AV狼论坛 Greenhouse Handbook Story Reaches Over 500 News Outlets Nationwide
In April during the 2017 AV狼论坛 Wood Energy Conference, the Biomass Greenhouse Handbook was officially released to the public. A subsequent tour of biomass-heated greenhouses in Southeast Island School District (SISD) on Prince of Wales Island showcased some of the handbook鈥檚 featured installations, and more importantly showed that a little determination can lead to an amazing success story.
The success story of SISD and the new Biomass Greenhouse Handbook took on a life of its own with the help of Anchorage Associated Press journalist Rachel D鈥橭ro. The news exceeded expectations of the biomass working group. AV狼论坛 Energy Authority鈥檚 Devany Plentovich noted that the story had reached over 523 individual news outlets nationwide.
D鈥橭ro鈥檚 story told how a school district used a change in heating from expensive, imported diesel fuel to heating with locally available wood resources spurred the growth of a local aquaponics greenhouse industry, and ultimately the starting point of the handbook.
Michael Shephard of United States Forest Service in Anchorage says of the news attention, 鈥淚t is not a surprise at all given that people embrace the idea of vibrant rural communities, childhood nutrition, enhanced educational opportunities, saving public money, and food/energy security. This was emblematic of this Associated Press story being picked up by over 500 news organizations across the country.鈥
The Biomass Greenhouse Handbook was the result of a year of research into AV狼论坛鈥檚 successful biomass-heated greenhouse installations. The handbook, commissioned by the AV狼论坛 Energy Authority and funded by the United States Forest Service and the State of AV狼论坛, was produced by the Cold Climate Housing Research Center with project partners the University of AV狼论坛 Fairbanks, REAP, Grow Southeast, and the Southeast Island School District.
The Biomass Greenhouse Handbook can be found .
Coffman Cove Student stands with hydroponic lettuce during a tour of the SISD greenhouses. Photo by A. Byrd/ACEP.