Southeast Conference, through which Carson Dorn initially was awarded the contract via RFP.

The Future of Hazardous Waste Disposal in Rural Alaska The combined efforts of Alaska policy makers, the EPA, SWAT, and industry experts are starting to show tangible results. The evolution of safe and efficient hazardous waste removal will continue in a productive way as long as businesses participate and donate to the cause and community leaders inspire their residents and region to join the mission. R Tom Anderson owns a public relations firm and is a freelance writer in Alaska.

Engineering Results for Alaskan Communities since 1979 STORMWATER

ENERGY EFFICIENCY

Fairbanks 907-452-5688

ENVIRONMENTAL

HEALTH & SAFETY

Anchorage 907-222-2445

Juneau 907-586-6813

Sustainable Environment, Energy, Health & Safety Services www.nortechengr.com 56

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

You Are Here (So Are We)

3601 C Street Suite 1320 Anchorage, AK 99503

Re-Introducing Cornerstone Advisors Having served clients in Alaska for years, it’s time to move our relationship to the next level. At Cornerstone, we take our high-touch approach seriously and ﬁnd that the best way to manage the wealth and needs of our clients is to be as local as possible. Our Client Managers have the experience and expertise to prepare you for anything you might encounter on your life’s path. Whether it’s making the most of your retirement investments, planning for the ﬁnancial future of your children, managing company stock options, or even solving complex and delicate family matters, our Client Managers deliver at every turn. Alaska wealth deserves Alaska wealth management. Cornerstone is here for you. BuildBeyond.com l info@buildbeyond.com l (888) 762-1442 l Anchorage, AK

SPECIAL SECTION

Environmental Services

2017 Environmental Services Firms & Recycling Services Directory ENVIRONMENTAL FIRMS COMPANY TOP EXECUTIVE

3M Alaska 11151 Calaska Cir. Anchorage, AK 99515 Phone: 907-522-5200 Fax: 907-522-1645 ABR, Inc. PO Box 80410 Fairbanks, AK 99708 Phone: 907-455-6777 Fax: 907-455-6781 Acuren 600 E. 57th Pl., Suite B Anchorage, AK 99518 Phone: 907-569-5000 Fax: 907-569-5005 AECOM 700 G St., Suite 500 Anchorage, AK 99501 Phone: 907-562-3366 Fax: 907-562-1297 Agnew::Beck Consulting 441 W. Fifth Ave., Suite 202 Anchorage, AK 99501 Phone: 907-222-5424 Fax: 907-222-5426 Alaska Abatement Corp. 520 W. 58th Ave., Suite J Anchorage, AK 99518 Phone: 907-563-0088 Fax: 907-563-0089 Alaska Aerial Media 7447 Meadow St. Anchorage, AK 99507 Phone: 907-440-0088 Alaska Chadux Corporation 2347 Azurite Ct. Anchorage, AK 99507 Phone: 907-348-2365 Fax: 907-348-2330 Alaska Clean Seas 3300 C St., Suite 200 Anchorage, AK 99503 Phone: 907-743-8989 Fax: 907-743-8988 Alaska Soil Recycling 1040 Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Malley Rd. Anchorage, AK 99515 Phone: 907-348-6700 Fax: 907-344-2844 Alaska Tent & Tarp 100 E. International Airport Rd. Anchorage, AK 99518 Phone: 907-562-2293 APC Services LLC 4241 B St., Suite 100 Anchorage, AK 99503 Phone: 907-677-9451 Fax: 907-677-9452 Arcadis 880 H St., Suite 101 Anchorage, AK 99501 Phone: 907-276-8095 Fax: 907-276-8609 Arctic Fox Environmental PO Box 340043 Prudhoe Bay, AK 99734 Phone: 907-659-2145 Fax: 907-659-2146 ARCTOS LLC 130 W. Intâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;l Airport Rd., Suite R Anchorage, AK 99518 Phone: 907-440-4093 Fax: 866-532-3915 Argon, Inc. 7631 Berry Cir. Anchorage, AK 99502 Phone: 907-223-0393

YEAR FOUNDED / ESTABLISHED IN ALASKA

Stephanie Mathers, Reg. Mgr. innovation.3malaska@mmm.com 3M.com Stephen Murphy, Pres. info@abrinc.com abrinc.com Frank Noble, Reg. Mgr. AK tdaugherty@acuren.com acuren.com Laura Young, AK Ops Mgr. aecom.com Thea Agnew Bemben, Pres. admin@agnewbeck.com agnewbeck.com John Anderson, Pres.

Beau Bivins, Pres. info@akaerialmedia.com akaerial.media Matthew Melton, GM info@chadux.com chadux.com Barkley Lloyd, GM acsgmpres@alaskacleanseas.org alaskacleanseas.org Brad Quade, Mgr.

WORLDWIDE / ALASKA EMPLOYEES

1904 92,000 AECOM Alaska is a team of engineers, scientists, planners, and support staff providing 1948 70 arctic-smart engineering and environmental services for the complete project life-cycle from permitting for air, water, soils, and solid waste to planning design and construction through production and site closure. 2002 24 Energy planning, energy efficiency, energy conservation, energy policy, environmental 2002 24 assessment, energy supply, housing, FERC licensing, hydroelectric, sustainable recreation, utility assessment, impact studies, sustainable communities, and transportation choices. 1997 1997

30+ 30+

Specializing in asbestos, mold, lead, and hazmat remediation services in the private, local, state, and federal sector statewide.

2014 2014

4 4

Alaska Aerial Media is a fully-licensed and insured unmanned aerial system service provider. Alaska Aerial Media provides cutting-edge platforms and sensors to achieve a wide range of produced videos, photos, and geospatial results.

1993 1993

14 14

1979 1979

84 84

Alaska Chadux Corporation (Chadux) is a member-funded, 501(c)(4) nonprofit oil spill response organization headquartered in Anchorage, AK. Chadux is classified as an OSRO by the USCG and registered as a PRAC, and an NTVCC with the State of Alaska providing resources to cleanup oil spills. Protects the environment by providing response services to North Slope crude oil explorers and producers and the first 167 miles of the Trans Alaska Pipeline System in accordance with oil spill response agreements and plans.

1988 1988

95 95

1945 1945

25 25

2006 2007

10 10

anchsand.com Kelly Dart, Dir. Commercial Sales anchorage@alaskatent.com alaskatent.com Greg DeBuois, Bus. Mgr. info@apcservicesllc.com apcservicesllc.com Kent Crandall, AK Ops Leader cynthia.oistad@arcadis.com arcadis.com Ralph Allphin, Pres. arcticfox@astacalaska.com www.arcticfoxenv.com Randy Pysher, Pres./Bus. Mgr. info@arctosak.com arctosak.com Jane Whitsett, CEO jane@argon-usa.com argon-usa.com

BUSINESS DESCRIPTION

1902 88,000 3M manufactures a wide range of products covering many markets in Alaska. In the area of 1971 12 natural resources, we provide products and services that support the oil/gas and mining industries in worker safety, electrical and communications, welding protection, fire, and corrosion protection. 1976 45 Environmental research and services, including marine and terrestrial wildlife, fisheries 1976 45 and aquatic science, landscape ecology and vegetation science, wetland mapping and permitting, re-vegetation and ecological restoration, endangered species expertise, NEPA documentation, and GIS services. 1976 10,000 Materials engineering, nondestructive examination, and integrity management for the oil 2002 13 and gas, power, mining, transportation, and construction industries.

Remediation of petroleum-impacted soils by thermal desorption. Alaska Soil is capable of off-site and on-site remediation projects. Results are quick and guaranteed. Soils are recycled into beneficial products after treatment; thereby complying with green and sustainable recycling (GSR) practices. Secondary containment production. Geomembrane Liners and Berms. Portable fabric structures.

Environmental consulting; environmental assessments; contaminated land evaluation and remediation, geochemistry, baseline environmental studies; mining and exploration services.

1888 28,000 Arcadis is an Alaska provider of construction and program management services and a 1994 20 leading global design, project management, and consultancy firm.

2004 2004

10 10

Analytical laboratory and hazardous waste consulting office in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska. Arctic Fox also has rooms available for rent in our brand new facility. Each room includes a private bathroom, flat screen TV, and individual climate control.

2007 2007

5 5

2008 2008

1 1

Full service Environmental Regulatory Compliance Contractor, project permitting, field compliance services, permit and compliance management, oil spill, SPCC, FRP Plans, plan audits, full range spill prevention and response planning services, response management and support. Heath and safety management. Argon is a well-respected small, woman-owned environmental consulting business. A wide range of clients in Alaska utilize its core services of large project management, field sample and data management, quality assurance and control, data validation, and chemistry consultation.

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

B.C. Excavating LLC 2251 Cinnabar Lp. Anchorage, AK 99507 Phone: 907-344-4490 Fax: 907-344-4492 Brice Environmental Services Corp. PO Box 73520 Fairbanks, AK 99707 Phone: 907-456-1955 Fax: 907-452-1067 CampWater Industries LLC 2550 Hayes St./PO Box 309 Delta Junction, AK 99737 Phone: 907-895-4309 CCI Industrial Services LLC 5015 Business Park Blvd., Suite 4000 Anchorage, AK 99503 Phone: 907-258-5755 Fax: 907-770-9452 Central Environmental, Inc. 311 N. Sitka Anchorage, AK 99501 Phone: 907-561-0125 Fax: 907-561-0178 CH2M 949 E. 36th Ave., Suite 500 Anchorage, AK 99508 Phone: 907-762-1500 Fax: 907-762-1600 ChemTrack Alaska, Inc. 11711 S. Gambell St. Anchorage, AK 99515 Phone: 907-349-2511 Fax: 907-522-3150 Chilkat Environmental LLC 223 Old Hart Box 865 Haines, AK 99827 Phone: 907-303-7899 Clearwater Air Inc 1100 Merrill Field Dr. Anchorage, AK 99501 Phone: 907-274-1705 Fax: 907-274-1705 Colville, Inc. Pouch 340012 Prudhoe Bay, AK 99734 Phone: 907-659-3198 Fax: 907-659-3190

www.akbizmag.com

Gordon Bartel, Pres.

YEAR FOUNDED / ESTABLISHED IN ALASKA

admin@bcxllc.net bcxllc.net Craig Jones, Pres. craigj@briceenvironmental.com briceenvironmental.com Jon Dufendach, Pres. jondufendach@gmail.com campwater.com A. Ben Schoffmann, Pres./CEO info@cciindustrial.com cciindustrial.com Stuart Jacques, Pres. cei@cei-alaska.com cei-alaska.com Terry Bailey, Sr. VP/AK Reg. Mgr. Terry.Bailey@ch2m.com ch2m.com/alaska Carrie Lindow, Pres. info@chemtrack.net chemtrack.net Elijah Donat, Sr. Project Mgr. chilkat@chilkatenvironmental.com chilkatenvironmental.com Andrew Harcombe, Pres. info@clearwaterair.com clearwaterair.com Eric Helzer, Pres./CEO info@colvilleinc.com colvilleinc.com

1982 1982

WORLDWIDE / ALASKA EMPLOYEES

BUSINESS DESCRIPTION

40 40

Remediation services, soil farming, site cleanup for PCB, TCE, diesel/gasoline contamination, UST removal/replacement, contaminated soils hauling and disposal.

1991 1991

39 28

Brice is an ANC 8(a) and proud Calista subsidiary with a long history of performing environmental remediation/consulting, design-build, engineering, and construction in Alaska, nationwide, and the Pacific.

2009 2009

2 2

Design/build portable and emergency drinking water plants. NSF61-approved models to meet USEPA drinking water standards available off-the-shelf. Affiliates worldwide-see website.

1989 1989

305 285

1983 1983

84 60

Corrosion-under-insulation refurbishment; asbestos and lead surveys and abatement; specialty coatings; sandblasting; tank and vessel cleaning; fire proofing; demolition and hazardous waste removal; operations, maintenance, and construction; oil spill response; heat treat services. Provides civil/environmental construction services including: contaminated soils handling, excavation and site restoration, asbestos abatement, lead abatement, hazardous materials abatement, handling, and demolition.

1946 19,446 Large firm with Alaskan environmental work in site investigations and remediation, 1962 1,625 spill planning, permitting, facility design; skill in complex field investigation, real-time evaluation, field labs and field screening methods, and in-field GIS/CAD for wastewater, hazardous waste and vapor intrusion. 1973 5-15 Please check out ChemTrack’s Statement of Qualifications at chemtrack.net/about_ 1973 5-15 us.htm.

2007 2007

5 5

Contaminated sites, NEPA, wetlands and permitting, fisheries studies, project management, Tribal environmental services and grant writing.

2010 2010

20 20

Clearwater Air is a specialty air service dedicated to providing professional, collaborative, and mission-oriented flights primarily in support of research, surveillance, data-acquisition, and emergency response operations.

1981 1981

215 215

Colville’s group of oilfield companies provide a full complement of Arctic Logistics capabilities. Services include fuel, aviation, waste management, transport, industrial supply, and camp services.

August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES SPECIAL SECTION—DIRECTORY

COMPANY TOP EXECUTIVE

ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES SPECIAL SECTIONâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;DIRECTORY

COMPANY TOP EXECUTIVE

Cook Inlet Reg. Citizens Advisory Council 8195 Kenai Spur Highway Kenai, AK 99611 Phone: 907-283-7222 Fax: 907-283-6102 Cook Inlet Spill Prevention & Response 51377 Kenai Spur Hwy. Kenai, AK 99611 Phone: 907-776-5129 Fax: 907-776-2190 CRW Engineering Group, LLC 3940 Arctic Blvd., Suite 300 Anchorage, AK 99503 Phone: 907-562-3252 Fax: 907-561-2273 Cultural Resource Consultants LLC 3504 E. 67th Ave. Anchorage, AK 99507 Phone: 907-349-3445 Fax: 480-772-4185 DAT/EM Systems International 2014 Merrill Field Dr. Anchorage, AK 99501 Phone: 907-522-3681 Fax: 907-522-3688 DOWL 4041 B St. Anchorage, AK 99503 Phone: 907-562-2000 Fax: 907-563-3953 E3 Environmental 219 E. International Airport Rd., Suite 100 Anchorage, AK 99518 Phone: 907-565-4200 Eco-Land LLC PO Box 1444 Nome, AK 99762 Phone: 907-443-6068 Fax: 907-443-6068 EHS-Alaska, Inc. 11901 Business Blvd., Suite 208 Eagle River, AK 99577 Phone: 907-694-1383 Fax: 907-694-1382 Environmental Contracting Solutions 5353 W. Rezanof Dr. Kodiak, AK 99615 Phone: 907-942-0927 Environmental Management, Inc. 206 E. Fireweed Ln., Suite 201 Anchorage, AK 99503 Phone: 907-272-9336 Fax: 907-272-4159 Fairweather Science, LLC 301 Calista Ct. Anchorage, AK 99518 Phone: 907-346-3247 Fax: 907-349-1920 GeoCHEM, Inc. PO Box 143226 Anchorage , AK 99514-3226 Phone: 907-341-3272 Fax: 206-219-3272 Global Diving & Salvage, Inc. 5304 Eielson St. Anchorage, AK 99518 Phone: 907-563-9060 Fax: 907-563-9061 Golder Associates, Inc. 2121 Abbott Rd., Suite 100 Anchorage, AK 99507 Phone: 907-344-6001 Fax: 907-344-6011 Green Star, Inc. PO Box 212409 Anchorage, AK 99521-2409 Phone: 907-202-9611 Fax: 907-331-0271 HDL Engineering Consultants 3335 Arctic Blvd., Suite 100 Anchorage, AK 99503 Phone: 907-564-2120 HDR 2525 C St., Suite 500 Anchorage, AK 99503 Phone: 907-644-2000 Fax: 907-644-2022 High Tide Environmental 180 E. Hygrade Ln. Wasilla, AK 99654 Phone: 907-354-3132 K2 Dronotics 601 W. Fifth Ave., Floor 2 Anchorage, AK 99501 Phone: 844-425-3766 Kakivik Asset Management LLC 5015 Business Park Blvd., Suite 4000 Anchorage, AK 99503 Phone: 907-770-9400 Fax: 907-770-9450

YEAR FOUNDED / ESTABLISHED IN ALASKA

Michael Munger, Exec. Dir.

