Over 140 years ago, the US government overcame its miserly tendencies and purchased Alaska from Russia for $7.2 million in gold. It brought us Sarah Palin, which some would say was a good deal and others would say was not. But looked at from the perspective of dollars and cents, rather than politics and personalities, a new analysis by an economist suggests the investment hasn’t been worth it for taxpayers in the other 49 states.
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We’ve written before that Alaska is the canary in the coal mine, because the effects of global warming are showing up there first. Now we?ve learned that over ten thousand Alaskan lakes have shrunk or dried up in the last half century.
Most of this is due to evaporation caused by global warming. In LiveScience.com, Sara Goudarzi quotes researcher David Verbyla as saying, “Alaska is important in terms of waterfowl production, and if you have a lowering of the water table, that could have a potentially huge impact on waterfowl production.” Alaska’s economy depends on fishing as well.
Will lakes in the rest of the country be next? The government’s neglect about the subject of climate change is so extreme that it almost seems like some sort of conspiracy.
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We’ve written about how Alaska is the canary in the coal mine, since it’s the place where the effects of global warming are showing up first. Now there is a new disaster in that beautiful state: a huge volcano is about to erupt, preceded by many miniature earthquakes.
The Augustine volcano hasn’t erupted for a long time and it hasn’t shown signs of life for 20 years. In 1976 and 1986, it belched plumes of ash out over Anchorage. Now it looks like it’s ready to erupt. Augustine makes up an uninhabited volcanic island near Anchorage, Alaska’s biggest city.
Small earthquakes precede a volcanic eruption, and seismometers recorded more than 170 of these last week.
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Newswise – We’ve written before about how Alaska is the canary in the coal mine, when it comes to global warming. Another way that state is different: in Alaska, you are as likely to have a car accident from hitting (or swerving to avoid) moose as you are due to drinking alcohol.
40% of Alaska?s population lives outside of large cities, and many workers have long commutes through rugged and remote terrain. Although only 1% of the population is involved in farming or ranching, the state does have a large number of large animals. Moose and bears are its most common large wild animals that live in or near residential and commercial areas.
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