Module V: American Period Alaska's Economy

Essential Question:How is the Alaska economy a reflection of diverse, and sometimes conflicting,  perspectives of the natural landscape?


Alaska's economy has always been dependent upon conflicting ideas and much debate over financial gain over land protection. Alaska was initially established by the United States as a military district. After recognizing all the natural resources that were available things tended to shift a little. Alaska's economy is built largely on extraction of those natural resouces.


When I was thinking of one of the first accounts of extraction, it brough me back to the great Gold Rush!  I then rememebered, Jack London's stories and Robert Service's poem "The creamation of Sam Mcgee" This is a prime example of how Alaska tends to  have boom bust economy. When things are good, such as the Gold they are really good but when it runs out, or the season is short it then has a down fall. I believe that this boom bust economy also attributes the diverse views of what should and should not be done in Alaska. Gold mining later tended to change due to technology, and so did the concerns for the environment and water quality left by mining materials.  Along with the example of Gold mining, I know that the kennicott copper mine is also a good example Alaska's economys conflicting views.There were many political aspects which resulted in the close of these mines: http://www.akhistorycourse.org/articles/article.php?artID=180


http://commerce.alaska.gov/ded/dev/minerals/mine1.htm


Mining in Alaska is not the only conflicting perspective. The fishing industry and Timber has also seen diverse perspectives and changes. Fishing industry started off being managed primariy by the federal government and now there is a dual State/Federal management in the waters to proctect fish and fishing rights. The Timber industry also faces great debate over the significance of industry. It is important to point out that in 1891 congress passed the first Forest Reserve Act, Later The Tongass National Forest and Chugach National Forest are created to protect land and help regulate logging in Alaska. These are all great examples of conflicting perspectives in regards to the landscape in Alaska.


The last example, I believe is one of the most known and continual debate over, that is Oil drilling...  Oil was discovered in Prudhoe bay in 1968,The pipeline was completed in 1977 and thus began the huge economic gain in Alaska.To this day there are still debates over drilling, as evidenced by this article: http://www.akhistorycourse.org/articles/article.php?artID=117
85% of the states budget is supported by oil revenues; therefore many sectors of the economy are dependent upon world oil prices. These industried continue to have conflicting perspectives when it comes to Alaska's landscape and extraction. If we are so dependent on the worlds oil prices, this also effects our need and want to be economically independent.


As mentioned above, the conflicting perspectives continue over drilling in Alaska and one area in particular: ANWR. Throughout this module it is apparant how dependent Alaska's economy is on Federal grants and extraction of natural resouces. Despite this dependence, I wonder does the financial gain out weigh the potential environmental devastation? This is not only a local issue, but tends to be a fragile global issue as well. The article below explains the significance and pertinence of either drilling or keeping this landscape pristine:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arctic_National_Wildlife_Refugehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arctic_National_Wildlife_Refuge

In conclusion, essentially the economy is driven by three major things today: Oil, tourism and fishing. There is also a large Timber industry, mining and agriculture. Each of these areas provides very diverse perspectives through out the history of Alaska's economy. My personal  belief after reading this module is; there has to be a happy medium, where we are valuing our economic natural resources but also protecting our treasured lands.  I am not going to pretend to know the answer to this, but as listed above I know that there are measure's that have been put in place such as the Forrest Protection Act, Fish and Game management as well as non-profit agencys working hard to protect the Last Frontier. I can't imagine continuing to live on a boom bust economy forever, I would equate it to living pay check to pay check and some of us know how stressful that can be... I am hopeful that we can work together to keep Alaska the beautiful the last frontier!


Examine: What were the primary motivations for Americans moving to Alaska in the late 1800's?


According to this  Alaska History and Cultural Studies article: http://www.akhistorycourse.org/articles/article.php?artID=166  Some of the reasons individuals came to Alaska are:

•  The government sent them
• others came for economic reasons such as; trade, merchants, fur hunters, prospectors and miners.

The government sent Soldiers and officials to assist with the Native tribe relations, they were used to hostility from the Native tribes West of the Mississippi River and assumed the same would be true in Alaska.The military was not the only government agency sent over, custom officials and Tresury Department were also sent, to collect taxes and enforce laws against smuggling. The Navy was sent to protect American interests in the Pacific Ocean.


There were many merchants, miners, smugglers and traders who moved to Alaska.They moved to Alaska, because they saw the potential in Sitka due to its location for trade and resources. The Americans did well when they first arrived in Sitka and emptied the Russian goods, however, after the Russians left so did their money. According to an Army officer who took census in 1870 demonstrated a 50% decline in the population.sitka declines


Lastly, there were those who continued to come for exploration. There was still a need for coastal charts and maps. Many scientists were interested in Alaska's geology and environment. I personally believe that these all continue to be the reasons why people are moving up here. Alaska houses huge military bases, individuals are moving due to wanting to make a livelihood and others move for the great adventure and a land full of exploration!



Extend: Describe the economic base for your area of Alaska and share any current issues confronting the local residents.
 
I currently live in Anchorage, Alaska where I see a lot of our City's economic base being Federally funded. I work at a school, where at least 38% of the population is military students. As we are facing tough economic times globally, this in turn has effected our military bases and jobs have been cut. The continual cuts are causing stress on students and families in my community. This website describes the up-coming budget cuts:
http://www.akbizmag.com/Alaska-Business-Monthly/February-2012/How-will-the-2013-Defense-Budget-Cuts-Affect-Alaska/
If the military cuts jobs, this will have a trickle down effect in Anchorage. If there are less jobs and less people to make purchases, this effects the rest of the economy.


Evaluation:
This module was a little overwhelming for me, I felt like it had too much at once. It was difficult to stay focused. I would have rather it was broken down into smaller sections so that I could get a better grasp and spend more time on each section. Although, it was overwhelming I did enjoy the videos and the wealth of information in regards to the start of prudhoe bay pipeline.


Blogs I have visited:
http://edexplorationinak.blogspot.com/
I enjoyed her explaination of the explorers in Alaska

http://hollyalaskahistory.blogspot.com/
Holly's font style was very appealing and I enjoyed her review.

http://latitude61alaska.blogspot.com/
His explaination of the Russian American company and how trade was effected was interesting.