Three Alaska Native Entities Awarded $3.8M for Legacy Contamination Cleanup

“We are grateful to the Environmental Protection Agency for their support through the ANCSA Land Assistance grant program and to Senator Lisa Murkowski for her leadership in championing this critical program,” says Aleut President and CEO Skoey Vergen. “Their recognition of the growing need for ANCSA land remediation enables Aleut and our regional partners to continue this vital work without placing the burden on our shareholders. Aleut has long been committed to addressing the environmental challenges inherited on Adak. With these funds, Aleut will permanently cap a monofill that posed a health and safety risk to the Adak community, as well as the delicate ecosystem. Through grant programs like this, we can continue the essential work of revitalizing Adak for future economic development and protecting our traditional lands. We look forward to our continued partnership with the EPA.”

The Yukon River Inter-Tribal Watershed Council (YRITWC) will receive more than $1.7 million to remove contaminated soils and timbers from a former pumphouse and barge landing owned by the Alaska Railroad at the Tanana Community Hall.

“The Tanana Tribal Council has worked for years addressing the fuel contamination issues in Tanana, and the area to be cleaned up is a community use area, by the children, elders, and all members. We are grateful for the funding to clean up the contamination and to create a safe place,” says Kathleen Peters-Zuray, YRITWC member and Tanana resident.

The YRITWC is a consortium of seventy-four Tribal and First Nation governments dedicated to the environmental protection and restoration in the Yukon River Basin. The cleanup in Tanana will enable the community to prepare the property for reuse.

Finally, the Alaska Native Village Corporation Association received a $250,000 cooperative agreement with the EPA. The congressionally directed spending provided to the association will help advocate for Alaska Native village corporations and Alaska Native tribal entities to get support, assistance, and resources to address and clean up legacy contamination.

ANCSA conveyed 44 million acres to Alaska Native regional and village corporations and paid $1 billion from the state and federal governments as compensation for remaining claims. However, some of the lands were contaminated from prior activities such as fuel storage, power generation, waste handling, mining, and military use. Contaminants such as arsenic, asbestos, lead, mercury, pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls, and petroleum products pose health concerns to Alaska Native communities, negatively impact subsistence resources, and hamper economic activity.

The EPA, Department of Defense, US Army Corps of Engineers, Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management, and others have been working to improve collaboration across the federal government and with the State of Alaska and Alaska Native communities to leverage resources and expertise to accelerate investigation and cleanup of contaminated ANCSA lands.