1990 1990

WORLDWIDE / ALASKA EMPLOYEES

BUSINESS DESCRIPTION

8 8

Congressionally mandated citizen oversight council promoting environmentally safe marine transportation and oil facility operations in Cook Inlet, Alaska.

1991 1991

33 33

Provides oil-spill response services to member companies in the greater Cook Inlet area. Registered with the U.S. Coast Guard, (OSRO) and ADEC (PRAC).

1981 1981

60 60

Civil, environmental, structural, electrical and mechanical engineering, surveying, planning, permitting, and construction management.

1975 1975

5 4

1987 1987

10 8

1962 1962

400 145

2012 2012

5 5

2005 2005

4 4

1986 1986

5 5

2014 2014

16 14

Specialize in identifying, evaluating, and mitigating historic, archaeological, and traditional cultural property sites on private and public lands in Alaska, advises clients on cultural resource issues and assists them in complying with their obligations under federal and state laws. DAT/EM Systems International develops solutions for the photogrammetric, engineering, and GIS industries. The DAT/EM Photogrammetric Suite includes Summit Evolution 3D stereo mapping software, LandScape point cloud viewing and editing toolkit, Summit UAS for analyzing 3D UAS data, and more. DOWL is a multi-disciplined consulting firm that has been serving Alaska clients for more than fifty-five years. We offer the full suite of environmental services, including biological and cultural resource surveys; environmental impact assessment and documentation; agency consultations; and permitting. Project Management, stakeholder engagement, water quality projects and sampling, environmental document production and permitting, scoping and comment analysis, logistics, community planning, site assessment, NEPA regulatory experience, grant writing for project funding, accounting, and funding management. Full service land surveying and mapping firm specializing in environmental investigations, remediation and mapping. Featuring 3D laser scanning, coastal/riparian hydrographic surveys, and ROV high resolution multi-spectral aerial-photography as well as full GPS and conventional surveying capability. Engineers and project managers skilled in hazmat design for building remodel and demolition projects. Asbestos, lead, PCB, and other hazardous building materials identification. IAQ, welding fume, ventilation studies. MOA third-party plan review, and ICC and IFC code consulting. Provides health, safety, and environmental professional services. Specializing in hazardous materials, building surveys, health and safety training, and civil construction services.

1988 1988

12 12

2010 2010

7 7

1961 1982

5 5

1979 1979

250 75

circac.org Todd Paxton, GM cispri.org D. Michael Rabe, Mng. Principal info@crweng.com crweng.com Linda F. Yarborough, CR Specialist lfy@crcalaska.com crcalaska.com Jeff Yates, GM sales@datem.com datem.com Stewart Osgood, Pres./CEO jpayne@dowl.com dowl.com Oscar Evon, GM info@e3alaska.com e3alaska.com Robert McClintock, Sr., Pres./Member nomesurveyor@gmail.com eco-land-llc.com Robert French, PE, PIC rfrench@ehs-alaska.com ehs-alaska.com Ryan Sharratt, CEO Ryan@ecsak.com ecsak.com Larry Helgeson, Principal Eng. lhelgeson@emi-alaska.com emi-alaska.com Jeff Hastings, Pres. fairweathersciencellc.com Joseph Neubauer, CEO jbauer@geocheminc.com geocheminc.com Devon Grennan, CEO/Pres. info@gdiving.com gdiving.com Mark Musial

1960 1980

Environmental and civil engineering, Phase I and Phase II ESAs, wetland delineations and permitting, asbestos management and design, HUD lead paint activities, UST closure, SWPPPs, SPCCs, GIS mapping, and safety training. A team of dedicated professionals working to make Alaska cleaner and safer. Fairweather Science provides a wide range of environmental support services to industries and agencies throughout Alaska. These services include remote sensing and data collection, marine research, logistics and permitting, safety supervision, and subcontractor management. Specialty products for civil construction and land protection including plant nutrient extraction, also destruction of unwanted plants.

Global Diving & Salvage is a leader in the marine services industry. With more than thirtyfive years of experience in commercial diving, marine construction, marine casualty response, environmental services, and topside and subsea inspection, and testing services, Global offers safe, effective solutions to complex problems. 6,400 Arctic and geotechnical engineering, groundwater resource development, environmental 27 sciences, and remedial investigation.

golder.com Doug Huntman, Program Dir. dhuntman@akforum.org Facebook David Lundin, Principal/Pres. info@hdlalaska.com hdlalaska.com Tim Gallagher, AK Area Mgr. info@hdrinc.com hdrinc.com Chris Hoffman, Owner Chris@hightidealaska.com hightidealaska.com Ben Kellie, CEO/Co-Founder info@k2dronotics.com k2dronotics.com A. Ben Schoffmann, Pres./CEO info@kakivik.com kakivik.com

1996 1996

1 1

Green Star is a green business certification program that assists, certifies, and recognizes Alaska businesses that are committed to fully integrating resource efficiency and environmental leadership initiatives into their business plans and practices.

2000 2000

75 75

HDLâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Environmental Services Group is skilled in the NEPA process. Their services include wetland delineations, invasive species investigations, environmental permitting, noise analysis, Phase I Environmental Assessments, and Section 7 consultations.

1979 10,000 Engineering services cover civil and structural engineering for transportation, water/ 1979 100 wastewater, solid waste, power, federal, and oil and gas infrastructure. Specialty services in design-build. Engineering supported by a full suite of environmental/planning services, and more than 10,000 employees nationwide. 2010 2 High Tide provides marine mammal observers during construction and environmental 2010 2 permitting in Alaska focused on endangered species and underwater noise impacts. We also gather underwater video to depths of 1,000 feet using our Remotely Operated Vehicle throughout Alaska and locations worldwide. 2015 4 UAV (drone) flight service and data analysis. RGB and thermal imaging, mapping and 3D 2015 4 modeling, site planning and logistics for remote projects, inspections and spill monitoring via live video stream. Drone training and rentals available. 1999 1999

305 285

Kakivik is a full service industrial asset integrity management company specializing in nondestructive testing (NDT), external and internal corrosion investigations, quality program management, and field chemical and corrosion management including chemical laboratory and coupon/probe operations.

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

Lifewater Engineering Company 1936 Donald Ave. Fairbanks, AK 99701 Phone: 907-458-7024 Fax: 907-458-7025 Michael L. Foster & Associates, Inc. 13135 Old Glenn Hwy., Suite 200 Eagle River, AK 99577 Phone: 907-696-6200 Fax: 907-696-6202 Midnight Sun Environmental LLC 601 E. 57th Pl., Suite 103 Anchorage, AK 99518 Phone: 907-344-3244 Fax: 907-349-1813 NORTECH, Inc. 2400 College Rd. Fairbanks, AK 99709-3754 Phone: 907-452-5688 Fax: 907-452-5694 North Wind Group 7910 King St. Anchorage, AK 99518 Phone: 907-891-7240 Fax: 907-277-5422 Northern Land Use Research Alaska LLC 234 Front St. Fairbanks, AK 99701 Phone: 907-474-9684 Fax: 907-474-8370 NRC Alaska LLC 425 Outer Springer Lp. Palmer, AK 99645 Phone: 907-258-1558 Fax: 907-746-3651 Olgoonik Inspection Services 3201 C St., Suite 700 Anchorage, AK 99503 Phone: 907-562-8728 Fax: 907-562-8751 Organic Incineration Technology, Inc. PO Box 55878 North Pole, AK 99705 Phone: 907-488-4899 Fax: 907-488-4823 Pacific Environmental Corp. (PENCO) 6000 A St. Anchorage, AK 99518 Phone: 907-562-5420 Fax: 907-562-5426

Bob Tsigonis, Pres., PE

YEAR FOUNDED / ESTABLISHED IN ALASKA

1998 1998

Bob@LifewaterEngineering.com LifewaterEngineering.com Michael Foster, PE/Owner hlm@mlfaalaska.com mlfaalaska.com Kim Kovol, Pres. kim@midnightsunenv.com midnightsunenvironmental.com Peter Beardsley, Pres. marketing@nortechengr.com nortechengr.com Christopher Leichtweis, CEO/Pres. ewhitmore@northwindgrp.com northwindgrp.com Burr Neely, GM nlur@northernlanduse.com northernlanduse.com Blake Hillis, Sr. VP NRC Alaska PNielsen@nrcc.com nrcc.com Steven MacRae, VP Commercial Div.

mark.sanford@oitinc.net oitinc.net Brent Porter, AK Area Mgr.

10 10

1998 1998

18 18

2012 2012

8 8

1979 1979

25 25

1997 1997

1991 1991

2014 2014

olgoonik.com Mark Sanford, Pres.

WORLDWIDE / ALASKA EMPLOYEES

BUSINESS DESCRIPTION

Designing and manufacturing sewage treatment plants for man camps, homes, and lodges in the most extreme environments and remote places. Manufacturing high performance, rough duty, work boats by cutting and welding heavy duty plastic sheets. Alaska’s leading plastic fabricator. Full service architectural/engineering firm providing planning, investigation, design, permitting, oil spill cleanup, environmental remediation, construction, and expert witness/ litigation support services. Experts in civil, geotechnical, and environmental design, and cold regions construction. MSE LLC is a full service environmental firm, providing expertise in environmental management, permitting, project planning, site assessment, remediation, NEPA and compliance. MSE specializes in power transmission/linear construction, rail, highway, and renewable energy projects for Alaska. A multi-disciplined consulting firm with registered professional engineers and certified industrial hygienists on staff providing environmental, engineering, energy, industrial hygiene, and health and safety professional services throughout Alaska.

1,100 Environmental investigation, restoration and remediation; engineering; natural and 7 cultural resources; NEPA services; GIS services; construction; demolition; abatement; waste management; regulatory support; and mine reclamation. The company owns and operates three direct push rigs and two UVOST soil screening systems. 9 National Historic Preservation Act Sec. 106 assessments; identification, evaluation, mitiga8 tion services-prehistoric/historic archaeology, historic architecture, cultural landscapes, and subsistence; documents for NEPA and permitting; regulatory compliance; consultation; and ground-penetrating radar. 1,500 Emergency spill response, hazardous/non-hazardous waste disposal, petroleum product 100 recycling, industrial cleaning services, vacuum truck services, automotive fluids recycling and sales, environmentally friendly cleaners/degreasers, site clean-up, and remediation. Anchorage/Kenai/Prudhoe/Fairbanks. 5 A wide range of environmental management, inspections, remediation, and construction 5 services for government and commercial clients. Expert contract management support with experience working in remote regions and challenging environments.

1990 1990

35 32

Soil remediation, transportation, gravel, and fuel.

1985 1994

150 100

Pacific Environmental Corporation (PENCO) specializes in land and marine spill response, environmental cleanup and remediation, and marine vessel remediation. PENCO’s array of environmental services includes supplying teams of highly skilled spill response technicians for emergency response.

alaska@penco.org penco.org

COMPANIES

BUILDING ALASKA MARINE LLC

ENERGY SERVICES LLC A CIRI COMPANY

A CIRI COMPANY

FOR MORE THAN

s r a e y 6 3

CONTRUCTION, INC Experts in Resource Development and Heavy Civil Construction

Cruz Construction | Alaska Interstate Construction | Alaska Aggregate Products Cruz Energy Services | Cruz Marine Original

www.akbizmag.com

A CIRI Company

Option 1

A CIRI Company

Option 2

August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES SPECIAL SECTION—DIRECTORY

COMPANY TOP EXECUTIVE

ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES SPECIAL SECTION—DIRECTORY

COMPANY TOP EXECUTIVE

Pacific Pile & Marine 700 S. Riverside Dr. Seattle, WA 98108 Phone: 206-331-3873 Fax: 206-774-5958 PDC Inc. Engineers 1028 Aurora Dr. Fairbanks, AK 99709 Phone: 907-452-1414 Fax: 907-456-2707 Quantum Spatial 2014 Merrill Field Dr. Anchorage, AK 99501 Phone: 907-272-4495 Fax: 907-274-3265 Rain for Rent 53325 Henley Ave. Kenai, AK 99611 Phone: 907-283-4487 Remote Access Technology Intl 600 E. 57th Pl., Suite B Anchorage, AK 99518 Phone: 907-569-5000 Fax: 907-569-5005 Resource Data, Inc. 560 E. 34th Ave., Suite 100 Anchorage, AK 99503 Phone: 907-563-8100 Fax: 907-561-0159 Restoration Science & Engineering LLC 911 W. Eighth Ave., Suite 100 Anchorage, AK 99501 Phone: 907-278-1023 Fax: 907-277-5718 Shannon & Wilson, Inc. 2355 Hill Rd. Fairbanks, AK 99709-5326 Phone: 907-479-0600 Fax: 907-479-5691 SLR International Corporation 2700 Gambell St., Suite 200 Anchorage, AK 99503 Phone: 907-222-1112 Fax: 907-222-1113 Soil Processing, Inc. PO Box 211382 Anchorage, AK 99521-1382 Phone: 907-274-3000

Wil Clark, CEO

YEAR FOUNDED / ESTABLISHED IN ALASKA

info@pacificpile.com pacificpile.com Royce Conlon, Pres./Principal

2008 2009

1975 1975

pdceng.com Adam McCullough, AK Bsns. Dev. Dir. contact@quantumspatial.com quantumspatial.com Robert Lake, CEO rharris@rainforrent.com rainforrent.com Steve Green, Div. Mgr. AK sgreen@acuren.com rat.ca Jim Rogers, Pres. info@resourcedata.com resourcedata.com David Nyman, PE/Principal lgamble@restorsci.com restorsci.com Chris Darrah, FBX Ofc. Mgr. info-fairbanks@shanwil.com shannonwilson.com Brian Hoefler, AK Mgr. bhoefler@slrconsulting.com slrconsulting.com Jennie Sharpe, CEO

1960 1960

1934 2002

1995 1995

1986 1986

1992 1992

1954 1974

2000 2001

1990 1990

WORLDWIDE / ALASKA EMPLOYEES

100 20

BUSINESS DESCRIPTION

Pacific Pile & Marine is a heavy civil marine contractor. Our portfolio includes waterfront structures such as marinas and breakwaters; dredging and capping; sheet pile shoring; cofferdams; rock sockets and anchors; drilling; marine demolition; driven and drilled pile; and a host of other services. 105 PDC is an all-Alaskan, multi-disciplined firm with more than 100 employees in five office 104 locations. PDC specializes in Arctic design with expertise in civil, environmental, geotechnical, electrical, environmental, mechanical, fire protection, and structural engineering, as well as surveying and GIS. 433 Quantum Spatial’s comprehensive capabilities encompass the acquisition, analysis, 30 integration, and management of geospatial data. Quantum offers a diverse portfolio of advanced imaging and remote sensing technologies, backed by powerful modeling, visualization, and GIS tools. 1,600 Pump, tank, pipe, and filtration solutions for environmental, construction, and oilfield 4 operations.

