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 grants designed to relocate communities facing climate change threats.
The Newtok Village and Native Village of Napakiak in Alaska, as well as the Quinault Indian Nation in Washington state, will each receive $25 million to begin relocating buildings inland and away from rising seas. The administration is also awarding $5 million grants to eight more tribes to help them plan for relocation.
Historically oppressed and disenfranchised tribal groups across the U.S. are more exposed to the effects of climate change. Research published in the journal Science found that tribal nations have lost 99% of their historic territory and the land they were left is typically more vulnerable to climate-related disasters like heat waves, wildfires and drought.
The federal government is now beginning to relocate entire Native communities in order to adapt to climate change and minimize the damage from future climate-related disasters. A Bureau of Indian Affairs study from 2020 estimated that up to $5 billion will be required over the next 50 years to address tribal relocation infrastructure needs as the climate changes.
