The Arctic continues to warm faster than other parts of the world — and is experiencing record high temperatures and record low levels of sea ice.

That’s according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), which released its annual report card for the region Tuesday.

As The Alaska Desk’s Alena Naiden from our flagship station KNBA reports, those findings directly affect Alaska Indigenous communities.

The Arctic Report Card has been documenting changes in snow and sea ice cover, as well as air and ocean temperatures in the northern part of the globe for the past 20 years.

It has shown that, in that time, the Arctic’s annual temperature has increased at more than double the global rate of temperature changes.

Hannah-Marie Ladd is the director of Indigenous Sentinels Network.

“These changes cascade directly into people’s lives, affecting fisheries, coastal safety, and subsistence harvests. We are no longer just documenting warming. We are witnessing an entire marine ecosystem, which is tied to our economies and culture, transform within a single generation.”

The report highlights an emerging phenomenon called rusting rivers. That’s when permafrost thaw causes ground water to seep deeper and interact with mineral deposits, which likely turns some streams and rivers to a rusty orange color.

Abigail Pruitt says that, in Alaska, over 200 streams turned orange in recent years.

“Within Kobuk Valley National Park, we observed the complete loss of juvenile Dolly Varden and Slimy Sculpin, in a tributary to the Akillik river when it turned orange. Beyond the effects on fish, rusting rivers may impact drinking water supplies to rural communities as well.”

The report highlights how Indigenous communities have been observing the changes in their environments and wildlife and collaborating with scientists to better understand those changes.

Ladd describes one example of such work. She says that St. Paul residents collect samples of harvested traditional foods like seabirds, marine mammals, and halibut.

Those samples are tested in a tribally owned lab and analyzed for contaminants like mercury.

“Indigenous leadership, local workforce development, and community driven observing are not optional. They’re essential to understanding the Arctic that we have today and preparing for the Arctic we are moving into.”

In response to a question about how federal cuts to climate science might affect the future of the Arctic Report Card, NOAA officials said that they will continue their efforts to observe the changing environment.

Two tribal communities in New Mexico will be receiving $200,000 in state grants for high-speed internet development.

KUNM’s Jeanette DeDios (Jicarilla Apache and Diné) has more.

Santa Clara Pueblo and the Fort Sill Apache tribe will each receive a planning grant of $100,000 through the New Mexico Grant Writing, Engineering, and Planning Program. 

In a release, the state’s Broadband Policy and Programs Bureau Chief, Andrew Wilder, said the funding will help start important projects in tribal regions that lack high-speed internet.

Santa Clara will use its grant to build fiber lines connecting homes and provide Wi-Fi service.

Fort Sill plans to create a high-speed broadband network connecting unserved homes. The tribe has already secured $500,000 in infrastructure funding for fiber, equipment, and trenching. 

The state’s office of broadband has already issued 36 awards totalling $3.5 million to 17 tribal communities, 15 local governments, and four rural electric and telephone businesses.

The broadband office stated that $1.5 million are still available in planning grants.

The awards are assistance-based, not merit-based, so entities do not compete for funding.

No matching funds are required.

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