5,000 Core services include Non-Destructive Testing (“NDT”), maintenance and full service asset 20 installation and repair in difficult to reach areas of facilities such as confined spaces and high access structures. 190 105

Resource Data’s GIS and data management expertise makes the company a valuable partner for environmental projects including permitting, baseline studies, analysis, spill cleanup, wetlands determination, and remediation. Resource Data understands the process and language of environmental work. 10 Environmental science and engineering firm specializing in engineering and permitting/ 10 compliance, soil and groundwater sampling, and remediation, Phase I and Phase II ESAs, water and wastewater engineering, fuel system design and SPCC plans, wetlands delineation, APDES permitting (MSGP/CGP SWPPP). 300 Environmental site assessments; soil/water sampling; hazardous materials surveys; 60 regulatory compliance; remediation design; storm water management. Also geotechnical analysis/design; frozen ground engineering; earthquake analysis; AASHTO-accredited testing lab for soils, concrete, asphalt. 1,200 Air permitting and measurements, acoustics, project permitting, environmental compli70 ance, site investigation, remediation, risk assessment, and oil spill contingency planning.

~11 ~11

Specializes in the treatment of crude oil, bunker C, and diesel-contaminated soil, using an ADEC-approved and permitted thermal desorption unit.

spialaska@aol.com

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

Spill Shield, Inc. 2000 W. International Airport Rd, #D-2 Anchorage, AK 99502 Phone: 907-561-6033 Fax: 907-561-4504 Stantec 725 E. Fireweed Ln., Suite 200 Anchorage, AK 99503 Phone: 907-276-4245 Fax: 907-258-4653 Talarik Research and Restoration Services LLC 4241 B St., Suite 100A Anchorage, AK 99503 Phone: 907-677-9451 TELLUS, Ltd. 2416 Loussac Dr. Anchorage, AK 99517-1148 Phone: 907-248-8055 Travis/Peterson Environmental Consulting 3305 Arctic Blvd., Suite 102 Anchorage, AK 99503 Phone: 907-522-4337 Fax: 907-522-4313 Trihydro Corporation 312 Tyee St. Soldotna, AK 99669 Phone: 907-262-2315 TTT Environmental Instruments & Supplies 4201 B St. Anchorage, AK 99503 Phone: 907-770-9041 Fax: 907-770-9046 Tutka, LLC 2485 E. Zak Cir., Suite A Wasilla, AK 99654 Phone: 907-357-2238 Fax: 907-357-2215 UIC Arctic Response Services, LLC 301 Calista Ct., Suite 101 Anchorage, AK 99518 Phone: 907-865-4900 Fax: 907-334-8263 UIC Environmental, LLC 6700 Arctic Spur Rd. Anchorage, AK 99518 Phone: 907-677-8220

YEAR FOUNDED / ESTABLISHED IN ALASKA

Lark Christensen, Ops Mgr. spillshield@ak.net spillshield.com Bob Gomes, CEO twitter.com/Stantec stantec.com Greg DuBois, GM

Scott Erdmann, Pres./Prof. Geologist

1992 1992

WORLDWIDE / ALASKA EMPLOYEES

4 2

BUSINESS DESCRIPTION

Supplier for Smart Ash, Oil Away, Drug Terminator, and MediBurn incinerators. Absorbents, water scrubbers, oil spill response kits, Super Sacks, harbor boom, nitrile gloves, MicroBlaze, absorbent pads, rolls, boom, sock, duck ponds, spill kits, and related oil spill cleanup and prevention products. 1954 22,000 The Stantec community unites approximately 22,000 employees working in more than 1972 80 400 locations across six continents. Work includes engineering, architecture, interior design, landscape architecture, surveying, environmental sciences, project management, and project economics. 2015 10 Environmental projects primarily for remediation of contaminated sites and restoration of 2015 10 impacted lands and streams from industrial activities.

1997 1997

1 1

Project management, environmental assessment and compliance, and corrective action programs.

1998 1998

10 10

1984 2015

418 8

2003 2003

11 9

Storm water management, environmental site assessments (Phases I and II), LUST remediation, hazardous material management, facility compliance audits, engineering analysis and design, field sampling, surface water/groundwater evaluations, NEPA, and wetlands delineations. Michael Travis, Principal. Trihydro specializes in strategic project implementation, air quality and process management, engineering and surveying, environmental, water resources, and IT consulting. We serve a diverse clientele: petroleum, federal and state, mining and natural resources, industrial and commercial, and infrastructure. Portable gas detection, health and safety monitoring, environmental equipment. Rentals, sales, service and supplies. Warranty center. Alaskan-owned small business.

tellus@acsalaska.net Michael Travis, Principal mtravis@tpeci.com tpeci.com Jack Bedessem, Pres./CEO information@trihydro.com trihydro.com Deborah Tompkins, Owner info@tttenviro.com tttenviro.com 1999 1999 amie@tutkallc.com tutkallc.com Peter Andersen, GM info@uic-ars.com uic-ars.com Terri Mitchell, GM

10-50 WBE/DBE, HUBZone, General Contractor (roads, bridges, culverts, site work), environmen10-50 tal cleanup, and consulting.

2013 2013

61 60

UIC Arctic Response Services provides Alaska’s oil and gas industry with spill response contingency planning, response equipment leasing, operations, and maintenance as well as marine project support. Visit: www.uic-ars.com for more information.

2006 2006

12 12

Environmental consulting, contaminated site characterization and remediation, permitting, NEPA, community outreach and planning.

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August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES SPECIAL SECTION—DIRECTORY

COMPANY TOP EXECUTIVE

ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES SPECIAL SECTION—DIRECTORY

COMPANY TOP EXECUTIVE

Waste Management National Services, Inc. 1519 Ship Ave. Anchorage, AK 99501 Phone: 907-274-0477 WHPacific, Inc. 3111 C St., Suite 300 Anchorage, AK 99503 Phone: 907-339-6500 Fax: 907-339-5327 Wild North Resources LLC PO Box 91223 Anchorage, AK 99509 Phone: 907-952-2121 Fax: 907-952-2121

YEAR FOUNDED / ESTABLISHED IN ALASKA

Mike Holzschuh, Sr. Territory Mgr.

mholzschuh@wm.com wm.com Harold L. Hollis, PE, Ops Mgr. AK Region 1981 1981 info@whpacific.com whpacific.com Melissa Cunningham, Principal 2009 2009 info@wildnorthresources.com wildnorthresources.com

RECYCLING SERVICES COMPANY TOP EXECUTIVE

Alaska Car Crushing and Recycling PO Box 875188 Wasilla, AK 99687 Phone: 907-357-5865 Fax: 907-357-2123 Alaska Soil Recycling 1040 O’Malley Rd. Anchorage, AK 99515 Phone: 907-348-6700 Fax: 907-344-2844 Alaska Waste 6301 Rosewood St. Anchorage, AK 99518 Phone: 907-563-3717 Fax: 907-273-2797 Bin There Dump That PO Box 241311 Anchorage, AK 99524 Phone: 907-947-2844 C & R Metal Recycling 401 E. Van Horn Rd. Fairbanks, AK 99701 Phone: 907-452-4417 Capitol Disposal, Inc. 5600 Tonsgard Ct. Juneau, AK 99801 Phone: 907-780-7801 Fax: 907-780-4235

YEAR FOUNDED / ESTABLISHED IN ALASKA

Gary Jacobsen, Owner akcarcrushing@gmail.com alaskacarcrushing.com Brad Quade, Mgr. anchsand.com Craig Gales, Sales Mgr. customerservice@akwaste.com alaskawaste.com Greg Green, Owner/Pres. anchorage@bintheredumpthat.com bintheredumpthat.com Dennis Wilfer, Pres. crrecycle.com Eric Vance, Dist. Mgr.

WORLDWIDE / ALASKA EMPLOYEES

BUSINESS DESCRIPTION

1971 43,000 Hazardous and nonhazardous waste disposal, project management, complete logistical 1971 10 oversight, complete US and Canadian manifesting, rail transportation, over-the-road transportation, marine transportation, and turnkey remedial services. 250 45

Professional consulting services for energy, water/environmental, development/facilities, surveying, transportation, and construction/program management.

10 10

WNR provides environmental consulting services and wilderness safety specialist support to the public and private sectors. Expertise includes regulatory compliance, environmental monitoring, permitting, technical writing, and other client support.

WORLDWIDE / ALASKA EMPLOYEES

1998 1998

3 3

1988 1988

95 95

2013 2013

3 3

1992 1992

30 30

BUSINESS DESCRIPTION

Recycling of all types of scrap metal including appliances, junk vehicles, batteries, copper, aluminum, and cars. As a full-service company, Alaska Car Crushing has a fleet of tow trucks picking up cars and trucks, and a baler. Fully licensed and insured.

Remediation of petroleum-impacted soils by thermal desorption. Our process is capable of off-site and on-site remediation projects. Results are quick and guaranteed. Soils are recycled into beneficial products after treatment; thereby complying with green and sustainable recycling (GSR) practices. 1968 15,000 Refuse and Recycling Company that provides residential and commercial services 2003 275 throughout Alaska. Alaska Waste offers a variety of containers to better serve customers. Check them out at: www.alaskawaste.com. Provides waste bins for residential construction, roofing, and other projects. The bins are dropped off and picked up by a uniformed driver, who will even sweep before leaving. Four bin sizes available to fit the specific project.

Full-service metal recycling center, serving Alaska’s Interior and surrounding areas for more than twenty years. Largest buyer of non-ferrous metals in the Interior. Ferrous and nonferrous scrap metal processor, servicing industrial, commercial, and individuals throughout Alaska. 1978 40,000 Landfill, sanitary. 1978 9

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Central Recycling Services, Inc. 2400 Railroad Ave. Anchorage, AK 99501 Phone: 907-748-7400 Fax: 907-561-0178 Chena Power LLC PO Box 58740 Fairbanks, AK 99711 Phone: 907-488-1505 Fax: 907-488-4058 Green Star of Interior Alaska PO Box 82391 Fairbanks, AK 99708 Phone: 907-452-4152 NRC Alaska LLC 425 Outer Springer Lp. Palmer, AK 99645 Phone: 907-258-1558 Fax: 907-746-3651 Recycling Solutions of Alaska PO Box 110015 Anchorage, AK 99516 Phone: 907-242-9587 Total Reclaim Environmental Services 12050 Industry Way, Unit 10 Anchorage, AK 99515 Phone: 907-561-0544 Fax: 907-222-6306 Valley Community For Recycling Solutions PO Box 876464 Wasilla, AK 99687 Phone: 907-745-5544 Fax: 907-745-5569 W N Salvage Recyclers PO Box 82193 Fairbanks, AK 99708 Phone: 907-488-4582 Fax: 907-488-2694 WestRock Recycling 6161 Rosewood St. Anchorage, AK 99518 Phone: 907-562-2267 Fax: 907-565-4459

Stuart Jacques, Pres.

YEAR FOUNDED / ESTABLISHED IN ALASKA

crs@crs-alaska.com centralrecyclingservices.com Bernie Karl, Pres./Owner kayla@chenahotsprings.com chenapower.com David Weissman, Interim Exec. Dir. info@iagreenstar.org iagreenstar.org Blake Hillis, Sr. VP NRC Alaska PNielsen@nrcc.com nrcc.com Sarah Robinson, Owner sarah@rsalaska.net rsalaska.net Jake Sneddon, Facility Mgr. Facebook totalreclaim.com Mollie Boyer, Exec. Dir. community@valleyrecycling.org valleyrecycling.org Nancy Castle, Owner

2009 2009

WORLDWIDE / ALASKA EMPLOYEES

14 14

1984 1984

30 30

1998 1998

5 5

2014 2014

2008 2008

BUSINESS DESCRIPTION

Scrap metal and inert debris recycling facility. Accepts separated and mixed loads of recyclable debris including wood, plastic, metals, concrete, asphalt, cardboard, tires, and sheetrock, among other materials. Waste Management Plans and LEED consulting. Sales of salvaged and recycled building materials. Recycling Centers (Wholesale); Municipal Recycling Programs; Large Facility Recycling Programs.

Green Star hosts monthly electronics recycling collections, provides recycling bins and coordinates volunteers to collect recyclables at special events, publishes and distributes the Fairbanks Recycling Guide annually, and offers waste reduction and recycling education and outreach to the community. 1,500 Emergency spill response, hazardous/non-hazardous waste disposal, petroleum product 100 recycling, industrial cleaning services, vacuum truck services, automotive fluids recycling and sales, environmentally friendly cleaners/degreasers, site clean-up, and remediation. Anchorage, Kenai, Prudhoe, and Fairbanks. 2 Recycling Solutions of Alaska provides office, business, and residential recycling services. 2 Paper, cardboard, aluminum, glass, electronics, and more.

1991 2005

105 5

Recycler for electronics, fluorescent lights, household batteries, and refrigerants. Community resource regarding information on recycling matters. Also Non-Ferrous Metal Buyer.

1998 1998

8 8

1985 1985

1 1

VCRS operates a community recycling center receiving and processing material kept out of the landfill into bales/feedstock to make new products. Provides education via field trips, curriculum kits and outreach to the community for people of all ages to learn how recycled resources rise again and again. Recycling copper and brass.

1999 1999

11+ 11

wnalaska@mosquitonet.com Randy Virgin, GM

Recycling services for general public and commercial sector. Leading metals buyer, also accepts cardboard, newspaper, mixed paper, office paper, aluminum cans, and #1 and #2 plastic bottles.

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August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES SPECIAL SECTIONâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;DIRECTORY

COMPANY TOP EXECUTIVE

MANUFACTURING

Supplying Alaska’s Restaurants, Stores, and Homes The ins-and-outs of food manufacturing in the Last Frontier By Julie Stricker

he air in the Spenard neighborhood in Anchorage is redolent with the smell of fresh baked bread, making even the fullest bellies rumble in response to the delectable aromas billowing out of the Franz Bakery, a supplier of bread and other baked goods to Alaskans. “It’s made here in Alaska by Alaskans for Alaskans,” says Bakery General Manager Larry Brandt. “Our products have never been frozen. We bake it and we deliver it the next morning.” Franz opened the Anchorage site four years ago and distributes its products statewide, including to Southeast Alaska. It’s one of a handful of food manufacturers in Alaska, which imports 95 percent of its food. However, Alaskans remain fiercely loyal to home-grown and locally-made products, including salmon and seafood, gourmet potato chips, berry candies, flour, locally-roasted coffee, tortillas and taco chips, wine, beer, birch syrup, and a wide variety of vegetables. Most everything else comes from Outside. It takes about four days for a barge from Washington to reach the Port of Anchorage, where the majority of Alaska’s food and supplies enter the state. While the large retail chains have their own supply lines, smaller stores in rural areas, as well as restaurants, schools, and jails, rely on distributors such as Quality Sales Food Service in Fairbanks. In business since 1956, Quality Sales has a network of suppliers that stretches to Chicago, says Buyer Joe Plutt. The food is shipped to a central location in Seattle where it’s packed into containers, loaded onto a barge, and shipped north. From Anchorage, containers are shipped to Fairbanks via truck or the Alaska Railroad to Quality Sales’ warehouse. The company, which employs thirty to forty workers, receives three to eight containers weekly, and delivers to restaurants one to three times per week, Plutt says. The company also ships food by air to stores in Interior villages. Quality Sales handles little local produce because of packaging requirements but does stock meat and fish products made by Indian Valley Meats and Alaska Sausage & Seafood in Anchorage. Plutt says the business has changed relatively little over the years. “People are eating the same stuff they ate ten years ago,” he says. 66

“Maybe a little more health conscious.”

