Akiak

Akiak (Akiaq), located on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta along the west bank of the Kuskokwim River, is home to the Akiak Native Community, a federally recognized Tribe. The village has approximately 462 residents. Subsistence hunting, fishing, and foraging are vital cultural practices that provide local families with a source of food and income.

Akiak faces risks to life and property due to erosion and flooding. Springtime snowmelt and ice jams routinely inundate Akiak, and erosion events cause large portions of the riverbank to erode in a matter of days or even hours, resulting in the loss or endangerment of homes, subsistence property, community and commercial infrastructure, and graves from the historic cemetery. With no viable options for stabilizing the riverbank to slow or stop erosion, the community has made the difficult decision to pursue a managed retreat away from the river.