Quinhagak/Kwinhagak

Quinhagak (Kuinerraq), located on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta at the mouth of the Kanektok River and the Kuskokwim Bay, is home to the Native Village of Kwinhagak, a federally recognized Tribe. The village’s approximately 700 residents rely on subsistence activities to support and feed their families and for their cultural identity.

Permafrost thaw, erosion, and flooding present imminent threats to the infrastructure and people of the village. Permafrost thaw is causing increased erosion, sinking land, dangerous sinkholes, and damage to the village’s piped water and sewer systems. Accelerating erosion of about six feet per year is putting homes, buildings, the sewage lagoon, the landfill, and other critical infrastructure at risk. Flooding poses a risk to the village’s roads, fresh water source, and other critical infrastructure. Changes in the river are causing the river channel to shift and deposit sediment, negatively impacting barge access. In 2022, a barge was stuck in the river channel for six months; in 2023, the barge company refused to travel up river to the barge landing to deliver fuel and other critical supplies.