Keeping Alaska’s Food Supply Intact Stephen Brown has spent the past two years mapping Alaska’s food supplies. A professor with the University of Alaska Fairbanks’ Cooperative Extension Service in Palmer, Brown’s interest in food supply was piqued after the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) identified Alaska as one of five states with an insecure food chain, with only a three- to five-day supply of food available if barges were to stop. The agency wanted to map food resources in the state, including how food resources move around Alaska, but it lacked a basic knowledge of life in rural areas, Brown says. For instance, USDA wanted to know how much a pound of whale meat sells for in Barrow, not understanding that subsistence foods can’t be bought and sold. Their estimates on food security only took into account food available in grocery stores, not the fifty red salmon in an Alaskan’s freezer or the moose and caribou they hunt, Brown says. “If the barges stop, we’re out of milk, but not out of food,” he says. The mapping project will eventually result in a website showing the locations of people involved with commercial salmon or those who grow potatoes within a fifty-mile radius of Fairbanks. Brown and other staffers travel around the state asking residents in remote areas where they get their food and if they feel their supply is secure. “We’re doing these surveys to ask people their perceptions because there’s a lot of ‘we don’t know what we don’t know,’” he says. “We’re learning that marine mammals are huge as far as their impact on food, for instance.” With the exception of salmon, seafood, and Alaska Brewing Company products, nearly all the food that is grown in Alaska is consumed here, Brown says. “Even the things we thought we were going to export, it turns out, stay here,” he says. A few years ago, Alaskans started growing rhodiola roseaxa, a cold-hardy plant with a root used for medicinal purposes. The initial intent was to export it, and growers at first just sold the raw product but more recently have been experimenting with value-added products that have proven popular. “We’re buying every last scrap we’re growing ourselves,” Brown says. Exporting Alaska’s Agricultural Knowledge Alaska is increasingly exporting its agricultural know-how. Many Alaskans grow

gardens during the short, bright summers. Brown says he and his wife grow enough potatoes to last a year, with more to donate to the local food bank. One farmer has gone to extremes to grow his own produce and his success is inspiring many villages in northern Canada. Tim Meyers lives in Bethel, a southwest Alaska town perched on the tundra, where residents traditionally hunted and gathered their food, not farmed it. A couple of years ago, Meyers started to grow vegetables on a few acres of permafrost. Using high tunnels and raised beds, he now supplies local residents with fresh-grown vegetables. A system of community greenhouses is spreading in the Northwest Territories and Yukon. In Inuvik, the community turned an old hockey rink into a greenhouse, Brown says. “Nobody there knows how to grow vegetables,” he says. “They have to be taught.” The Canadian government is providing money for the greenhouses and even sends interns to Bethel to learn from Meyers. One Alaska manufacturer that has found success outside the state is Alaska Brewing Company. Marcy and Geoff Larson opened the brewery in 1986 in Juneau with 2,000 square feet of space and local distribution for its first 253 cases of beer. Today, the company occupies 47,000 square feet and its beer is distributed in nineteen states, including Ohio and Iowa. Its beers have won several regional, national, and international competitions. Alaska Brewing Company’s first beer was based on a list of ingredients for a popular beer made by the Gold Rush-era Douglas City Brewing Company. Their first, called Alaska Amber, is one of the company’s signature beers. They tap local glacier-fed water supplies and use spruce tips and alder smoked malt in other products. Heather Kelly of Anchorage found a niche market for her gourmet gluten-, soy-, and dairy-free brand camping foods. Kelly loved the outdoors and started making her own lightweight meals for backpacking in her kitchen. She shared the meals with a few adventurous friends and the idea took off. In 2014, she raised $54,000 on Kickstarter in five weeks to start Heather’s Choice. Bestsellers include dark chocolate chili, smoked salmon chowder, “packaroons,” and breakfast cereals. Heather’s Choice products are sold in southcentral Alaska, as well as outdoors-oriented businesses in Canada and the Lower 48. While large retailers such as Fred Meyer and Safeway carry some Alaska-made products, others are easier to find at stores such

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

as the Three Bears Alaska, a family-owned grocery store—started in Tok in 1980—with nine locations throughout the state and one in Montana. A tenth store is slated to open in Healy by the end of 2017. The Co-op Market Grocery and Deli in Fairbanks features local meat and produce when available. Even locally-owned pet supply stores in Fairbanks and Wasilla carry Alaska-made foods.

Food: It’s a Family Affair Many of Alaska’s food manufacturers are family operations. Bryce and Jan Wrigley moved to Delta Junction in 1983 and began growing barley on a 1,700-acre farm, where they raised five children. In 2011, they built a commercial flour mill and began producing a line of barley products that is found in small stores around the state and may soon be featured in larger operations, Bryce Wrigley says. “We decided to [build the mill] for a couple of reasons,” Wrigley says. “Food security was becoming a concern for us. We wanted to create a new market for local farmers and create a value-added product to allow our children to find income on the farm.” The Alaska Flour Company initially made barley flour and couscous, then branched out into pancake and waffle mixes, barley cereal, brownies, and cookie mixes. “The cereal has traditionally been our most popular product,” he says. “We use the couscous in place of rice. We’re always looking for new things. We try to release a new product every year.” As demand rose, Wrigley quickly found that

their original mill, the only commercial mill within 1,500 miles, was too small. They upgraded the facility and recently welcomed their fourth generation into the family business. Alaska-grown potatoes are the basis for Ralph and Darcy Carney’s kettle-cooked potato chips. The Alaska Chip Company, which opened in 2002, makes the chips in small batches at their Anchorage facility and ships them to stores throughout the state. They come in four flavors: Original Alaska Chips, Grizzly Chips, Volcano Chips, and Chilkoot Chips. The company also sells flavored popcorn. Another Anchorage-based company, Taco Loco, specializes in corn tortillas, taco chips, and other Mexican foods. Adan and Cecilia Galindo bought Taco Loco in 1977. Originally located in the back of a photography studio in the Mountain View district of Anchorage, it has since moved to new facilities and is now one of the largest food manufacturers in the state. The daughters of Indian Valley Meats founder Doug Drum say they consider many of their customers to be family and have worked with some of them for years. The game and fish processor is nestled in Indian Valley south of Anchorage along Turnagain Arm. Drum started the business in 1976, Renia Kukowski says. Drum mostly processed fish and game brought in by locals, as well as some Native subsistence foods. Over the years, he developed his own product lines, which are USDA-certified and distributed

throughout the state in supermarkets, as well as gift stores. Kukowski, who runs the business with her sister, Cathy Drum, says their production is dwarfed by Alaska Sausage & Seafood, but they still handle 200,000 pounds of game meat and 100,000 pounds of fish every season. “We are staying pretty busy,” Kukowski says. “We get all the great customers because it’s family bringing family. They keep us busy, even if we’re a bit off the beaten path, they find us.” Both women grew up with the business alongside their dad. Their products reflect their Alaska surroundings and as a reminder of where the food comes from, they keep live reindeer, pygmy goats, quail, and exotic birds on the grounds. In addition to wild game and fish, they also process reindeer, venison, elk, and buffalo. Indian Valley Meats also helps Native companies manage a herd of 6,000 reindeer, combining Alaska Native culture with modern processing technology. “We have the best customers,” Kukowski says. ”We know a lot of them by name. They’ve been coming here for years. We really still stick to the Alaskan way that’s gotten a little lost. I feel that the customer is always right and the customer comes first.” R

Julie Stricker is a journalist living near Fairbanks.

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August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

TRANSPORTATION

Saved by Alaskans Photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Lauren Steenson

A Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak, Alaska, MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew transfers a patient to an ambulance in Kodiak, Alaska. The patient was medevaced from the fishing vessel Providence in Lazy Bay on the southern point of Kodiak Island.

Volunteers not only help save lives, they save money for the state By Jessica Rohloff

very year, hundreds of people—visitors and Alaskans alike—get lost or injured in the backcountry. Fortunately, thousands of highly trained search and rescue volunteers are ready and waiting to risk their lives to help save others. In a state the size of Alaska, landscapes are bigger and grander and emergency search and rescue resources are stretched thin. Between budget cuts, population size, and the sheer amount of territory in the Last Frontier, federal, state, and local agencies must work together and pool resources in order to respond to the hundreds of search and rescue calls that come in each year. Volunteer search and rescue groups also play a vital role in these missions. Effective collaboration is key to saving lives, and it has another benefit: it helps save money.

Search and Rescue by Season By June of this year, Alaska State Troopers (AST) had already conducted 141 search and rescue missions. And that was before they hit the busy season. 68

As with most operations and activities in Alaska, search and rescue work varies based on the season. During the summer many rescues involve day hikers, says Lieutenant Steve Adams, former search and rescue coordinator for AST. “Every summer a large number of tourists in the Anchorage basin take off on a day hike just outside of town and need medical evacuation, typically due to a lower extremity injury. People underestimate the amount of time, effort, or equipment needed.” Boating accidents are also common this time of year, adding to the year-round danger of hypothermia. Alaska’s cold and unpredictable waters pose serious drowning danger to eager boaters who are faced with overturned boats and those that lose power in the middle of nowhere, leaving them alone, bobbing in the waves, awaiting help. Summer may be busy, but when fall hits and hunting season begins, rescuers are faced with the particularly difficult challenge of locating lost hunters, says Adams. One overdue hunter can easily trigger an extended rescue mission. “It may take days, if we find them at all,” Adams says. “If they didn’t tell their buddies exactly where they’re going, the search ends up covering a large area. And hunters wear camouflage, so they’re very hard to see.” Hunting season also sees a large number of plane crashes, often due to distracted driving, so to speak: people are looking for animals when

they should be focused on flying. This is when mishaps such as slow-speed stalls happen. The Civil Air Patrol (CAP) Alaska Wing participates in searches for overdue hunters, as well. “Sometimes their aircraft had a rough landing and set off its distress beacons, and sometimes a person is in need of aid,” says Major Stephen Sammons, CAP Alaska Wing Emergency Services Officer. “Same with summer and peak snow seasons—as people are getting out in the back country there is a rise in search and rescue cases that corresponds with the increase in traffic.” Sammons points out that unlike the Lower 48, people in Alaska depend on aviation for day-to-day activities, whether tourism or supply management to bush communities. “With aviation being such a cornerstone of Alaska’s daily life, CAP is there when that community needs support.” Transportation in general, whether in air or on land, tends to be the cause of many search and rescue missions. This is at least partly due to Alaska’s limited road system. For example, Adams reports that 30 percent to 32 percent of search and rescue missions by Alaska State Troopers involve snow machines. That’s because snow machines are the primary mode of travel in the Interior during winter. People living in isolated villages often travel on a highway system made of frozen rivers to gain access to other villages and goods and servic-

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

US Army Alaska Aviation Task Force in conjunction with the Alaska State Troopers and Wilderness Search and Rescue conduct a training medical evacuation to test the agencies’ cooperation and reaction time in case of an emergency situation within the Interior of Alaska. Photo by Staff Sgt. Sean Callahan

es. “Spring or fall is the worst time to travel on these rivers—before they’re frozen solid and when they’re starting to thaw,” says Adams. The slow season for AST search and rescue is between hunting season and snow machine season, says Adams. “From October 1st until mid-November we get a lull where things slow down, and then we get into early winter drownings.” The US Coast Guard (USCG) also sees seasonal changes in search and rescue calls. “Like the Lower 48, busy season is normally the summer,” says USCG 17th District Search and Rescue Specialist Paul Webb. “But Alaska has a large maritime fishing industry that is a yearround operation. We stay steady through most of the year. Between October and the beginning of January is the slowest portion of the year.”

Sharing Responsibilities and Resources There are four broad categories of search and rescue missions, each covered by a different agency: the Alaska Rescue Coordination Center handles aeronautical calls; USCG deals with maritime search and rescue; National Park Service is responsible for search and rescue missions on federal lands; and AST are the first line of response for land-based search and rescue outside national parks. The divisions of responsibility have more to do with who is managing an incident and coordinating resources than who is executing www.akbizmag.com

the actual mission. In reality, everyone works together. This has a lot to do with the scarcity of available resources and the geographic proximity of assets or expertise to a particular incident. For example, when other entities cannot reach a location, USCG gets involved with land-based emergencies. This may include helping lost hunters and hikers, medical evacuation of the injured, and transport of patients from remote clinics to hospitals and trauma centers that offer a higher level of care. For non-medical incidents such as lost hunters or stranded tourists, USCG coordinates with AST. Other missions may involve local police and fire departments; the US Air Force; Alaska Air National Guard and Alaska Army Guard; the North Slope Borough Search and Rescue; and the many local volunteer search and rescue organizations around the state. Although the National Park Service and AST are technically responsible for search and rescue on federal and state lands, respectively, they have an official Memorandum of Understanding and often work together. “Because the Park Service has resources available to respond to incidents, AST will often defer to us to complete a mission,” says Erika Jostad, National Park Service chief ranger at Denali National Park and Preserve. “Occasionally they’ll ask us to complete a mission just outside our boundaries. And when the parks don’t have

the necessary resources to complete a rescue, we’ll ask AST to come into the park and help.” Alaska search and rescue agencies are able to pool their resources, which helps overcome challenges that result from limited resource and budget constraints. AST, for example, is able to respond to hundreds of calls each year despite having only two helicopters dedicated to search and rescue. “We have lots of different assets available depending on the partner we have helping us at the time,” Adams says. “The Department of Public Safety has several aircraft, vessels, and snow machines. We also use assets from the US Coast Guard, the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center, CAP, and the local volunteer agencies.” “The state is like a small town,” says Jostad. “None of us have enough resources where we can say things like, ‘Hey, that’s mine.’ So we work really well together.”

Volunteers: Saving Lives, Saving Money Although AST have statute authority for landbased search and rescue, they don’t have the resources to conduct missions themselves. There simply aren’t enough troopers, and budget cuts have taken a toll on the state troopers. “The most important challenge or constraint is funding,” says Adams. “We rely heavily on volunteer organizations that are basically selffunded through donations from the public.

