School children walk alongside severe erosion of permafrost tundra next to their school in the climate change-affected Yupik Eskimo village of Napakiak on the Yukon Delta in Alaska on April 18, 2019.
Mark Ralston | AFP | Getty Images
The Department of the Interior under the Biden administration is providing Three Native American tribes $75 million to relocate from coastal areas at risk of destruction, a decision that comes after tribes across the country competed for the first federal grant designed to relocate communities facing climate change threats.
Newtok Village and Napaquick’s Native Village in Alaska, as well as Quinault Indian Nation in Washington, will each receive $25 million to move buildings inland and away from rising seas. The administration is also awarding a $5 million grant to eight more tribes to help them plan for relocation.
Historically Oppressed and Disadvantaged Tribal Groups Across the Americas are more vulnerable to the effects of climate change, research published in the journal Science found that tribal nations have lost 99% of their historical territory and the lands they vacate are generally more vulnerable to climate-related disasters such as heat waves, wildfires and drought.
The federal government is now starting to relocate entire Native communities to adapt to climate change and reduce the damage from future climate-related disasters. Bureau of Indian Affairs study from 2020 estimated at up to $5 billion To meet the needs of tribal resettlement infrastructure will be required over the next 50 years as climate changes.
Department of the Interior Secretary Deb Haaland delivers opening remarks at the 2022 White House Tribal Nations Summit at the Department of the Interior on November 30, 2022 in Washington, DC.
Pete Marovich | Getty Images
“We must protect the Indian nation from the rapid and unique impacts of climate change,” said Interior Secretary Deb Haaland. said in a statement, “Helping these communities move to the safety of their homeland is one of the most important climate investments we can make in Indian Country.”
The administration announced the awards during this year’s White House Tribal Nations Summit. Earlier this year, the Bureau of Indian Affairs hosted a contest in which tribes applied for up to $3 million in relocation funds.
Interior said tribes in Alaska are particularly at risk of infrastructure damage due to water encroachment, coastal erosion and extreme weather events.
Smaller planning grants from the administration were awarded to tribes including the Native Village of Point Lay in Alaska, the Yurok Tribe in California, and the Chitimacha Tribe in Louisiana.