Kivalina, Alaska facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Kivalina
Kivalliñiq
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Aerial view of Kivalina
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Location in Northwest Arctic Borough and the state of Alaska.
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| Country | United States |
| State | Alaska |
| Borough | Northwest Arctic |
| Incorporated | June 23, 1969 |
| Area | |
| • Total | 4.16 sq mi (10.78 km2) |
| • Land | 1.63 sq mi (4.23 km2) |
| • Water | 2.53 sq mi (6.55 km2) |
| Elevation | 13 ft (4 m) |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 444 |
| • Density | 272.23/sq mi (105.08/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-9 (Alaska (AKST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-8 (AKDT) |
| ZIP Code |
99750
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| Area code | 907 |
| FIPS code | 02-39960 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1413348, 2419411 |
Kivalina (pronounced kiv-uh-LEE-nuh) is a small city and village in Northwest Arctic Borough, Alaska, United States. In 2010, about 374 people lived there. By 2020, the population grew to 444.
The land where Kivalina is located is a narrow island. This island is in danger from rising ocean levels and coastal erosion. These problems are caused by climate change. Experts thought the island might be underwater by 2025. Kivalina has also been part of several important court cases about the environment.
Contents
History of Kivalina
Kivalina is a community of the Inupiat, who are Native Alaskans. The village was first noted in 1847. It was a common stopping point for travelers. These travelers moved between the Arctic coast and communities near Kotzebue Sound.
In 2009, ancient remains were found here. These included three bodies and old tools. They belonged to the Ipiutak culture. This group lived over a thousand years ago. They were not whaling people and disappeared long ago.
Kivalina is the only village in its area where people hunt the bowhead whale. The first village was at the north end of the Kivalina Lagoon. It was later moved to its current spot.
Around 1900, reindeer were brought to the area. Some people in Kivalina learned how to herd them.
An airstrip was built in Kivalina in 1960. Kivalina officially became a city in 1969. In the 1970s, a new school and an electric system were built.
On December 5, 2014, the only general store in Kivalina burned down. A new store opened in July 2015. It was rebuilt to be safer and more useful for the community.
Geography and Location
Kivalina is on the southern tip of a long, narrow strip of land called a barrier island. This island is about 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) long. It sits between the Chukchi Sea and a calm body of water called a lagoon. This lagoon is at the mouth of the Kivalina River. Kivalina is about 130 kilometers (80 miles) northwest of Kotzebue.
The village covers about 10.78 square kilometers (4.16 square miles). About 4.23 square kilometers (1.63 square miles) is land. The rest, about 6.55 square kilometers (2.53 square miles), is water.
Climate and Weather
Kivalina has a dry subarctic climate. This means it has very long and cold winters. The summers are short and cool. August is usually the wettest month. December gets the most snow.
| Climate data for Kivalina, Alaska (Kivalina Airport) (1991-2020 normals, extremes 1998-present) | |||||||||||||
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| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 47 (8) |
52 (11) |
48 (9) |
62 (17) |
68 (20) |
96 (36) |
94 (34) |
89 (32) |
65 (18) |
58 (14) |
40 (4) |
39 (4) |
96 (36) |
| Mean maximum °F (°C) | 32.0 (0.0) |
34.4 (1.3) |
28.0 (−2.2) |
38.3 (3.5) |
54.4 (12.4) |
70.6 (21.4) |
72.0 (22.2) |
65.8 (18.8) |
57.5 (14.2) |
44.4 (6.9) |
32.0 (0.0) |
31.8 (−0.1) |
74.4 (23.6) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 6.6 (−14.1) |
9.7 (−12.4) |
9.4 (−12.6) |
23.6 (−4.7) |
38.2 (3.4) |
50.0 (10.0) |
56.3 (13.5) |
54.5 (12.5) |
46.2 (7.9) |
30.5 (−0.8) |
17.3 (−8.2) |
10.0 (−12.2) |
29.4 (−1.5) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | −1.2 (−18.4) |
1.3 (−17.1) |
0.9 (−17.3) |
14.8 (−9.6) |
32.1 (0.1) |
43.9 (6.6) |
50.9 (10.5) |
49.1 (9.5) |
40.6 (4.8) |
25.6 (−3.6) |
11.4 (−11.4) |
2.9 (−16.2) |
22.7 (−5.2) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | −9.0 (−22.8) |
−7.1 (−21.7) |
−7.6 (−22.0) |
6.0 (−14.4) |
25.9 (−3.4) |
37.8 (3.2) |
45.5 (7.5) |
43.7 (6.5) |
35.1 (1.7) |
20.6 (−6.3) |
5.5 (−14.7) |
−4.1 (−20.1) |
16.0 (−8.9) |
| Mean minimum °F (°C) | −33.2 (−36.2) |
−34.4 (−36.9) |
−28.6 (−33.7) |
−16.8 (−27.1) |
9.5 (−12.5) |
29.1 (−1.6) |
37.7 (3.2) |
34.6 (1.4) |
23.0 (−5.0) |
5.3 (−14.8) |
−15.1 (−26.2) |
−27.3 (−32.9) |
−39.9 (−39.9) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −50 (−46) |
−54 (−48) |
−41 (−41) |
−33 (−36) |
−9 (−23) |
21 (−6) |
33 (1) |
28 (−2) |
12 (−11) |
−8 (−22) |
−30 (−34) |
−41 (−41) |
−54 (−48) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 0.28 (7.1) |
0.44 (11) |
0.18 (4.6) |
0.56 (14) |
0.57 (14) |
0.79 (20) |
1.41 (36) |
2.33 (59) |
1.52 (39) |
0.93 (24) |
0.51 (13) |
0.17 (4.3) |
9.69 (246) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 5.3 | 5.3 | 3.0 | 4.7 | 6.4 | 6.1 | 11.7 | 13.0 | 11.5 | 8.1 | 5.7 | 4.1 | 84.9 |
| Source: NOAA | |||||||||||||
Population and Community Life
| Historical population | |||
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| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1920 | 87 | — | |
| 1930 | 99 | 13.8% | |
| 1940 | 98 | −1.0% | |
| 1950 | 117 | 19.4% | |
| 1960 | 142 | 21.4% | |
| 1970 | 188 | 32.4% | |
| 1980 | 241 | 28.2% | |
| 1990 | 317 | 31.5% | |
| 2000 | 377 | 18.9% | |
| 2010 | 374 | −0.8% | |
| 2020 | 444 | 18.7% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census | |||
Kivalina first appeared in the U.S. Census in 1920. At that time, it was an "unincorporated village," meaning it didn't have its own formal city government. It became an official city in 1969.