August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

Technical Sgt. Cody Inman, a pararescueman with the 212th Rescue Squadron, Joint Base ElmendorfRichardson, Alaska, is hoisted into a HH60 Pave Hawk helicopter during Exercise Arctic Chinook Photo by Staff Sgt. John Gordinier

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

They have received some government funding in the past for training, but for the most part they don’t receive much government funding at all.” Alaska Mountain Rescue Group (AMRG) is one of the volunteer organizations that perform technical search, rescue, and recovery missions under the direction of AST. Based in Anchorage, AMRG has eighty volunteer members who perform an average of thirty to forty missions annually. Missions range from searches for lost hunters, hikers, or children to high-angle rope rescue, avalanche response, and downed aircraft. “One of the untold stories is that we’re more than likely saving the state of Alaska millions of dollars by being volunteers,” says AMRG Board Chairman Eric Huffman. “Considering the amount of technical expertise involved… it’s a three day examination from other certified organizations. When you think about the amount of money it would take to train troopers to be technical rescuers, avalanche specialists, search specialists... it’s a lot. And you can’t just train two of them.” In total, AST works with fifty-seven different volunteer organizations statewide, representing about 1,100 volunteers. Although people sometimes mistakenly believe groups like AMRG receive state funding because they work under AST, Huffman points out that they actually rely completely on donations. There are some grants available to cover training costs, but, as Huffman points out, “we have to take time off work to attend the

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An Alaska Air National Guard 212th Rescue Squadron pararescueman performs a high-altitude jump from a Coast Guard C-130 Hercules during a training mission at Joint Base ElmendorfRichardson. Photo by Airman 1st Class Jackie Sanders

training, and we’re not paid for that.” Each of the volunteer groups has its own schedule, but they all train year-round. Most volunteer organizations have at least one or two group meetings per month and one to four trainings per month. Most meetings last a couple of hours and training can last all day depending on the organization’s objectives. Search and rescue volunteers point out that volunteering is more of a second, unpaid career than a hobby, and people who are involved in search and rescue take their jobs very seriously. Major Brian Emerson, public affairs officer for CAP Alaska Wing, put it this way: “Volunteers are critical. You can’t pay someone enough to put their life on the line. It has to be passion.” That passion shows. Volunteers not only risk their lives to help save others but they

also invest significant time and money in equipment and training to keep their skills up to date. Individuals can and do spend thousands of dollars on training and specialized search and rescue equipment each year. A few years ago, AMRG lost one of their helicopters during a mission. Since this meant they could no longer fly at night, “we decided we needed to up our snow machine capabilities,” says Huffman. “We can’t rely on AST to provide helicopter support because they had budget cuts. So we spent $40,000 out of our own pockets to improve our response capabilities in winter.”

How Much Does a Mission Cost? There’s no simple answer to “what does a search and rescue mission cost?” Costs are highly

August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

The US Coast Guard District 17 Era Helicopters crew lowers a Priority 1 Air Rescue swimmer into the Arctic Ocean during a joint search and rescue exercise near Oliktok Point Photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Grant DeVuyst

variable. According to Jostad, cost depends on the mission. “If we had a known patient in a known location that wasn’t too far from where the helicopter was parked, it might cost $2,000 to $3,000. But if someone is lost and we had to search for a week before finding them, and we’re trying to mobilize troops, thirty to forty people to go search for this person, it could cost $25,000.” One thing that is consistent, though, is the cost of flight time. “Any time we launch an aircraft, that’s when things get expensive,” says Jostad. Fortunately, volunteer organizations like the CAP Alaska Wing are available to help minimize some of these costs. When an emergency beacon is activated and the message reaches the search and rescue coordination center at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, the 11th Air Force has two options. They can deploy a Blackhawk helicopter, which costs $2,500 an hour, or they can send the CAP to search the area first, which costs $100 an hour. Even though rescuers have coordinates, when a plane goes down in heavy trees or a valley it can be hard to find. From a taxpayer’s standpoint, it’s more cost effective to send out CAP assets to pinpoint the exact location of the downed aircraft before deploying a Blackhawk with para-rescue jumpers to airlift the victims. In 2016, AST conducted a study to uncover the average cost of a mission. They calculated that the total cost of search and rescue for fiscal year 2015 was more than $1 million. Dividing that by the 432 search and rescue missions

during this time period, they came up with an average cost of roughly $2,500. However, this number does not account for USCG, CAP, local fire departments, volunteer rescue groups, or any other entities that help with missions. Although it’s hard to get definitive numbers, it’s easy to imagine that the real cost of search and rescue is much higher than $2,500. Flight time is hugely expensive. Of the estimated $1 million per year AST spends on search and rescue, at least half is for their two helicopters. The maintenance bill alone is $250,000 per helicopter, and that’s before they’re even fired up. Fuel and pilots are an additional expense.

Search and Rescue Relies on People While aircraft, vessels, and snow machines are valuable tools, the most critical asset in search and rescue is people. “We do have aviation assets,” says Jostad, “but really it’s sending people on the ground to search that is the most important.” Corey Aist, president of the Alaska Search and Rescue Association, says, “I’m amazed by the volunteers who leave their families and their work behind to assist. I’m always surprised by the quality of the actions they take, with no compensation. These people are not looking for rewards—they’re not looking for money, and they’re not even looking for recognition. We get a call from the troopers and people show up to help.” R Jessica Rohloff is a freelance writer and aspiring Alaskan.

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August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

TOURISM

Stretching the Reach of Alaska’s Tourism Industry

Visa agreement opens doors to more Chinese visitors to Alaska By Sam Friedman

ei Guo works in a sector of the Alaska travel industry that barely existed when he first came to the United States in 2003. Guo runs the Fairbanks office of Skylar Travel, the largest of a handful of Alaska businesses that have emerged to serve a recent surge in visitors from China. Skylar Travel offers Alaska tours with bilingual Mandarin and English-speaking tour guides. The company has about twenty employees at offices in Anchorage, Beijing, Los Angeles, and Fairbanks. Travel agent Haiyan Jiang, who is originally from Beijing, opened Skylar Travel in Anchorage in 2014, an important year for businesses that cater to Chinese tourists. In November 2014 the United States and China agreed to a reciprocal visa agreement that made travel much easier between the two countries. Previously, Chinese visitors who received US travel visas had to use those visas within one year and could only to visit the country one time. Under the new rules, visas are valid for up to ten years and are good for multiple entries. 74

The rule change is especially important for so-called secondary destinations such as Alaska, according to a recent US Department of Commerce guide to the Chinese market. Most Chinese visitors head to Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, or Las Vegas on their first trip to the United States. With the long-term visa, these same visitors are more likely to make return trips to check out other destinations, including Alaska. Back in 2003, Guo was living in China’s Shandong Province. It took him about two years to prepare his paperwork to apply for a University of Alaska Fairbanks marine biology PhD program and then for a student visa from the US State Department. He took several trips back to China while he was a student and had to reapply for a visa each time he returned, each time risking the chance that he might not receive another visa. With today’s visa rules, Chinese students are given greater leeway to travel to more locations. Chinese university students in the United States are an integral part of the travel industry.

In November 2014 the United States and China agreed to a reciprocal visa agreement that made travel much easier between the two countries. Previously, Chinese visitors who received US travel visas had to use those visas within one year and could only to visit the country one time. Under the new rules, visas are valid for up to ten years and are good for multiple entries.

Chinese Hype in Context For Alaska’s tourism industry, an increase in visitors from the second largest economy in the world is an exciting prospect. The United States saw 2.6 million Chinese visitors in 2015. The US Department of Commerce predicts that number will double to more than

5 million by 2020. China is currently the fifth largest market source for visitors to the United States, behind Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, and Japan. The scale of Chinese tourism in the 49th State isn’t easy to measure because Chinese

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

In November 2016, Explore Fairbanks and Visit Anchorage led a statewide tourism sales mission to Taiwan and China, which included exhibiting at one of the largest travel shows in Asia, the International Travel Fair in Taipei. Image courtesy of Explore Fairbanks

visitors are especially important during the typically slower winter season, and comprehensive statewide statistics are only available for the summer. In the summer, Chinese tourists comprise a small share of the market when compared to domestic travelers and those from Australia, the United Kingdom, and Germany. An Alaska Tourism Industry Association survey released in May that only surveyed summer visitors estimates that less than 1 percent of all summer visitors to Alaska are from China. About 5,000 Chinese visitors came to Alaska in the summer of 2016, up from 3,000 in 2011, according to the survey. However, the reliability of those numbers may be questionable because of cultural and language barriers between surveyors and visitors from Asian countries. The largest and fastest growing Asian market in Alaska was not China but India, according to the survey.

Air Travel Better airline service between the United States and China will power the growth of tourism, according to the US Department of Commerce. More than a dozen new routes between mainland China and the United States have come online in the last three years. But direct air travel between Alaska and China hasn’t gotten easier. Today commercial travelers between Asia and Alaska must fly through a Lower 48 airport such as LAX or SeaTac, although there are charter flights between several east-Asian cities and both Anchorage and Fairbanks. About a decade ago it was possible to fly from Asia directly on commercial flights between Anchorage and Taiwan. It is a major goal of Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport to restore direct air service to Asia, says Trudy Wassel, the airport’s division operations manager. She planned a trip to Beijing in late June to talk www.akbizmag.com

to Asian air carriers about how to increase direct passenger service between the two destinations.

Unmet Capacity in Winter Tourism Alaska’s winter, often marketed as the “aurora season,” is an important time for Alaska

tourism businesses because there is so much unmet hospitality capacity in the winter. Many Alaska hotels close down or slash their rates between September and May. Busy summer destinations like the Homer Spit and the Nenana Canyon near Denali National Park close completely during those frigid months.

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Image courtesy of Explore Fairbanks

A tour operator from China meets with Sheila White of Denali Raft Adventures at a reception hosted by Explore Fairbanks. The operator was one of nine who visited Anchorage and Fairbanks at the end of April for a five-day familiarization tour.

Guide courtesy of Explore Fairbanks

but winter travel is a bigger part of the business, Guo says. Summer trips are centered around Anchorage and include kayaking, glacier tours, and whale watching excursions. Fairbanks is the hub for the company’s winter visitors. While the ethereal lights of the aurora remain the primary attraction, guests also enjoy touring sled-dog kennels, going ice fishing, and visiting Chena Hot Springs.

In 2016 Explore Fairbanks developed a Mandarin-language visitor guide to better serve the growing Chinese market, as well as launching an account on WeChat, the number one social media platform in China.

But winter tourism appears to be on the rise, at least in Fairbanks, which is a hub for both summer and winter visitors. The five month summer season still remains the busiest in Alaska’s Interior. Last year local governments collected 64 percent of the year’s hotel tax receipts during the five-month summer season from May to September. An increase in winter receipts indicates that tourism numbers are becoming somewhat more balanced between the summer and winter seasons. In the last three years, the Alaska Railroad’s winter passenger service between Fairbanks and Anchorage nearly tripled the

number of trains it runs during the late winter season, says Dale Wade, vice president of marketing and customer service at the stateowned company. “Much of this is being driven by the Chinese tourism economy. We’re very excited by what the Chinese opportunity is,” he says. “Like the Japanese market, the Chinese are interested in aurora viewing.” In addition to Skylar Travel, companies that cater to the Chinese market and often partner with the Railroad include Midnight Son Tours and Salmon Berry Travel & Tours, Wade says. At Skylar Travel, Mandarin-speaking guests come to Alaska in both summer and winter,

“We’re very excited by what the Chinese opportunity is. Like the Japanese market, the Chinese are interested in aurora viewing.”

—Dale Wade Vice President of Marketing and Customer Service, Alaska Railroad

Marketing Alaska At Explore Fairbanks, an organization that promotes the travel industry for Alaska’s second-largest city, Tourism Director Scott McCrea has taken two work trips to China in the last four years. McCrea says Alaska, and Fairbanks, have more name recognition than when he made his first trip to China. “Alaska is a recognized destination,” he says. “There’s definitely been a change in understanding and recognition in just three short years.” Explore Fairbanks made the most recent trip in November with a representative from Anchorage tourism organization Visit Anchorage and Alaska tourism businesses including Northern Alaska Tour Company and Phillips Cruises and Tours. The group spent a week in Taiwan before traveling to mainland China to trade shows and meetings in Shanghai, Chengdu, and Guangzhou, all cities with populations of more than 10 million people and direct flights to the United States. From training sessions on China trips, Explore Fairbanks has learned about the amenities that Chinese visitors appreciate, including brochures and signs in Mandarin and hotel rooms that have kettles for boiling water to make tea or noodles. In addition to its accounts on US social media platforms, Explore Fairbanks keeps an active profile on WeChat, a heavily-used Chinese social media platform. Explore Fairbanks is also expanding the use of QR codes, matrix barcodes embedded on signs that can be scanned with a smart phone that then directs the user to a particular website. The codes are more popular in China than in Alaska, but are growing in popularity here and in the Lower 48. In the Asia market, Fairbanks competes with Arctic destinations in Canada and Europe to attract aurora travelers. Recent visits to China by Alaska tourism businesses have

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

Image courtesy of Explore Fairbanks

“I don’t think they’re hit shows. Some people watch it. There is so much television, any show is competing for viewers,” Guo says. This year a film crew accompanied a guided sled-dog trip that a group of first-time Chinese mushers took over the entire Iditarod trail from Fairbanks to Nome in advance of the sled dog race.

A group of tour operators from China pose at the Fountainhead Antique Auto Museum. The operators visited Anchorage and Fairbanks at the end of April for a five-day familiarization tour.

boosted winter visits to a certain extent, but Alaska is at a disadvantage because it doesn’t have permanent marketing staff in China and other destinations, McCrea says. The Alaska Travel Industry Association previously had contract staff that promoted Alaska in major world markets. State funding that supported this kind of marketing budget dried up before the recent wave of Chinese tourists arrived. Guo estimates that word of mouth and social media are the biggest drivers of Alaska tourism among Skylar Travel’s clients. Some people in China have seen Alaska reality TV shows such as “Deadliest Catch.” More recently Chinese TV shows, including a reality show filmed here featuring Chinese celebrities, have brought Alaska to the attention of potential travelers.

Changing Demographics Guo estimates that about one-third of the company’s visitors come from the Lower 48 and are largely made up of college students. Another one-third of Skylar Travel’s clients come from mainland China. The final onethird originate in Taiwan. Chinese visitors are trending younger these days, now averaging in their mid-thirties, the US Commerce Department reports. Chinese visitors are also more likely to travel independently than they used to be, although 25 percent still take advantage of package tours. One trend Explore Fairbanks has noticed is that more Chinese visitors want to try driving the Dalton Highway. The Dalton Highway, north of Fairbanks, was built as a service road for the trans-Alaska oil pipeline. It remains a remote gravel road used mainly by large trucks, but it’s also a world-famous attraction. The highway is featured on the show “Ice Road Truckers” and is the only way to cross the Yukon River and the Arctic Circle on the Alaska Highway system.

To answer some of the frequent questions and explain the dangers of driving the highway, Explore Fairbanks printed a nine-page safety guide to the highway in both English and Mandarin. They may later translate it into Japanese and German. The remoteness of the Dalton Highway is important to emphasize for visitors who come from major cities, McCrea says. “You need to understand that once you get about thirty-five miles out of Fairbanks, you’re not going to have cell phone service,” McCree says. “The Chinese visitors constantly have Wi-Fi access, cell phone access. It’s sometimes surprising to them to come up here and realize there are many parts of the state where you’re not going to have that kind of connection.” Many of the more adventurous Chinese visitors are students at US universities who come to Alaska during their spring break vacation. There are more than 300,000 Chinese college students enrolled in US schools. Spring break visitors are great for Fairbanks businesses because they often get outfitted for winter outdoor activities at local shops, McCree says. “Typically spring break for a college student is off to Fort Lauderdale [Florida], but for this [Chinese] market the draw isn’t just of the Aurora but the Arctic,” McCrea says. “They want to make the trip up across the Arctic Circle.” R Sam Friedman is a freelance reporter. He lives in Fairbanks.

