Murkowski and Sullivan Welcome Significant Investments to Make Rural Alaska More Resilient
Washington, DC – U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan (both R-Alaska) welcomed the United States Department of Transportation’s announcement of over $50 million in grants for the state of Alaska through the Promoting Resilient Operations for Transformative, Efficient, and Cost-saving Transportation (PROJECT) program. These grants are part of the Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act, and aim to bolster community resilience efforts, secure funding for at-risk coastal infrastructure, as well as the creation and maintenance of evacuation routes.
“Rural Alaska’s communities are on the front-line of climate change, facing devastating impacts from extreme weather events,” said Sen. Murkowski. “We need to make our communities more resilient to these increasingly frequent events – that’s why I’m pleased that these grants made possible from the Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act will invest in infrastructure in the regions that need it the most.”
“The widespread devastation of Typhoon Merbok demonstrated the need to make our rural communities more resilient in the face of extreme weather events that are characteristic to life in Alaska,” said Sen. Sullivan. “As a member of the Senate EPW Committee, I’ve worked hard to prioritize rural Alaska infrastructure in major federal transportation packages, including the Infrastructure Investments & Jobs Act. The grants announced this week are going to help strengthen the transportation infrastructure of a number of communities across the state, and also ensure they are better positioned to keep Alaskans safe whenever the next storm, flood or earthquake strikes.”
Alaska Award Recipients
|
Community |
Purpose |
Description |
Funding |
|
City of North Pole, AK |
City of North Pole Alaska Drainage Improvement Project |
The project will address social and environmental impacts of flooding. |
$752,142 |
|
Kawerak, Inc. |
The Village of Shaktoolik Evacuation Road – the First Step Toward Resilience |
The project will plan and design a road used for evacuations during storms and access to a future relocation site. |
$1,976,040 |
|
Qawalangin Tribe of Unalaska |
Strengthening Transportation Resilience on the Island of Unalaska |
The project will allow the Tribe to enhance and protect the transportation system while preserving its heritage and boosting economic activity. |
$2,950,741 |
|
Bristol Bay Native Association, Inc. |
Ekuk Evacuation Road Project |
The project is to construct a new emergency evacuation road and an evacuation staging area in the community. |
$4,525,970 |
|
Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities: Elim, Golovin, Koyuk, and Hooper Bay |
Alaska West Coast Resiliency Projects |
The project will address damage from Typhoon Merbok and provide resilience upgrades to infrastructure in four disadvantaged and rural communities in Western Alaska. |
$40,544,000 |
###
