Center for Environmentally Threatened Communities

We support communities to address environmental threats and achieve their vision for a safe, healthy, and sustainable future.

Newsletter Issue 40

Basically a Beaver Dam: How Shaktoolik, Alaska is Addressing Coastal Flooding and Erosion

This special edition of our newsletter is a long-form story of the community’s process, challenges, and successes addressing increasingly severe flooding and erosion. Expect a five-minute read.

Shaktoolik is a remote Alaska Native village located on a narrow sand and gravel spit between the Bering Sea and the Tagoomenik River. Credit: HDR, Inc.

Basically a Beaver Dam

Ten to twelve-foot waves crashed against the shoreline creating chaos that one resident described to Anchorage Daily News as, “a warzone” and “so loud and noisy it sounds like bombs are going off.”

That was an account of the September 2013 storm in Shaktoolik, a remote Alaska Native village of 260 people located on a narrow sand and gravel spit between the Bering Sea and the Tagoomenik River.

Eugene Asicksik, the mayor at the time, had watched Shaktoolik’s shoreline erode for years. After the September 2013 storm threw tree-sized driftwood dangerously close to the homes, Eugene knew something had to be done to protect the community. He turned to beavers for inspiration, designing Shaktoolik’s first storm surge berm based on the impressive beaver dams upriver.

The community received funding for the first version of the berm from the Norton Sound Economic Development Corporation in 2014. Over two years, a team of community members used the City’s loader and dump truck to construct the berm by combining local gravel and driftwood. The initial structure protected the majority of the community’s infrastructure, stretching 7,400 feet from the airport to the tank farm and ranging from three to five feet tall and 12 to 20 feet wide.

 The September storm threw logs that nearly hit homes and the fuel tank farm. Credit: Gloria Andrew, 2013.

A section of the berm constructed in 2014. Credit: Sophia Katchatag.

It Saved Us

In August of 2019, a storm hit Shaktoolik. According to Sophia Katchatag, the local coordinator in Shaktoolik, the berm saved the community. Specifically, the berm served as a sacrificial protective structure. Instead of driving waves up into the community, the storm carried some of the berm out to sea. The result was the loss of 350,000 cubic feet to erosion, the equivalent volume of 762 Toyota Camry cars. After the storm, the community completed emergency repairs to some portions of the berm using Denali Commission funding and later received U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Imminent Threat funding to repair other areas. The figure below shows an elevation profile of the shoreline, water levels, and the damage from the August 2019 storm.

Berm erosion between 2015 and 2019, largely due to the August 2019 storm. Note the difference between Mean Sea Level (MSL) and the Still Water Level (SWL) during the storm. Credit: State of Alaska Coastal Hazards Program and Golder Associates.

Building it Taller

In late 2016, the community decided to pursue a taller berm to address the 50-year flood event modeled by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. To enable the community to meet federal funding requirements for construction, the Denali Commission funded the engineering design and permitting. Those were completed in 2018. Since then, the community has received a total of $1.8 million for constructing the taller berm, including two off-road dump trucks to carry gravel and a water truck to establish native wild ryegrass that will reduce erosion. In 2020, the community constructed 20% of the taller berm. The remaining areas will be constructed next year.  

Isaac Pearson with Bristol Engineering has supported design, permitting, and construction administration for the taller berm. He said, “Team Shaktoolik has done an amazing job this season constructing protective berms of their design.”  

The section drawing below shows the difference between the original berm and the taller berm.

Section drawing of the 2014 berm and the taller berm. Credit: Bristol Engineering.

Repairs

There are mixed feelings throughout the community about the sustainability and effectiveness of the berm. Sophia says that some people think it’s just a band-aid to give the community time to evacuate. Others say that the berm is critical to preventing flooding.

To increase the ability to sustain the berm and do so at a lower cost, the community is currently developing a new gravel material source south of town. In addition to accessing more gravel, the new source will reduce the distance from the current material source by up to four miles. The cost savings will enable more repairs to be completed with limited funding as well as support a road to the foothills if the community relocates over the long term.  

Shaktoolik is repairing a narrow stretch of spit that guards the only evacuation road and preserves the community’s water source. Construction began at this location in October 2020 and will be completed next summer. Credit: Isaac Pearson.

Time-intensive, Piecemeal Funding

Since 2013, Shaktoolik has received $4,450,590 from eight sources for different berm projects. This is a major success, but it has not come easily. Due to the lack of a single funding source, the piecemeal approach to funding increases the complexity of building and maintaining the berm. Applying to various programs and then managing the different funds and projects is a full-time job. Sophia leads the acquisition and management of funding, including writing proposals and completing reports. She admits that it has been challenging. Last month, she completed nine quarterly reports for their active grant-funded projects, each with various requirements, forms, and online systems. "It was challenging this first round of reports, but I know the next round will be easier. These new grants were different and some were complicated, but we managed to get everything done," said Sophia. 

What is the Long-Term Solution?

According to Sophia, “The community would feel a lot safer if we had a rock wall. But until a long-term solution is in place, the berm is doing its job."

Shaktoolik is in the process of completing a new flood and erosion study. The draft document states, “By the end of the century Shaktoolik may be exposed to climate risks that are unmanageable.”

Soon, the community will evaluate options for long-term protection. These include a rock revetment, elevating buildings, and relocating to a new, safe site. While options are being analyzed, the community is planning their preferred solution­­ – a rock wall. Earlier this year, Sophia secured Bureau of Indian Affairs Tribal Resilience funding for a cost analysis. This winter, she intends to write another grant to assess the feasibility of developing a hard rock source on land owned by the Shaktoolik Native Corporation. Harvesting their own rock could reduce costs compared to purchasing it and importing it via barge from Nome. However, there is a significant concern that it is not currently possible to meet the cost-share requirements of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and Army Corps programs to construct the rock wall. FEMA requires that the community contribute 10% of the total project cost. The Army Corps requires a 35% contribution. Protecting the community’s core infrastructure with a sea wall could be a $75 million project. Protecting the entire spit could cost several times that amount.

"Together we are stronger. We are moving forward. We can do this."

-Sophia Katchatag, Shaktoolik's local coordinator

Shaktoolik is successfully implementing the berm due to the community's strong leadership, the dedication of community members, supportive partners, and the ability to piecemeal funding. 

About the Center for Environmentally Threatened Communities 

The goal of the Center for Environmentally Threatened Communities (CETC) is to support rural Alaskan communities experiencing infrastructure impacts associated with flooding, erosion, and permafrost degradation. The team does this primarily through grant writing, technical assistance, and project coordination.

ETC@anthc.org | (907) 729-4521 | www.anthc.org/cetc | 4500 Diplomacy Drive, Suite 561, Anchorage, AK 99508

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