Be inspired by the light of the Aurora Borealis. Renew your energy under the Midnight Sun. Experience the warmth of Fairbanks—Alaska’s Golden Heart—and the gateway to Denali, Interior and Arctic Alaska. Call 1-877-551-1728 x3765 for your free Meeting Planner Guide. Explore your Alaskan meeting opportunities at meetfairbanks.com.

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August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

SWAG

EAT

SHOP ď&#x192;§ Compiled by Tasha Anderson

PLAY

STAY

Free, Fun, and Novel Marketing Effectively Draws Attention

Barrow

Kotzebue Fairbanks

Nome

Delta Junction

Mat-Su Anchorage Valdez Soldotna

Bethel Dillingham

Juneau Sitka

Kodiak Ketchikan Unalaska/Dutch Harbor

Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

Stellar Designs Stellar Designs is located in Anchorage at 6340 Petersburg Street and was established in 1981. “We offer unique, quality promotional products, excellent service, and customer-focused marking,” the company says. Stellar Designs offers a “signature collection,” a group of promotional items refreshed daily with the “newest, hottest, and trendiest products,” which is a fantastic source of ideas for companies that know they want something, but perhaps are unsure in what direction to go or what may even be available. For example, in July Stellar Designs’ signature collection featured a neoprene 6-pack Kantastic pouch, which zippers open to hold up to six 12-ounce cans, keeping them cool while on outdoor adventures; the Big Lazy, an ultra-lightweight and inflatable lounging cushion; and the Traillake Roots73 insulated vest, ideal for transitioning from fall to winter or winter to spring. The signature collection is just a small sampling of what Stellar Designs offers. They group their prod-

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ucts in to nine categories: apparel, bags, drinkware, events, leisure, office, recognition, tech, and wellness. Just in terms of bags, Stellar Designs can offer up a range of backpacks, totes, coolers and lunch bags, briefcases, messenger bags, and sports bags, including a brown paper bag cooler that resembles an iconic paper bag but is insulated and has a Velcro roll-top closure. stellar-designs.com

Sunshine Custom Promotions Sunshine Custom Promotions is a “unique ad specialty and promotional products firm that specializes in custom wearables and caps, embroidery, silk screening, safety awards, employee incentives, uniforms, and more,” according to the company. It’s located at 3900 Arctic Boulevard in Anchorage. Sunshine Custom Promotions offers three online showrooms that display featured products and gives browsers an idea of where to start when shopping for swag; its current showrooms are wearables,

awards and recognition, and eco-friendly products. Some of the company’s eco-friendly items include Lucky Seed Coins, which can be planted and will grow wildflowers; various totes made with natural or recycled fibers; and a bamboo utensil set. Their other product categories include apparel, automotive, bags, badges and lanyards, calendars, candy and snacks, clocks, desk items, executive gifts, golf items, fun and games, healthcare, drink wear, tools and hardware, and travel items, among others. Their fun and games category includes games, puzzles, balls, kites, stuffed animals, and even temporary tattoos, so clients, customers, and event-goers can literally brand themselves with a company’s logo or message. sunpromo.com

Alaska Tab and Bind Alaska Tab and Bind is located in Anchorage at 2207 Spenard Road and was established in 1991 “out of a passion for creative print media.” The company states, “Our mission is to provide you with the highest quality products and services possible, on time, at a competitive price.” In addition to traditional printing services, Alaska Tab and Bind also offers promotional products. The company has compiled an online list of swag items that always “go over well,” including apparel, bags, calculators, calendars, mugs, flashlights, glassware, hats, key chains, lanyards, magnets, mouse pads, notepads, pens, sports bottles, stress balls, and USB drives, all of which can be imprinted with a company’s logo. And that’s not even the complete list of all the products they offer. Alaska Tab and Bind says one

August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

SWAG

t’s hard to compete with swag when it comes to effective marketing. Suddenly people who may not be in a given industry are clamoring to wear, use, and carry around shirts, bags, water bottles, pens, notebooks, and other products featuring company logos and/or contact information simply because they’re free, fun, and novel. All Alaska businesses can benefit from having branded products floating around the business community and the Alaska community at large. There are several Alaska companies that provide promotional products designed to suit any company’s swagrelated needs.

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of their specialties is finding the right promotional product for any company or event. alaskatab.com

Alaska Textiles Alaska Textiles is located in Anchorage at 620 West Fireweed Lane. According to the company, “Items like mugs, pens, and t-shirts are memorable and provide a better cost per impression for advertisers than almost every major marketing effort... We are able to supply your company with every possible promotional product from over 3,000 suppliers.” On Alaska Textile’s website interested customers are able to search for a specific product or use the company’s search suggestions, which are broken down into top searches, top categories, and product collections. Their product collections include patriotic items, “back to the beach,” school store, breast cancer awareness, computer accessories, holiday gifts, food and drink, and employee recognition, for example. alaskatextiles.espwebsite.com Big Rays Big Ray’s was established in Anchorage (originally called the Army Navy Store) and in Fairbanks in 1947 and has been outfitting Alaskans for the past seventy years. Big Ray’s is known for providing a variety of outdoor and work clothing such as footwear, jackets, and coveralls; safety clothing and accessories; and a full range of hunting, camping, fishing, and general outdoor gear. Big Ray’s also aids with corporate outfitting, including custom embroidery that can include names, logos, numbers, or letters. All of their

custom embroidery is conducted in-house at the company’s locations in Anchorage, Fairbanks, and Kodiak. army-navy-store.com

Roy’s Custom Embroidery According to Roy’s Custom Embroidery, “We specialize in high-quality custom embroidery and digitizing. Roy’s Custom Embroidery welcomes both small and large orders for all of your business or personal needs.” Roy’s Custom Embroidery is located in Juneau at 9002 Gee Street. In addition to creating custom products, the company offers design services and has been in business since 1993. A few of the products they have available are aprons, bags, blankets, hats, patches, and other wearables. royscustomembroidery.com Santa’s Stitches Santa’s Stiches is located at 603 South Avenue in Fairbanks and has been operating in Alaska since 1997. The company states, “At Santa’s Stitches we specialize in creating attractive, high-quality embroidery services that will establish your brand without breaking the bank.” The company provides custom embroidery, logo design, screen printing, heat transfer, and a wide array of promotional products, including giveaways for events, incentives, and awards for employees, and other products for special events. Santa’s Stitches’ online catalog features a “product of the day” to give buyers a place to start their swag shopping as well as a page of collections to help them see their options without being overwhelmed by a the wide variety of options available on Santa’s

Stitches’ website. Collections include back to school, bags and totes, Canadian apparel, cold and flu prevention, company picnics, desk accessories, ecofriendly items, food and beverage, holiday gifts, fund raising, and much more. santasstitches.com

Alaska Serigraphics Alaska Serigraphics has been doing business in Alaska since 1981 and is located at 1711 Abbot Road in Anchorage. “Alaska Serigraphics has grown from a small t-shirt printer to a multi-disciplined promotional company that has the ability to put your image on just about any item you can imagine,” the company states. Their range of products includes the gamut of apparel and promotional products. The company also offers screen printing, direct color prints, embroidery, and laser engraving. In addition to providing branded swag, Alaska Serigraphics offers original custom design and logo development services, which can then be applied to promotional clothing and other items. akserigraphics.com Pip Printing Pip Printing was established in Alaska in 1979; the Anchorage franchise location is owned by locals Jan and John Tathem and Shelly Bransted. Pip Printing provides a huge range of promotional items that can be branded for any company or event. The company says, “A promotional product offers staying power. It’s a constant reminder of your brand—whether it’s sitting on a desk, hanging from a keychain, or plastered on a coffee cup.” pip.com/anchorageak500 R

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Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

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Ninilchik

Palmer AUG-SEPT

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Alaska State Fair

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Zac Brown Band

Grammy 11-12 Three-time award winners Zac Brown Band kicked off their forty-plus date “Welcome Home” 2017 North American tour and album release of the same name on May 12. In August, Zac Brown Band brings their tour to Anchorage at the Alaska Airlines Center. alaskaairlinescenter.com AUG

Ink Masters Tattoo Show

11-13 The Ink Masters Tattoo show is a gathering for tattoo artists and body piercing experts to demonstrate their skills and provide their services to Alaska. There will be a free tattoo giveaway daily in addition to a plethora of body modification vendors, tattoo contests, and other activities at the Egan Civic and Convention Center. inkmasterstattooexpo.com Coffman Cove AUG

”By the Sea” Arts & Seafood Festival

11-12 The mission of the “By the Sea” Arts & Seafood Festival is to celebrate a marine-based lifestyle and to bring together gifted vendors and performers with local and visiting patrons. Events include the Lucky Ducky race, a lip sync contest, t-shirt design, Fish Poem Slam, fireworks, and lots of live music, good food, and vendors. artsandseafoodfestival.com Fairbanks AUG

Tanana Valley State Fair

4-13 This year’s theme is “Raven About the Fair.” It will feature Alaska produce and competitive exhibits, as well as commercial, craft, and food vendors on site in addition to rides, games, and live entertainment, all at the Tanana Valley State Fairgrounds. tananavalleyfair.org AUG

Alaska International Senior Games

11-20 Alaska International Senior Games is the official Alaska state www.akbizmag.com

Salmonfest

Every year more than six thousand people turn the Kenai Peninsula village of Ninilchik into a city as families and friends fill the region with encampments full of music, food, fish, and love. Over the three-day weekend many of Alaska’s top food, crafts, art, and brews are available throughout the Kenai Peninsula Fairgrounds. salmonfestalaska.org

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heart of the 24-4 The Alaska State Fair still centers on the items the original colonists started out in the state with—agriculture, produce, lots of food, flowers, friends and family, and live music. The 2017 AT&T concert series features Home Free, Papa Roach, Josh Turner, Iggy Azalea, Aaron Watson, Judah & The Lion, Lecrae, Third Eye Blind, Doobie Brothers, Terry Fator, and DNCE, among others. alaskastatefair.org

Anchorage

Compiled by Tasha Anderson

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Kenai Peninsula Fair

2017 theme is “It’s a 18-20 The Tunnel of Fun.” In addition to

event of the National Senior Games, a national organization of athletes aged 50 and older. People compete in everything ranging from horseshoes and bocce, track and field, and swimming to mini golf, disc golf, or golf on Fairbanks’ best courses. alaskaisg.org AUG

Tanana Valley Sandhill Crane Festival

25-27 Each August as thousands

of Sandhill Cranes begin their southward progress from Alaska, the Tanana Valley rings with gathering calls. The festival includes talks, bird watching, nature walks, workshops, and many other activities with ample opportunities for observing Sandhill Cranes and other fall migrants. This year’s featured speaker is Dr. Gary L. Krapu. creamersfield.org

arts, crafts, and commercial vendors at the Kenai Peninsula Fairgrounds, the fair features a Fair Queen contest, the Backwoods Girl Competition, a photo contest to win a pair of XTRATUF boots, exhibits, live music, fresh produce and food, and more. kenaipeninsulafair.com

Seward AUG

Seward Silver Salmon Derby

12-20 The Seward Silver Salmon Derby is one of the oldest and largest fishing derbies in Alaska. Seward’s Derby is equally popular with locals, other Alaska residents, and visiting anglers from around the nation and world. Anglers vie for the largest silver

STAY

salmon and try to catch tagged fish worth prizes, turning in fish daily, which are then sold to raise funds for fish enhancement efforts and fisheries scholarships for graduating high school students. seward.com

Valdez AUG

Gold Rush Days

The theme for this year’s event is “Valdez Gold Rush Days: A Reel Good Time,” celebrating the community’s passion for fishing. The festival includes an open air market, which features crafts, art, food, live music, and the Gold Rush store; a Dutch oven demonstration; a parade; children’s pioneer games and stories; gardening contest, the Golden Rock Awards; the Copper Valley Telecom Duathlon; and more. valdezgoldrushdays.org

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Women’s Silver Salmon Derby

11-12 The Valdez Women’s Silver Salmon Derby is the only women’s fishing derby in Alaska and has been going on for twelve years. The Silver Salmon Sisterhood opening celebration takes place August 11, and the derby and awards party are on August 12. Weigh-in hours are 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. valdezfishderbies.com/womens-derby/ R

Girdwood AUG

Alyeska Resort

Festival 19-20 Blueberry A celebration of the lush blueberry season, this family-oriented outdoors event features live music (the 2017 headliner is Hope Social Club), berry picking, local arts and crafts booths, tasty blueberry treats, cooking demos, beer and wine garden, hiking and biking, chair massages, pie eating contest, and a blueberry creations contest, all at Alyeska Resort. alyeskaresort.com AUG

Girdwood Fungus Fair

fungi experts and 25-27 Local guest speakers will conduct lectures and mushroom forays. The fair also features other workshops and activities, such as the Fungus Fair Formal. fungusfair.com

Ketchikan AUG

Blueberry Arts Festival

Festivities include a pet and doll parade, blueberry dish contest, art exhibits, the annual Gigglefeet Dance Festival, fun runs, the slug race, community art project, beard and moustache contest, handmade boat race, and poetry slam, as well as vendors and live entertainment. ketchikanarts.org

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August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

EVENTS CALENDAR AUGUST 2017

EAT

RIGHT MOVES Alaska Business

Alaska Business welcomes Kathryn Mackenzie as its new Managing Editor. Mackenzie’s editorial career spans more than two decades and numerous publications and industries including healthcare, commodities, finance, Mackenzie and business for HC Pro Inc., Dun & Bradstreet, Miller Freeman, RANE Corp., and many more. Now living in the Matanuska-Susitna Valley, Mackenzie is originally from San Francisco where she attended San Francisco State University to receive her undergraduate degree in Journalism. Along with her writing and editorial work, Mackenzie is a social media strategist who has served as Social Media Manager for numerous firms.

Bristol Bay Industrial Fuels

Bristol Bay Industrial (BBI) announced the appointment of Bob Cox as president and CEO of newly-formed member company Bristol Bay Industrial Fuels. Cox is a twenty-two year veteran of the downstream fuel industry, having held senior management positions at Cox Crowley Fuels and Petro Marine Services. In his new role, Cox will have executive oversight of BBI member companies, Bristol Alliance Fuels and PetroCard, and will be responsible for developing and executing a strategic plan to grow BBI’s fuels sales and distribution. Cox holds a Master of Science in Transportation Engineering from Stanford University and a Bachelor of Science in Aerospace and Ocean Engineering from Virginia Tech.

