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Why is building in Alaska often expensive?

1 year ago

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Kaylie Vonrueden


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There are physical and human geography reasons for building in Alaska being expensive. Physical - Alaska has many earthquakes, so buildings have to earthquake proof. During summer months melting permafrost (frozen sub-soil), forms marshy ground, that can make buildings unstable. It can also cause problems for roads, meaning that transporting of building material can be delayed. Due to the northerly position of Alaska, there are only 6 months of the year when it is bright enough to build without flood lights. Alaska's climate means that buildings have to be well insulated and have triple glazing, which is expensive. Human - Alaska is very remote and most building materials have to be imported, which is costly. Conditions for construction workers are also harsh and many workers are away from home for several months, so wages are high to attract the workers and workers have to be provided with a good standard of accommodation, which is expensive.

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Rahim

Hey, itโ€™s the terrain of the land which means that Alaska is very hard to build on. This would lead to there being high risk buildings as well as the threat of landslides and cold weather damaging the buildings.

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