In 2010, there were 374 people living in Kivalina. Most of the people (96.55%) were Native American. A small number (3.45%) were White.
The Native Village of Kivalina is a "federally recognized tribe." This means the U.S. government officially recognizes them as a Native American tribe. They have an elected tribal council that helps lead the community. The City of Kivalina also has an elected mayor and a city council with seven members.
Organizations like NANA Corporation and Manilaaq Association help the community. NANA Corporation owns the land in and around the city. Manilaaq Association provides social, tribal, and health care services.
In 2010, many households in Kivalina had children. About 61.5% of homes had kids under 18. The average household had about 4.83 people. The median age in the village was 21 years old. This means half the people were younger than 21, and half were older.
Environmental Challenges
Kivalina faces big challenges because of sea wave erosion during storms. The city hopes to move to a new location about 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) away. Studies are still being done to find the best new site.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers estimates that moving the city could cost between $95 million and $125 million. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) thinks it could be even more, between $100 million and $400 million.
Rising temperatures in the Arctic are greatly affecting Kivalina. The sea ice that used to protect the city from storms is disappearing. This means more flooding and erosion.
A book called "Kivalina: A Climate Change Story" was published in 2011. It tells more about the environmental issues in Kivalina.
Lawsuits About the Environment
Kivalina has been involved in several important lawsuits related to the environment.
Kivalina v. ExxonMobil Corporation
In 2008, the city of Kivalina and the Native Village of Kivalina sued ExxonMobil and many other large companies. They claimed these companies produced too many greenhouse gases. These gases contribute to global warming, which threatens Kivalina's existence. The lawsuit asked for $400 million to help the city move.
However, a federal court dismissed the lawsuit in 2009. The court said that dealing with greenhouse gas emissions was a political issue, not a legal one. They felt it should be handled by Congress and the government, not by courts.
Kivalina v Teck Cominco
In 2004, Kivalina sued a Canadian mining company called Teck Cominco. The company was accused of polluting the Wulik River, which is Kivalina's drinking water source. The pollution also harmed the fish that people relied on for food.
Teck Cominco settled the lawsuit in 2008. They agreed to build a pipeline to carry mine waste directly to the ocean. This would stop the waste from going into the Wulik River. However, the pipeline was not built, and a different agreement was followed.
Kivalina v. US EPA
In 2010, the Native Village of Kivalina sued the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). They argued that the EPA did not properly consider public concerns when approving the Red Dog Mine's waste discharge plan. In 2012, a court upheld the EPA's decision.
Strange Orange Goo
On August 4, 2011, people in Kivalina saw a strange orange goo wash up on the shores. This substance also appeared in some residents' rain buckets. Scientists tested the goo.
At first, they thought it was millions of tiny crustacean eggs. But later, officials from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said it was actually spores from a type of rust fungus. This fungus was later identified as Chrysomyxa ledicola.
Sea Level Rise and Coastal Erosion
Kivalina has been flooded many times by strong storm surges. People have had to evacuate the village. While flooding has always been a risk, major floods happened in 1970, 1976, 2002, and 2004. A village-wide evacuation was needed in 2007.
To help slow down the erosion, the US Army Corps of Engineers built a protective wall of rocks (called a rip-rap revetment) along the island's tip and near the airport.
Other Climate Change Impacts
Besides more flooding from storms, the banks of the Wulik River are eroding. This makes the river water cloudy, which affects the city's drinking water. It also makes water treatment more difficult.
Relocation Efforts
Because of severe sea wave erosion during storms, the city hopes to move to a new site. This new location is about 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) from the current village. In 2009, a GAO report listed Kivalina as one of 31 communities in Alaska threatened by environmental changes.
Moving the village to higher ground off the barrier island has been slow. The estimated cost of moving ranges from $95 million to $400 million. In 2018, a decision was made to build an evacuation road across the Kivalina Lagoon. This road will help people escape during bad storms. It will also connect the village to the planned new school site on K-Hill.
Kivalina in the Media
Kivalina's environmental problems have been shown in many media programs.
- The 2015 Weather Channel documentary "Alaska: State of Emergency" featured Kivalina.
- The Al Jazeera English Fault Lines documentary, When the Water Took the Land, also focused on Kivalina.
- The village's struggles were explored in Kivalina, a documentary on the PBS World series America ReFramed.
- The Atlantic magazine published a photo story in September 2019 called The Impact of Climate Change on Kivalina, Alaska.
Education in Kivalina
The McQueen School serves the community of Kivalina. It is run by the Northwest Arctic Borough School District. In 2017, there were 141 students at the school. All of the students were Alaska Natives.
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See also
In Spanish: Kivalina (Alaska) para niños