Alaska Executive Search

Alaska Executive Search has hired Courtney Otero as a Talent Acquisition professional. Otero will be directly responsible for the medical recruitment division at AES serving hundreds of private offices, clinics, and hospitals state wide. She is committed to Otero helping military spouses and veterans find employment. Otero possesses her Master of Arts Degree in Healthcare Leadership Communication and Bachelor’s Degree in Public Relations with a minor in Marketing. The company also announced Cherissa Weiland has joined their team in the role of Customer Champion. Weiland

Weiland’s work history has focused on the telecommunications industry, working in her hometown of Kotzebue. She earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration and Management. Weiland brings to AES a fresh and delightful spirit, helping to make her team provide excellent service to candidates and clients alike.

RE/MAX Dynamic

RE/MAX Dynamic Properties is pleased to welcome Justin Milette and Pat Brooker to the team. Milette is a lifelong Alaskan who grew up in East Anchorage. After graduating from East High, he went to college at UAF and Columbia Southern University earning an Associate degree in Fire Science/Occupational Health and Safety. He worked as a police officer for the State of Alaska and is currently a firefighter for The Anchorage Fire Department. Brooker was born and raised in Alaska. He recently graduated from UAA with a BBA in Marketing and previous studies in psychology. He has a diverse professional background, spanning from events coordinator to bike mechanic. He will be working at RE/MAX Dynamic Properties with the Barrett Real Estate Group.

National Park Service Alaska Region

Two senior managers have been named to positions in the Alaska Region of the National Park Service. Susanne Fleek-Green will be the new Superintendent of Lake Clark National Park and Preserve, a four million acre unit southwest of Anchorage. Fleek-Green has served as Anchorage Mayor Ethan Berkowitz’s chief of staff and was previously state director for US Senator Mark Begich. In that role Fleek-Green she oversaw Senator Begich’s six offices around the state. Fleek-Green has a BA and Masters of Public Policy from the University of California, Berkeley. Christina Caswell is the new Associate Regional Director for Administration, an Anchorage-based position that leads contracting, human resources, budget, concessions and information technology programs. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration and a Master’s Caswell Degree in Workplace Learning and Organizational Development.

Department of Law

The Department of Law announced the appointment of Angie Kemp as the new Juneau District Attorney. Kemp

is a life-long Alaskan who began her career in the Juneau District Attorney’s office as an office assistant. After her second year in law school, she returned as a legal intern. Following her graduation from the Seattle University School of Law in 2008, Kemp joined the Juneau District Attorney’s office as an assistant district attorney. Kemp has prosecuted offenses ranging from residential burglaries to homicides and sexual assaults.

Credit Union 1

Credit Union 1 announced Melissa Aningayou has been promoted to the position of branch manager at the credit union’s Abbott Branch. In her new position, Aningayou will be responsible for the daily operations of Credit Union Aningayou 1’s Abbott Branch. She will oversee the branch’s standards for quality in providing service to its members, while ensuring compliance of state and federal regulations and internal policies.

Denali Federal Credit Union

Nichole Kennedy has joined Denali Federal Credit Union Investment Services, available through CUSO Financial Services, as a Financial Advisor. Kennedy is responsible for creating, developing, and executing short and long term financial strategies cusKennedy tomized to meet client needs. Kennedy is Series 7, 63, 65, licensed and an Insurance licensed professional with thirteen years of experience as a financial advisor.

Resource Data

Resource Data has hired Lynelle Davis as AP/AR Specialist to their corporate office in Anchorage. Davis recently graduated with her Associate of Arts in Business Management from Alaska Pacific University and has her Business Offices Specialist Degree from Alaska Career Davis College. Most recently Davis worked as a program assistant for The CIRI Foundation, where she worked with Resource Data on The CIRI Foundation’s online application. The company has also hired Carol Campbell Taunuu as a Business Analyst to their Anchorage Branch. Taunuu recently graduated with her Bachelor Taunuu

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Compiled by ABM Staff of Arts in Business Management magna cum laude from the University of Alaska Anchorage. While going to school she most recently worked as a loan account manager at United Way and as a director/trainer for Pampered Chef. Resource Data also welcomes Bulkow Rowan Bulkow as an Intern to their Anchorage location. Bulkow just completed his junior year at the University of Alaska Anchorage where he’s pursuing his Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science. Outside of school he has also worked part time as a Swim Instructor.

Littler Mendelson

Littler Mendelson named Renea I. Saade as a shareholder in their Anchorage office. Saade was previously a partner in the labor and employment group at Stoel Rives LLP. Saade counsels employers on a wide range of workplace-related Saade issues, including accommodation and leave requests, wage and hour compliance, enforcement and defense of non-competition and non-solicitation agreements, workplace investigations, discipline, and terminations. She also regularly advises employers on developing, updating, and enforcing employee contracts and policies and has particular experience advising government contractors.

R&M Consultants

Former R&M intern Terry Gryting, EIT, recently joined R&M Consultants as a full-time Staff Engineer. Gryting joined R&M’s Water Resources Group in May after graduating from the University of Alaska Anchorage with a BS in Civil Engineering. As part of this group, Gryting she will assist with water resources design and provide hydrologic and hydraulic analysis support on roadway, street, airport, site development, and hydropower projects. Her responsibilities include calculation and estimation of peak and average runoff and stream flow; calculation of drainage structure hydraulics; analysis of scour and sediment transport; design of erosion control; and hydrologic and hydraulic data collection.

McCool Carlson Green

McCool Carlson Green (MCG) announced Cara Rude, ASID, and Melissa Pribyl, ASID, have both passed the rigorous test to become the first WELL Accredited Professionals in

the State of Alaska. Passing the test signifies a comprehensive understanding of the WELL Building Standard—a program dedicated to advancing the health and well-being in buildings. The exam demonstrates both designers’ mastery by testing advanced knowledge in human health and wellness in the built environment. Cara Rude has thirteen years of interior design experience. Educated at The Art Institute of Portland and graduating with a Bachelor’s of Science in Interior Design. She currently serves as the President for the American Society of Interior Designers, Alaska Chapter; Rude member and ambassador presenter for the International Living Future Institute; and is a US Green Building Council LEED Accredited Professional Building Design and Construction. Melissa Pribyl joined MCG’s interior design team in 2016. Born and raised in Alaska, she has ten years of professional design experience. Pribyl is a Construction Specification Institute Construction Document Technologist, International WELL Building Institute member, and the Pribyl second WELL Accredited Professional in the State of Alaska.

Northrim Bank

Northrim Bank announced promotions throughout the bank as well new hires. Donna Fountain has been promoted to AVP, Call Center Assistant Manager. Fountain joined Northrim in 2006 and has more than eighteen Fountain years of experience in the banking industry. She has held various positions at Northrim and has been with the Call Center since October 2016. Fountain was awarded the Customer First Service Award in 2016. Sarah Gaines is promoted to AVP, HR Operations Manager. She has been with Gaines Northrim since 2002, where she started working at the Huffman Branch. She has been with the HR department since 2007. Gaines holds a BA with an HR emphasis from the University of Alaska Southeast. Jyah Gitomer, promoted to VP, Call Center Manager, has been with Northrim since last August. She has worked for 7-Eleven for the past Gitomer

eighteen years in a variety of positions. Gitomer has her MBA from Texas A&M University, Commerce. Jared Shary is now AVP, Marketing and Sales Manager. Shary has been with Northrim Bank since 2009, when he was hired as a teller at the West Anchorage Branch. He moved to the Marketing Department in 2011, where he has since held a variety of marketing Shary roles. He holds a BBA in Marketing and Finance as well as an MBA in Leadership from the University of Alaska Anchorage, where he served as both a protégé and mentor of the school’s Leadership Fellows program. Tiana Allen, hired as a Special Credits Associate Officer, joins Northrim with fifteen years of experience in financial services, banking, and mortgage. She was born and raised in Anchorage and has returned after twenty-one years of living in the Lower 48. Allen spent the last seven years with Bank of America where she Allen held various positions and is currently pursuing her degree in Business Administration with an emphasis on Finance. Melissa Brigden has been hired as a Marketing Analyst for Northrim. She comes to Northrim with five years of marketing and social media experience and having worked as a universal banker at a bank in Washington. Brigden holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts and is pursuing her MBA from Wright State University. Brigden Derek Lovvorn was hired as VP, Core Applications Manager. Lovvorn joins Northrim Bank with nineteen years of experience in IT, including applications development and support. He spent twelve of those years in the oil industry and the other seven in the financial serLovvorn vices industry. Lovvorn holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Management Information Systems from the University of Alaska Anchorage and holds multiple IT certifications and a Project Management Professional certification. J a m e s (J a m ey) Yo u n g , V P, Commercial Loan Officer, comes to Northrim Bank with twenty-seven years in financial services and banking. He has worked in banks throughout Alaska including Juneau, Dillingham, and Fairbanks. Young holds a BA in Young Economics from Pacific Lutheran University. R

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August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

Business Events AUGUST

AUG

AML Winter Legislative Meeting

Haines: The Alaska Municipal League is a voluntary, nonprofit, nonpartisan, statewide organization of 162 cities, boroughs, and unified municipalities, representing more than 97 percent of Alaska’s residents. akml.org

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SEPTEMBER Recreation & Park SEPT Alaska Association Conference

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Valdez: The focus of the conference is threefold: opportunities for continuing education and the exchange of best practices, the chance to network with other peers, and to recognize accomplishments through the ARPA Awards Ceremony. alaskarpa.org

NADO Annual Training Conference

SEPT Dena’ina Center, Anchorage: This is

9-12

the National Association of Development Organizations’ annual training conference and will celebrate NADO’s 50th anniversary. nado.org/events/2017-annual-training-conference

Annual Meeting SEPT APA/AIE Kodiak Convention Center, Kodiak:

13-15

The mission of Alaska Power Association (APA) is to assist members in accomplishing their goals of delivering electric energy and other services at the best value to their customers. alaskapower.org

Association of REALTORS SEPT Alaska Convention

16-20

Kenai Princess Wilderness Lodge, Cooper Landing: The annual convention includes keynote and guest speakers and opportunities for ECE credits. alaskarealtors.com

2017 SEPT IEEE/MTS–OCEANS Dena’ina Center, Anchorage: The

18-21

OCEANS conference is jointly sponsored by the IEEE Oceanic Engineering Society and the Marine Technology Society.

Compiled by Tasha Anderson This international conference is a major forum for scientists, engineers, and those with an interest in the oceans to gather and exchange their knowledge and ideas regarding the future of the world’s oceans. ieee.org

Fire Conference SEPT Alaska Sitka: Includes training, workshops,

25-30

lectures, and a firefighter competition. This year’s keynote speakers are Paul Urbano, a thirty-one-year fire service veteran, and Loren C. Rotroff, who began his fire service career in 1957. alaskafireconference.com

Alaska Annual SEPT Museums Conference

27-30

Anchorage: This year’s conference theme is “Social Discourse: Responding to Our Communities.” museumsalaska.org

Anchorage Marriott Downtown: Join us as we celebrate Alaska’s Top 49ers, Alaskan-owned companies ranked by revenue. 907-276-4373 | akbizmag.com | Emily@akbizmag.com

OCTOBER AAHPA Annual Conference

Petersburg: This is the annual conference of the Alaska Association of Harbormasters & Port Administrators. alaskaharbors.org

2-6

OCT

Alaska Snow Symposium

OCT

Arctic Ambitions

Kodiak Harbor Convention Center: The Alaska Travel Industry Association is the leading nonprofit trade organization for the state’s tourism industry; this year’s theme is “Alaska Untamed.” alaskatia.org

OCT

Alaska Chamber Fall Forum

OCT

All-Alaska Medical Conference

Sitka: Open to the public, the Alaska Chamber’s Annual Conference is the state’s premier business conference. The conference draws 200 to 225 attendees and features keynote speakers, panel discussions, and breakout sessions on issues of statewide concern to Alaska business. alaskachamber.com

10-12

Lakefront Anchorage: A continuing medical education conference put on by the Alaska Academy of Physicians Assistants, providing up to twenty-five CMEs. akapa.org

OCT

18-20

Sheraton Anchorage Hotel: This annual event uniquely focuses on business and investment opportunities flowing from developments in the Arctic. wtcak.org

Alaska Forest Association Annual Convention

The Landing Hotel, Ketchikan: The Alaska Forest Association can be characterized as a high profile industry trade association. Its members hold in common general business interests in the timber industry of Alaska. This year is the 60th annual convention. akforest.org

OCT

19-21

Dena’ina Center, Anchorage: A one-day trade show for the snow and ice management industry brought to Alaska by the Snowfighters Institute. alaskasnowsymposium.com

3-4

3-5

ATIA Annual Convention & Trade Show

12-15

Business Monthly’s Top SEPT Alaska 49ers Luncheon

OCT

Alaska Federation of Natives Annual Convention

Dena’ina Center, Anchorage: The Alaska Federation of Natives Convention is the largest representative annual gathering in the United States of any Native peoples. Delegates are elected on a population formula of one representative per twenty-five Native residents in the area, and delegate participation rates at the annual convention typically exceed 95 percent. nativefederation.org R

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Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

Inside

Alaska Business August 2017

Compiled by ABM Staff

FOSS

ENVIROLASKA

nvirolaska, an Alaska Native-owned medical waste services company headquartered in Anchorage, announced the introduction of an expansive line of return mail medical waste disposal solutions launched specifically to support rural Alaska healthcare providers. Alaska practitioners can now safely dispose of their regulated medical wastes through a more cost-effective

Image courtesy of Foss Maritime

he final of three state-of-the-art Arctic Class tugs, the Nicole Foss, was christened in June at the Foss Waterway Seaport in Tacoma, Washington. Built at the Foss shipyard in Ranier, Oregon, the Nicole is designed to operate in the extreme conditions of the far north, and will enter service this summer. The Nicole Foss is ice class D0, meaning the hulls are designed specifically for polar waters and are reinforced to maneuver in ice. The first of the three Arctic tugs, the Michele Foss, debuted in 2015 and in her first year of operation led the way in safely pioneering a new route across the North Slope. The Nicole Foss complies with the requirements in the ABS Guide for Building and Classing Vessels Intended to Operate in Polar Waters, including ABS A1 standards, SOLAS, and Green Passport. She includes two environmentally responsible Caterpillar C280-8 main engines; a Nautican nozzle and rudder system to provide superior bollard pull and maneuverability; and Reintjes reduction gears. Markey Machinery supplied the tow winch. The Nicole Foss is designed to withstand the rigors of Arctic operations and is suited to work across the globe as Foss competes for opportunities in the oil and gas industry. foss.com and fully-compliant solution via USPS. The USPS-authorized solutions available through Envirolaska offer average cost savings of 20 percent to 30 percent from competitive systems offered by national service providers while addressing a range of historic challenges unique to the Alaska market. Envirolaskaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s USPS-authorized solutions are launched through distribution agreement with

Texas-based, PureWay Compliance, a market leader in return mail medical waste disposal solutions across the Lower 48. PureWay disposal systems offers unique benefits compared to other solutions available in the Alaska market. For example, certain systems are up to 20 percent larger than the industry standard, saving waste generators money throughout the year as fewer systems need to be purchased.

