Four communities across Alaska could soon receive nearly $7 million in federal funding to better prepare for natural disasters.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency announced late last month that it has set aside disaster-related funding for Juneau, the Bering Sea community of St. Paul, the Matanuska-Susitna Borough and the Chilkat Indian Village, near Haines.
The money would come from a grant program that aims to help state, local and tribal governments prepare for flooding, erosion, earthquakes and more.
The Chilkat Indian Village of Klukwan is eligible for $1.2 million that would help address a longstanding problem with landslides.
For more than two decades, a berm has redirected debris flows from a nearby slide path that otherwise would have crossed the Haines Highway and entered the village. But as that slide path changed over time, sediment has started surging back toward the community.
The money from FEMA would go toward addressing that problem.
“What we’re hoping is to redevelop that berm to protect the highway project, as well as Klukwan and critical infrastructure in the village,” Sandrine Thompson, the Chilkat Indian Village’s environmental director, said in a phone interview.
When the tribe first started exploring the possibility of replacing the berm a couple of years ago, it would have cost about $1.5 million. Now, the full price tag is closer to $2.5 million.
“With the funds that we were allocated, we can do the project scoping portion, so that would be all the permitting and all of the planning,” Thompson said. “Then we can have a shovel-ready project for the next round of funding.”
The village would be responsible for providing a 10% funding match before the three-year project period is over.
The tribe is currently working with the Alaska Department of Transportation and Federal Highway Administration to find that money. Both agencies are involved in the years-long effort to update the Haines Highway, which sits between the slide path and the village.
Thompson said the project has safety implications not only for the village but also for people who live in the upper Chilkat Valley. That’s because a new berm would help prevent debris flows that could block the road, which stretches from Haines to Canada.
“The Upper Chilkat Valley and the village have been working really hard on having our own emergency response programs for events like that,” she said. “But ideally we would mitigate or plan ahead to prevent any further debris flows or avalanches.”
Juneau’s slice of the funding – just over $3 million – would go toward mitigating flood risk along the Mendenhall River in preparation for future glacial lake outburst floods. The Matanuska-Susitna Borough is up for $2 million toward a revetment and road upgrades project.
The last bucket of funding is $375,000 for the city of St. Paul. If awarded, the money would go toward a project to address coastal flooding and storm surge. FEMA said communities will need to apply for for the funds by July 22.
