Knik Tribe's Natural Resources Department

About the Program
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Severe storms have become more common, destructive, and costly. The Mat-Su Valley remains intimately familiar with high winds and blizzards which can take out power lines, causing widespread outages during the coldest and most dangerous times of year. All the while, energy demands continue to rise across the region with a growing population and a growing need for high quality energy. Combining these threats and demands leaves community members facing increased insecurity and looming cost surges in an already high-cost energy landscape.  

Energy Efficiency  

To date, Knik has made strides in meeting modern, Alaskan energy challenges. Utilizing Yanmar combined heat and power systems, multiple Knik buildings produce their own electricity on site directly from natural gas, reducing energy costs associated with transmission losses and reducing our carbon footprint. Through consistent facility upgrades, Knik has kept current with trends in efficient appliances and heating devices. Additionally, our internal efforts for improvement have inspired us to create our own internal database and analysis program for tracking our historical energy usage on a building-by-building basis, helping us identify inefficiencies and surges.  

To protect our communities, Knik Tribe works towards improved grid resilience and increased use of renewable energy, aiming to fund and direct projects that directly serve our communities energy needs.  

Grid Resilience  

In 2022 through Section 40101(d) of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Knik Tribe was awarded funding for “activities, technologies, equipment, and hardening measures to reduce the likelihood and consequences of disruptive events.” With the goal in mind, Knik is in the process of designing unique, community-based projects along with local energy leaders that allow us to better prepare our facilities and community spaces to resist outages. Examples of potential projects include:  

• Battery Integration: Installation of local battery systems can supply critical community support buildings with 6 to 8 hours of power during a regional outage

• Three-Phase Power: To capitalize on the success of our cogeneration devices, upgrades to three-phase power within our facility wiring will further improve efficiency and prevent overloading our local systems

• Power Line Management: Working directly with energy providers, upgrades to utility poles and power lines can help prevent outages  

Clean Energy

Knik recognizes the need for a diversified energy profile for Alaska to reduce our impact on the environment while meeting the growing demand for energy. To help Knik achieve its clean energy goals, the Tribe was awarded a Clean Energy Innovator Fellowship for up to two years through the Department of Energy. This fully funded fellowship brings a post-graduate individual directly to the Tribe, on-site, to focus on clean energy projects.  

Future Efforts  

Knik continues to explore new avenues for analyzing, upgrading, and innovating energy solutions for our constituents and the communities they call home. We regularly submit to new funding from federal and non-federal sources to bring money into our community for energy projects. Together, we are building a resilient, clean energy future that protects our lands, our resources, and our people.