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www.akbizmag.com

August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

INSIDE ALASKA BUSINESS Additionally, generators will gain new abilities to track their wastes from pickup to destruction via live email notifications and electronic destruction certificates. This differs significantly from services historically available in the Alaska market which require generators to submit a request before paper based destruction documentation is received. The improved record accessibility helps generators meet their reporting requirements more efficiently. Secondly, this provides greater visibility of operational data at each individual practice which can be used to support minimization strategies that further reduce regulated medical waste volumes and disposal costs. envirolaska.com

ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE

laska Governor Bill Walker signed a bill into law that allows ridesharing companies including Lyft and Uber to operate in Alaska. House Bill 132, sponsored by Representative Adam Wool, paves the way for Transportation Network Companies (Lyft, Uber, and the like) to begin operating in Alaska communities. Under HB 132, drivers working for ridesharing companies are labeled as independent contractors and must be insured. HB 132 passed the Alaska State Legislature this year with strong bipartisan support. The bill took effect the moment it was signed by Governor Walker in June. akleg.gov

AVTEC

he Alaska Maritime Training Center at AVTEC, the state’s post-secondary career and technical education institution located in Seward, completed curriculum development for two new maritime ice navigation courses that meet new International Maritime Organization Polar Code training requirements. The United States adopted these requirements into regulation making this training mandatory for mariners serving in polar waters. The courses, called Basic Training for Polar Operations and Advanced Training for Polar Operations, are required by July 1, 2018 for shipboard deck officers working on ships operating in polar waters. The total length of the two courses combined is two weeks. AVTEC began offering these courses July 10, 2017. High demand for these courses is anticipated, especially

as the July 2018 deadline date nears. Mariners interested in applying may do so online or by contacting the AVTEC Alaska Maritime Training Center admissions office at 907-224-6196. avtec.edu

SEARHC

he US Department of Health and Human Services’ Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA) has awarded SEARHC $300,000 per year for the next three years for the Prince of Wales Health Network (POWHN) under the Rural Health Network Development Program. Five healthcare stakeholders on Prince of Wales make up POWHN: SEARHC, PeaceHealth, Craig Public Health Center, Community Connections, and Whale Tail Pharmacy. Through a network of POWHN providers, this project aims to increase access to prevention activities for youth by developing an evidenced-based, peer-driven leadership program to support and prevent young people in adversity and build community resiliency, in culturally appropriate ways. The specific goals of this project include establishing and integrating youth leadership to lead and cultivate behavioral change relating to suicide, alcohol and substance abuse, and domestic violence; increasing community awareness and support and build resiliency in youth and families; and developing program sustainability. searhc.org

OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR

overnor Bill Walker signed into law House Bills 57 and 59, approving the $4.9 billion operating budget bills the legislature passed for fiscal year 2018 (July 1, 2017–June 30, 2018), without vetoes. State spending for department operations has been cut $145 million from the previous year, and total state spending on the operating budget has been cut $1.9 billion since fiscal year 2015—a 27 percent decrease in three years. Overall state spending has been reduced 44 percent in the past five years. In passing its budget this year, the legislature set permanent fund dividends at $1,100 for each eligible Alaskan—and chose to pay for the $2.5 billion deficit entirely from savings. That leaves only $2 billion in the state’s main savings account, which pays for response to emergencies, such as earthquakes, fires, and floods.

Additionally, Walker announced in June the initial steps to building a life-saving road between the communities of King Cove and Cold Bay. The US Department of Interior issued to the State of Alaska’s Department of Transportation a permit to survey the area for an initial assessment of the best place to begin construction; survey work was expected to be completed midJuly. gov.alaska.gov

BOEM

ureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announced in June that Eni US Operating Co. has met the regulatory requirements for its Beaufort Sea exploration plan (EP) to be “deemed submitted” and invited public comment on the plan in June and July. In its EP, Eni proposes to drill into the federal submerged lands of the Beaufort Sea from their Spy Island Drillsite, a pre-existing facility located in Alaska state waters. An EP describes all exploration activities planned by the operator for a specific lease or leases, including the timing of these activities, information concerning drilling processes, the surface location of each planned well, and actions to be taken to meet important safety and environmental standards and to protect access to subsistence resources. An EP does not allow an operator to produce oil if any is found; for that, an operator is required to obtain approval of a Development and Production Plan. boem.gov/eni-ep-2017

US COAST GUARD

n July, Captain Shannan Greene transferred command of Coast Guard Sector Juneau to Captain Phillip Thorne during a change of command ceremony at Elizabeth Peratrovich Hall in Juneau. Thorne was previously assigned as the Seventeenth District Chief of Response in Juneau where he oversaw all Coast Guard search and rescue, law enforcement, marine environmental response, and ports and waterways security missions along with intelligence support across Alaska. His other ashore assignments included Chief of Enforcement at the Seventeenth Coast Guard District, Philippines Country Officer at Joint Interagency Task Force West, and as the Chief of Response at Coast Guard Sector Northern New England.

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Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

Compiled by ABM Staff KOYUKUK RIVER TRIBAL TOURS

The change of command ceremony marks a transfer of total responsibility and authority from one individual to another. It is a time-honored tradition conducted before the assembled crew, as well as honored guests and dignitaries, to formally demonstrate the continuity of the authority within a command.

US SBA

NOVAGOLD

OVAGOLD and its partner Barrick Gold Corporation announced that Donlin Gold, the coowned operating company which is advancing the Donlin Gold project in Alaska, has approved a drill program designed to further optimize the project. After completing extensive analysis of the project’s parameters, Barrick and NOVAGOLD concluded that the potential exists to enhance the project economics through a more costeffective project execution plan that could substantially reduce upfront capital. To this end and to support this effort, the partners have approved an $8 million budget (100 percent basis) for a drill program designed to collect geologic and geotechnical data this year. novagold.com

Photo by Kathryn Mackenzie

he US Small Business Administration has launched a new Historically Underutilized Business Zones map (via Google Chrome) at www.sba. gov/hubzone-maps. The HUBZone map is the first step in the modernization effort of SBA’s federal contracting programs. SBA has partnered with the US Digital Service to streamline and enhance online services for small businesses. The new HUBZone map helps small businesses in urban and rural communities determine if they are eligible for participation in HUBZone’s program. It features the latest HUBZone designations, “Qualified Disaster Areas,” and new features to improve usability and assist with HUBZone address assertions. sba.gov/hubzone

SACRED GROUNDS CAFE

entral Council of Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska announced the grand opening of Sacred Grounds Café in Juneau, a tribally-owned business, in July. The new business venture “offers an inviting atmosphere with an industrial vibe created by high ceilings and exposed ductwork. The coffee shop features a unique roasted

www.akbizmag.com

oyukuk River Tribal Tours launched in June of this year, providing an “authentic Koyukon Athabascan camping and vacation experience for guests who desire a short glimpse of life in Alaska’s Far North,” states the company. Located in Hughes, their tours are up to six days long and include opportunities to explore up and down river as well as throughout the nearby Indian Mountain hills. The company has rentals and an outfitting line, including canoes, kayaks, and inflatables for clients that want to travel unguided down the Koyukuk River. Koyukuk River Tribal Tours can also supply or rent other necessary equipment such as a GPS or SAT phone. krttalaska.com coffee blend supplied by Skyaana Coffee Co., a Native-owned coffee roaster in Klawock,” according to the company. Sacred Grounds Café is located at 320 West Willoughby Avenue in Juneau. ccthita-nsn.gov

DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES

he Alaska Department of Natural Resources, Division of Oil and Gas received a unit plan of operations application from Hilcorp Alaska to drill a gas

delineation well within the Ninilchik Unit boundary. Hilcorp’s project is comprised of drilling and testing a delineation well targeting gas near the Ninilchik Unit Boundary. The proposed well is accessed via the Pearl Pad and access road located at approximately MP 132 of the Sterling Highway. Access road and drill pad construction is anticipated for completion in September and Pearl 2 drilling, completion, and testing is scheduled from October of this year through October 2018. dog.dnr.alaska.gov R

August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

ALASKA TRENDS ANS Crude Oil Production 07/04/2017 05/01/2015 01/01/2014 09/01/2012 05/01/2011

Savings Add Up R

05/01/2007 01/01/2006

ANS Production per barrel per day 504,367 Jul. 4, 2017

09/01/2004 05/01/2003 01/01/2002 09/01/2000

0 400,000 800,000 1,200,000 SOURCE: Alaska Department of Revenue Tax Division

ANS West Coast Crude Oil Prices 06/30/2017 09/01/2014 09/01/2012 09/01/2010 09/01/2008 09/01/2006

ANS West Coast $ per barrel $48.48 Jun. 30, 2017

09/01/2004 09/01/2002 09/01/2000 $0

$20

$40

$60

$80 $100 $120 $140 $160

SOURCE: Alaska Department of Revenue Tax Division

Statewide Employment Figures 10/1976—4/2017 Seasonally Adjusted 05/01/2017 11/01/2012 01/01/2010 03/01/2007 05/01/2004 07/01/2001 09/01/1998

Labor Force 367,047 May. 2017 Employment 342,405 May. 2017 Unemployment 6.7% May. 2017

11/01/1995 01/01/1993 03/01/1990 05/01/1987 07/01/1984 09/01/1981 11/01/1978 01/01/1976 0 100,000 200,000 300,000 400,000 SOURCE: Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Research & Analysis Section; and US BLS

ecycling in Alaska is becoming increasingly important as landfills reach capacity and more people recognize the cost-savings related to recycling and reusing materials. Though our beautiful state presents certain logistical challenges to collecting and recycling paper, plastic, glass, and metals, it hasn’t kept companies such as Shred Alaska from diverting discarded materials from overburdened municipal garbage systems and landfills. Even so, Alaska ranks near the bottom in the nation when it comes to municipal solid waste recovery at just 4.5 percent compared to California, which recovers an estimated 53 percent of its solid waste, according to data from an October 2016 Pew Research Center report. Communities with more recycling options and those that encourage employers and residents to recycle are more likely to do so, the Pew Research Center survey found. As of mid-2016, only 28 percent of Americans reside in areas that “strongly encourage” recycling, the study found. Data for graphics provided courtesy of Shred Alaska. Data represents cumulative total from 2017 year start to 5/31/2017. https://shredalaska.com.

01/01/2010 09/01/2008

5,590,200 gallons of water saved That’s more than 21,130,956 1 liter bottles worth of water

13,576 trees saved

With an average of 4 feet seperation between trees, 2,723 trees will fit in an acre, saving almost 5 acres

1,597 barrels of oil saved

That’s equivalent to approximately 67,074 gallons of crude oil

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Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

Compiled by Alaska Business Staff

2017 Year to Date Trees Saved

Americans living in communities that encourage re-use have more options for recycling % of US adults living in communities that strongly encourage, encourage but are not overly concerned about, or do not encourage recycling who say the following about their local community... Strongly encourage recycling Reviewed recycling rules

60%

Has a drop-off recycling center Has recycling services for electronic devices

43% 84%

Has curbside recycling

Encourage but are not overly concerned about recycling

80%

67% 68%

62%

Do not encourage recycling

25%

48%

Month May April March Feb Jan

36% 48% 30%

Note: Respondents who gave other responses, including “not sure” or who did not give an answer not shown. Source: Pew Research Center: http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/10/07/perceptions-and-realities-of-recycling-vary-widely-from-place-to-place/

Cumulative total including estimated years 2000-2008 474‚677 472‚273 469‚162 466‚187 463‚841

Trees Saved in Prior Years Year Trees Saved 2016 27‚628 2015 30‚899 2014 27‚064 2013 27‚933 2012 27‚919 2011 26‚091 2010 24‚522 2009 21‚086

806 metric tons less CO2 A reduction in greenhouse gas emissions

Cumulative Total 215‚715* 188‚087* 157‚188* 127‚551* 99‚618 71‚699 45‚608 21‚086

*Current figure does not include estimated years between 2000-2008 Estimated Year Ending 2009-2016 Number of Trees Saved is 458,266 Data provided courtesy of Shred Alaska. https://shredalaska.com.

384 years of household energy Energy savings to power average American home

Trees Saved 2‚404 3‚111 2‚975 2‚346 2‚740

Cumulative tracked total not including estimated years 2000-2008 232‚126 229‚722 226‚611 223‚636 221‚290

2,359 cubic yards of landfill space saved

299.2 tons of paper recycled

NOT used or filled with a recyclable material

More than 659,622 lbs of total paper that will avoid the landfill.

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August 2017 | Alaska Business Monthly

ADVERTISERS INDEX Acrisure LLC..................................................................................................19 Afognak Leasing LLC...............................................................................44 Alaska Communications (ACS)...............................................................3 Alaska Dreams Inc.....................................................................................47 Alaska Marine Transport and Salvage..............................................51 Alaska Mergers & Acquisitions LLC....................................................67 Alaska Pacific University (APU)...........................................................23 Alaska PTAC.................................................................................................22 Alaska Satellite Internet (ASI)..............................................................49 Alaska USA Federal Credit Union......................................................65 ALSCO.............................................................................................................26 American Heart Assoc............................................................................80 American Marine / Penco............................................................88, 89 Anchorage Chamber of Commerce.................................................80 Anchorage Sand & Gravel..................................................................... 52 Arctic Chiropractic....................................................................................78 Arctic Office Products............................................................................62 AT&T..................................................................................................................15 Avis Rent-A-Car.......................................................................................... 79 Brice Environmental Services............................................................. 55 C & R Pipe and Steel Inc.........................................................................43 Calista Corp.................................................................................................49 Carlile Transportation Systems...........................................................91 CIRI...................................................................................................................84

Conrad-Houston Insurance Agency.................................................10 Construction Machinery Industrial (CMI)..........................................2 Cook Inlet Regional Advisory Council ...............................................s Cornerstone Advisors..............................................................................57 Cruz Companies.........................................................................................61 Dale Carnegie..............................................................................................10 Dowland-Bach Corp................................................................................ 35 Enviromental Contracting Solutions................................................53 Explore Fairbanks.......................................................................................77 First National Bank Alaska........................................................................5 Fountainhead Hotels................................................................................75 GCI....................................................................................................................92 Great Originals Inc....................................................................................67 Jaffa Construction.................................................................................... 35 Judy Patrick Photography....................................................................90 Landye Bennett Blumstein LLP............................................................18 Lynden Inc.....................................................................................................17 Matanuska Electric Association (MEA)............................................32 N C Machinery.............................................................................................33 Nenana Heating Services Inc..............................................................56 New Horizons Telecom Inc..................................................................39 Nortech Environmental & Engineering..........................................56 Northern Air Cargo........................................................................82, 83 NRC Alaska...................................................................................................59

Pacific Pile & Marine.............................................................85, 86, 87 Parker Smith & Feek..................................................................................27 PenAir..............................................................................................................71 Petrotechnical Resources Alaska (PRA).........................................42 PND Engineers Inc.................................................................................... 32 Price Gregory International Inc.............................................................9 Ravn Alaska...................................................................................................13 Samson Tug & Barge................................................................................63 Screamin’ Yeti Designs.............................................................................81 Seatac Marine Service..............................................................................73 Smiles Inc......................................................................................................64 Stellar Designs Inc.....................................................................................78 Trihydro Alaska............................................................................................51 Tutka LLC....................................................................................................... 52 United Way of Anchorage.....................................................................25 University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA).............................................21 Usibelli Coal Mine......................................................................................12 Vera Whole Health.....................................................................................31 Washington Crane & Hoist....................................................................45 Waste Management National Services...........................................50 Wells Fargo Bank Alaska.........................................................................11 West-Mark Service Center....................................................................43 Western Towboat Company.................................................................73

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Alaska Business Monthly | August 2017 www.akbizmag.com

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