Alaska Awarded $38.6M for Heat Pumps in Coastal Communities
Photo Credit: Sebastian_Studio | Envato
The Southeast Conference will help distribute $38.6 million from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Climate Pollution Reduction Grant program (CPRG) to convert oil-fired and electric home heating systems into more efficient heat pumps. In a partnership with Alaska Heat Smart and the Alaska Municipal League, the funding will help families in Alaska’s southern coastal communities offset the conversion cost.
Assisting Coastal Communities
“Southeast Conference has long worked with Alaska’s distressed coastal communities to displace imported fossil fuels and utilize clean, renewable resources,” says Lacey Simpson, Southeast Conference board president and City of Ketchikan assistant city manager. “We are grateful for this award, which will make transformational changes toward our shared mission of sustainable, vibrant communities with a healthy environment.”
EPA reviewed nearly 300 grant applications to divide nearly $33 billion nationwide.
“Every community is feeling the impacts of climate change, from heat waves and drought conditions to increased wildfire smoke and severe winter storms. We must act collaboratively to reduce carbon emissions and to address the adverse impacts on people’s health and our economic prosperity,” says EPA Regional Administrator Casey Sixkiller.
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The Alaska heat pump project, one of twenty-five that EPA selected for grant awards, will provide financial incentives for installations in 6,100 households in communities from Ketchikan to Kodiak. Rebates will vary, from $4,000 up to $8,500, depending on household income level.
Grant partner Alaska Heat Smart has assisted more than 1,000 households to navigate pathways to home electrification. The new program, called Accelerating Clean Energy Savings in Alaska’s Coastal Communities (ACES-AK), will supercharge these efforts using EPA’s CPRG funds.
“This is coastal Alaska’s ‘ticket to ride,’” says Andy Romanoff, executive director of Alaska Heat Smart. “Not only will this opportunity bring the myriad benefits of air source heat pumps to thousands of Alaskan families, but it also confronts head-on the challenges of energy and climate justice.”
More than half of the program goes toward applicants in tribal communities and disadvantaged communities. The program is supported by the Kodiak Area Native Association and Tlingit and Haida Regional Housing Authority.
“Alaska’s coastal communities face unique challenges with high heating and electricity costs,” says Mike Pfeffer, CEO of Kodiak Area Native Association. “This grant will provide valuable energy education and financial incentives, helping families on Kodiak Island and beyond to reduce their energy expenses and improve their quality of life.”
Heat pump conversion is expected to displace approximately 3.3 million gallons of heating oil annually (547 gallons per household) and remove 633,898 metric tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere through 2050. More concretely for households, heat pumps generally save between 25 to 50 percent on heating bills.
Romanoff says, “The ACES-AK program will save families hard-earned income and will eliminate the hazards and costs inherent in burning and transporting fossil fuels. ACES-AK will allow families to ‘heat locally’ by drawing heat from the surrounding air, versus an oil-dependent, thousands-of-miles long pipeline and barge journey from the drilling platform to the furnace.”
EPA figures that CPRG grants could reduce greenhouse gas pollution by as much as 148 million metric tons by 2030 and by 971 million metric tons by 2050, based on estimates provided by the selected applicants.
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