Fierce climate, sacred ground: an ethnography of climate change in Shishmaref, Alaska

摘要

Iconic photographs of houses tumbling into the sea at Shishmaref, Alaska, have brought this Inupiaq village (pop. 600) international recognition as a victim of global warming. The community's predicament is socially more complex, as will be seen; but physically it is all too simple. Shishmaref s remote location on the low shoreline of Sarichef Island exposes it to severe wave erosion as, due to Arctic warming, Chukchi Sea ice forms later in the fall, and thawing permafrost weakens the sandy ground underneath. Shoreline retreat averages over three meters per year, punctuated by single-storm jumps foreshadowing the potential for future disasters. Stopgap measures meant to slow this erosion have failed; the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reports the village will likely need to relocate by 2025. But relocation will be difficult and costly; it has not started yet.