Newtok ( esu, Niugtaq) is a small village on the
Ningliq River in the
Bethel Census Area
Bethel Census Area is a census area in the U.S. state of Alaska. As of the 2020 census, the population is 18,666, up from 17,013 in 2010. It is part of the unorganized borough and therefore has no borough seat. Its largest community is the cit ...
,
Alaska
Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...
, United States. At the
2010 census, the population was 354, up from 321 in 2000. Climate change is forcing the primarily
Central Yup'ik Alaska Native
Alaska Natives (also known as Alaskan Natives, Native Alaskans, Indigenous Alaskans, Aboriginal Alaskans or First Alaskans) are the indigenous peoples of Alaska and include Iñupiat, Yupik, Aleut, Eyak, Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, and a numbe ...
village to consider relocation.
Mertarvik Mertarvik (Yup'ik: ''Mertarvik'' məχ'təχvik.html"_;"title="Help:IPA.html"_;"title="nowiki/>Help:IPA">məχ'təχvik">Help:IPA.html"_;"title="nowiki/> məχ'təχvikEnglish_language.html"__"title="Help:IPA">məχ'təχvik.html"_;"title="Help:IP ...
is the destination of those leaving the village.
Geography
According to the
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...
, the CDP has a total area of , of which, of it is land and of it (7.21%) is water.
Demographics
Newtok first appeared on the 1950 U.S. Census as "Keyaluvik", an unincorporated native village. This was also the name of the earlier settlement just to the west, which became known as "Old Keyaluvik." In 1960, the name was changed to Newtok. Newtok formally incorporated in 1976, but disincorporated in 1997. It was then made a census-designated place (CDP), effective with the 2000 census.
As of the census
of 2000, there were 321 people, 63 households, and 51 families residing in the CDP. The population density was . There were 67 housing units at an average density of 65.4/sq mi (25.1/km
2). The racial makeup of the CDP was 3.12%
White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
, 95.33%
Native American, and 1.56% from two or more races.
There were 63 households, out of which 68.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.5% were married couples living together, 11.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 19.0% were non-families. 19.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and none had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 5.10 and the average family size was 5.96.
In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 45.2% under the age of 18, 10.0% from 18 to 24, 26.8% from 25 to 44, 14.3% from 45 to 64, and 3.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 21 years. For every 100 females, there were 118.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 112.0 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $32,188, and the median income for a family was $32,188. Males had a median income of $26,250 versus $15,625 for females. The
per capita income
Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population.
Per capita i ...
for the CDP was $9,514. About 29.8% of families and 31.0% of the population were below the
poverty line
The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...
, including 38.9% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.
Environmental issues
In 2007, ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' reported that erosion made Newtok an island between the widening Ningliq River and a
slough
Slough () is a town and unparished area in the unitary authority of the same name in Berkshire, England, bordering west London. It lies in the Thames Valley, west of central London and north-east of Reading, at the intersection of the M4 ...
to the north, because Alaskan
permafrost
Permafrost is ground that continuously remains below 0 °C (32 °F) for two or more years, located on land or under the ocean. Most common in the Northern Hemisphere, around 15% of the Northern Hemisphere or 11% of the global surface ...
is melting due to
climate change
In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...
.
Coastal storms and thawing permafrost have worn away the land upon which Newtok was built. According to ''The New York Times'' article, because the village is below sea-level and sinking, the town could be washed away within a decade.
Erosion of the tundra by the river has destroyed much of the area of the village, including the barge dock.
The
' March 2009 report estimates the highest point in the town, the high school, will be under water by the year 2017.
The town was featured in the 2009
History Channel's TV show, ''
Tougher in Alaska,'' in the episode called "Dangerous Earth."
In 2015, Newtok was one of the two towns featured in the
Al Jazeera English
Al Jazeera English (AJE; ar, الجزيرة, translit=al-jazīrah, , literally "The Peninsula", referring to the Qatar Peninsula) is an international 24-hour English-language news channel owned by the Al Jazeera Media Network, which is own ...
''
Fault Lines
In geology, a fault is a planar fracture or discontinuity in a volume of rock across which there has been significant displacement as a result of rock-mass movements. Large faults within Earth's crust result from the action of plate tectonic ...
'' documentary, ''When the Water Took the Land.''
By 2019, the first residents moved to a new town,
Mertarvik Mertarvik (Yup'ik: ''Mertarvik'' məχ'təχvik.html"_;"title="Help:IPA.html"_;"title="nowiki/>Help:IPA">məχ'təχvik">Help:IPA.html"_;"title="nowiki/> məχ'təχvikEnglish_language.html"__"title="Help:IPA">məχ'təχvik.html"_;"title="Help:IP ...
.
Education
Lower Kuskokwim School District
Lower Kuskokwim School District (LKSD), or Bethel Public Schools, is a school district headquartered in Bethel, Alaska. it is the largest rural school district in the state, with 4,300 students.
Employment and teacher demographics
In 2017 it had ...
operates the Ayaprun School, K-12. the school has 128 students, 12 teachers, and 27 other employees. Its continuation is the Mertarvik Pioneer School.
Relocation
Land has been acquired for a new townsite called Mertarvik on nearby
Nelson Island about away, and $1 million in government funding has been obtained to build a dock for delivering building supplies.
As of 2016, although the town's roughly 400 residents voted in 2003 to relocate to higher ground nine miles away, progress has been slow.
On December 24, 2016, the village made a disaster declaration request to the
Federal Emergency Management Agency
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), initially created under President Jimmy Carter by Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1978 and implemented by two Exec ...
for disaster assistance due to "flooding, persistent erosion, and permafrost degradation starting in January 1, 2006 and continuing." The request would "include relocation of the Yupik Tribe (population of ~350 people)."
During the summer of 2018, a 6,000 square-foot community center was built, as were 8 houses. Plans for 2019 include interior work in the community center so it can be used as a school, a generator building, and 13 more houses. Construction of roads, pipes, and a water treatment plant is planned. The goal is to complete relocation by 2023.
In September 2022,
Typhoon Merbok caused damage to fuel barrels and moved the ocean shoreline closer to the edge of the town.
See also
*
Effects of global warming
The effects of climate change impact the physical environment, ecosystems and human societies. The environmental effects of climate change are broad and far-reaching. They affect the water cycle, oceans, sea and land ice (glaciers), sea lev ...
*
Sea level rise
Globally, sea levels are rising due to human-caused climate change. Between 1901 and 2018, the globally averaged sea level rose by , or 1–2 mm per year on average.IPCC, 2019Summary for Policymakers InIPCC Special Report on the Ocean and Cry ...
References
Further reading
*
*
*
*
*
Photo essay on warming in Newtok Washington Post
External links
Newtok Planning Groupat Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development,
State of Alaska
Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U. ...
{{Authority control
Census-designated places in Alaska
Census-designated places in Bethel Census Area, Alaska
Census-designated places in Unorganized Borough, Alaska
Former cities in Alaska