Marvin L. Yoder

The Galena Nuclear Project: Pursuing Low Cost Energy in Bush Alaska Marvin L. Yoder

Village Invited to Test Cheap, Clean Nuclear Power was the headline in the Anchorage Daily News on October 21, 2003. A positive story, using the word nuclear, had been rare for more than twenty years. Galena was a small village in interior Alaska that was dealing with escalating energy costs. The city owned and operated the diesel-generating plant. The community was off-road and off the electrical grid. A chance meeting apprised the community about an innovative solution to their energy needs-the Toshiba 4S Nuclear Reactor. This proposal elicited both curiosity and concern. The city council tasked Marvin Yoder, the city manager, to explore the potential for this source of energy and to determine if this technology was appropriate for an isolated community. He was to gather information and report to the council. To accomplish this, Marvin presented the Galena story and received feedback from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the US Department of Energy, and the American Nuclear Society. There were also meetings with state of Alaska officials and others involved in rural energy. This book chronicles the journey to determine if this reactor was compatible with the community needs and capabilities. Marvin Yoder spent more than twenty-five years working for various municipalities in Alaska, from southeast to the interior. He retired from Galena in 2006. He formed MY: T Solutions LLC with his son, Tony, and maintained contact with Toshiba for several more years. Marvin lives in Palmer, Alaska, with his wife, Patsy.