Submitted by Anonymous on Fri, 08/30/2013 - 08:42
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Arctic Sunlight and Microbial Interactions

Mr Taterka:

I really enjoyed your updates of your "expedition" to Alaska, especially the pictures. One picture in particular got me thinking, however: The picture with the caribou in front of the Alaskan Pipeline.

I remember reading that the design of the pipeline was intended to keep the surrounding permafrost from thawing as the oil flowed through the pipes. After studying the permafrost around the pipeline, what effects, if any, did you notice the structure had on the surrounding environment? More broadly, did you notice any social or economic impact that the pipeline had on the area?

Thanks

Alex Jacobs

Sat, 08/31/2013 - 17:14

Anonymous

Alex -
You can see in the picture of the pipeline and the caribou that they built the pipeline high enough so caribou can walk under it, which they do when they migrate. And you're right - the pipeline was built with a tower on each support that dissipates heat from the tundra into the air, so the heat from the oil doesn't thaw the permafrost.
You also raise one of the key questions we're going to be asking over and over again this year in Envi Sci class - what are the social and economic impacts and benefits of different things, in addition to the environmental effects. With the pipeline, the economic impact has been enormous! It brought jobs, revenue, development and lots of money to Alaska. To this day, Alaskans don't pay state taxes - instead they get a check from the government of their share of the state's oil revenue every year. Oil development on the north slope also brought the Dalton Highway and the Toolik Field Station, which enabled a lot of scientific research. On the other hand, burning oil from Alaska has caused huge amounts of CO2 to be released into the air and caused other pollution as well. Maybe if we didn't have that oil we'd be farther along on developing alternatives.
Anyway, the caribou don't seem to mind, do they?
- Mr. T