Alternative energy powers ahead

JOEL DAVIDSON\Frontiersman reporter

MAT-SU -- With a casual flip of a switch, most Americas enjoy instant electricity without a single thought about where the power comes from or how much energy each light bulb or household appliance consumes.

There are others, however, and many in the Mat-Su Borough, who live off the power grid. These people are forced to find alternative sources of energy through wind, water, sunlight and fuel generators. They keep track of every watt and are aware of how much power is available on a given day, depending on the sunshine or breeze.

Valley resident Jim Sykes lives on Lazy Mountain, about a half-mile from the end of Matanuska Electric Association's power grid. He and his family, like many Alaskans, have made adjustments to accommodate life off the grid.

"We don't have everything that everyone else has," Sykes said. "We don't have a dishwasher, refrigerator or clothes dryer and, as much as possible, we try to turn off the freezer in the winter."

In the summers, Sykes powers his home primarily through solar energy. In the dark winters, that isn't possible. A few yards from his house, six solar panels collect energy and track the movement of the sun to maximize efficiency. Even on a clear December day, very little sunlight gets through.

"This time of year, I'm almost exclusively on a gas generator," he said.

While solar energy is cleaner for the environment, Sykes freely admits he wouldn't have installed the expensive equipment if MEA power had extended to his home.

"When you're on the grid it's easy; you don't even think about what you're doing," he said.

George Menard owns Invertech Alaska, a company that installs alternative energy sources.

Menard estimates he's installed about 200 alternative energy systems in the Valley since 1984. Those include everything from micro-systems to full household systems. A basic system includes batteries for storing extra energy, an inverter that converts raw energy into usable household energy and a fuel generator for those times when the wind dies down and the sun doesn't shine. Most systems also include solar- or wind-generated input, through solar panels and windmills.

"Usually people want a combination of fuel generators and solar or wind input," Menard said. "People still buy just fuel generators, but they wear out and consume vast amounts of fuel."

With the price of gas so high, Menard said many people are looking for ways to cut down their operating costs. Other people, he said, want to use environmentally friendly forms of energy.

Over the last 20 years, Menard said the cost of alternative solar- and wind- generated power has dramatically fallen, but he said it is still cheaper to just plug into MEA's power system, if that's available.

While a full alternative energy system can still run more than $10,000 in some cases, Menard said there is very little in the way of maintenance and the systems are highly reliable. Menard expects more people will use alternative energy as the price continues to fall.

Nationally, more and more people are using solar- and wind-generated power. According to Worldwatch Institute, an independent research organization, renewable energy, including wind, solar, geothermal and bio energy, currently supplies enough electricity for more than 300 million homes worldwide.

Palmer farmer Larry DeVilbiss has successfully harnessed solar and wind electricity for the last three years. While he lives off the MEA power grid, DeVilbiss said that even if power were available, he would only need it to occasionally charge his backup batteries.

"And that would be a pretty rare occasion because there's always some kind of wind movement out here," he said.

Individual home owners are not the only ones looking into alternative energy.

Chugach Electric Association, which supplies electricity for the Mat-Su Borough, is considering pursuing alternative wind-energy sources.

CEA and Anchorage Municipal Light and Power are looking into a plan that to construct 33 wind turbines for a 50-megawatt wind-power project on Fire Island. The island is a 4,000-acre piece of land in Cook Inlet, just three miles from Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport.

In time, CEA estimates that wind power from Fire Island could considerably lower the price of energy for Alaskans.

"Alternative energy is real," Menard said. "People thought it was black magic in the early days, but now they take it more seriously. The technology is there, now it's just a matter of applying it."

Contact Joel Davidson at joel.davidson@frontiersman.com.