Edgar Tall Sr.
Chief, Native Village of Hooper Bay
Even though the final days of our current presidential administration are quickly waning, my tribe, the Native Village of Hooper Bay, continues to hold some hope that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service might reverse course on a proposed land exchange and road through the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge.
We acknowledge this would be an extremely difficult decision for the outgoing administration to make, and nearly impossible in the final hours, but it would be the right one. President Biden’s legacy would be tarnished by allowing this divisive and harmful project to move forward.
A road through this remote and ecologically important refuge and wilderness area on the Alaska Peninsula, famous for its productive eel grass beds, could cause permanent or long-term impacts to migratory bird species and come at the expense of tribal communities in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, like the Native Village of Hooper Bay.
In November, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service released a draft environmental study identifying the land swap and an ecologically destructive road through Izembek as its preferred alternative. In making this decision, government officials sided with the wishes of the people of King Cove, politicians and others who have long wanted a road connecting King Cove to Cold Bay, while dismissing the concerns of the Native Village of Hooper Bay, many other tribes and others opposed to the road.
It was an unusual decision for this administration, and a hasty one that failed to seriously consider other solutions that could serve the needs of the people of King Cove without causing harm to bird populations or other tribes.
The Native Village of Hooper Bay and our village corporation, the Sea Lion Corporation, have opposed this project for decades, and many other tribes and tribal entities from Western Alaska and other parts of Alaska have passed similar resolutions opposing the land swap and the road. We were told that the tribal resolutions were read by the Secretary of the Interior herself, but our requests to meet with Secretary Deb Haaland have been met with silence, and our concerns have, so far, been overlooked.
The Native Village of Hooper Bay respects the needs of the Adgaagux Tribe of King Cove and the Native Village of Belkofski, and as a tribe also situated in a remote, rural area that faces transportation challenges, we understand their desire for safe and reliable transportation connecting the two communities. But we respectfully disagree that a road slicing through an ecologically critical area that sustains important bird populations is the best, or only solution. We continue to believe a marine option like a ferry must be more seriously considered.
The fact remains that more than $40 million has been recently allocated to upgrade the Cold Bay dock, which supports a marine ferry option that could provide the transportation needs for King Cove while avoiding likely harm to Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta communities like Hooper Bay. Regardless of what happens, we will continue to advocate for a solution to this issue where everyone can win. We remain hopeful a marine ferry could be considered as workable for all.
Sometimes when you solve one problem you cause another, and that’s what our tribe would like to prevent. Our community is located along the shore of Hooper Bay in the Bering Sea on the western edge of the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. While we live several hundred miles from Izembek National Wildlife Refuge, a proposed land exchange that would allow a road to cut through the heart of Izembek could affect our tribal members deeply because the migratory birds connect us to the refuge.
Our survival, health, well-being and the continuance of our culture is intrinsically connected to the health of the Izembek ecosystem and these birds. The effects of this project, when combined with the many pressures and challenges facing our community, could have devastating consequences for our people. This makes protecting our natural resources like these migratory birds even more critical.
Other solutions exist to connect the communities of King Cove and Cold Bay that do not harm other tribes and communities, but these have not been given enough consideration; we implore the administration in these final hours to reconsider this project, and to withdraw it.
Edgar Tall Sr. is chief of the Native Village of Hooper Bay.
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