U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Geological Survey

Fact Sheet 2014–3060

August 2014

Strategic Needs of Water on the Yukon: An Interdisciplinary 

Approach to Studying Hydrology and Climate Change in the 

Lower Yukon River Basin

Introduction

Strategic Needs of Water on the Yukon (SNOWY) is 

an interdisciplinary research project funded by the National 

Science Foundation (NSF; http://www.nsf.gov/). The SNOWY 

team is made up of a diverse group of researchers from 

different backgrounds and organizations. This partnership 

between scientists from different disciplines (hydrology, 

geography, and social science), government agencies, nonprofit organizations, universities, and Lower Yukon River 

Basin (LYRB) and Yukon-Kuskokwim (YK) Delta communities provided an opportunity to study the effects of climate 

change using a holistic approach. The Arctic and Subarctic 

are experiencing environmental change at a rate faster than 

the rest of the world, and the lack of historical baseline data 

in these often remote locations makes understanding and 

predicting regional climate change difficult. This project 

focused on collecting data to fill in these gaps by using both 

quantitative and qualitative methodologies to tell the story 

of environmental change in this region as told by the physical data and the people who rely on this landscape.

Study Location

Field work was conducted in five villages located in the 

Lower Yukon River Basin (LYRB) and Yukon-Kuskokwim 

(YK) Delta Region. The villages were selected based on 

their participation in the U.S. Geological Survey–Yukon 

River Inter-Tribal Watershed Council (USGS–YRITWC) 

water-quality monitoring program (http://pubs.usgs.gov/

fs/2010/3020/) and Active Layer Network (ALN) project 

(https://sites.google.com/a/yritwc.org/active-layer-network/; 

http://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/2011/3040/) as well as their unique 

hydrology as part of the Yukon Delta. Comprehensive field 

campaigns focused on both physical and social sciences 

were conducted in St Mary’s, Kotlik, and Chevak. Additional hydrologic data were collected at Emmonak and Pilot 

Station (fig. 1). Additional qualitative data were also collected at Pilot Station in the form of interviews.

All of the villages are Yup’ik communities, with the 

exception of Chevak, which is a Cup’ik community whose 

inhabitants speak the Cup’ik dialect of the Yup’ik language 

and identify as a distinct population from the Yup’ik. The 

populations of the communities range from the smallest, 

St Mary’s (531), to the largest, Chevak (982; 2010 Census, 

http://www.census.gov/2010census/). Each village has one 

school, which serves all grade levels in the community. All 

of the villages are located on the banks of the Yukon River or 

one of its major tributaries. Kotlik is the village nearest the 

coast (fig 2); it is located roughly 10 miles from the Bering Sea Coast. Although also part of the Yukon River Delta 

system, the village of Chevak and its surrounding lakes have 

the least influence from the larger basin (fig. 3). 

Figure 1. Location of villages visited for field work. Base 

map copyright: © 2011 National Geographic Society, i-cubed.

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EXPLANATION

Travel by snow 

mobile

Travel by air

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# Kotlik

Emmonak

Pilot Station

St. Mary's

Chevak

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A l A l aska C A C a NADA nada

Yukon River Basin

Tributaries

Rivers

Sampling

locations

# Villages

Kawonak Pass

0 100 MILES

0 100 KILOMETERS

50

50

N

Yukon River

Figure 2. Aerial view of the Kotlik Slough running through the 

village of Kotlik and the Yukon River main stem to the west.
Methodology Overview

A team of seven researchers from various institutions—the 

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS; http://www.usgs.gov/), the 

U.S. Forest Service (USFS; http://www.fs.fed.us/), the Yukon 

River Inter-Tribal Watershed Council (YRITWC; http://www.

yritwc.org/), and Colorado State University (CSU; http://www.

colostate.edu/)—traveled to the aforementioned villages and 

conducted field work in February 2014. Comprehensive field 

campaigns included under-ice river-water sample collection, 

snowpack measurements, interviews with community experts, 

and a participatory mapping workshop. In each village targeted 

for comprehensive field work, a large school and community 

outreach component focused on educating both students and 

community about environmental-science activities conducted in 

their village. In an effort to enhance scientific data that supports 

climate-change research within these areas, students participated in collecting key under-ice water samples and performing 

critical snowpack measurements. 

Community meetings were held in the three villages targeted for comprehensive field work (fig. 4). A brief presentation 

was given that described the project and the goals of the interviews and mapping workshop. The meeting was also used to 

recruit interview participants, arrange a mapping workshop, and 

request volunteers for the Community Collaborative Rain, Hail, 

and SNOW network (CoCoRaHS). This network is a grassroots 

network of volunteers that measure precipitation in their community (for more information visit: http://www.cocorahs.org/). 

School Outreach

In St. Mary’s, Kotlik, and Chevak, the field work began 

with a day of outreach at the community’s school. Members 

of the research team gave lectures to a group of high school 

students on water-quality research and snow hydrology, specifically as it relates to the LYRB and YK Delta Regions. The 

students later conducted field work to collect under-ice water 

samples to be analyzed at the USGS National Research Program (NRP) labs. Snowpack measurements were made by the 

students at the ALN site in their village (fig. 5). 

In Kotlik and Chevak, an additional lecture introduced 

a project called “Photovoice,” in which the students and teachers could participate. Photovoice is a participatory photography 

project in which participants choose an environmental issue 

of interest to document with photographs and text. In Kotlik, 

a teacher and group of students chose to document the effects 

of a recent flood which damaged structures in the community. 

Researchers returned to the villages in early May 2014 and held 

a follow-up meeting with the teachers and principals at these 

schools to discuss future outreach with students as well as next 

steps for Photovoice. 

Water Sampling and Snow Measurements

In addition to the water samples collected and snowpack 

measurements made by students, water samples and river bank 

snowpack measurements were also collected at four other sites 

on the Yukon River and the three main distributaries into the 

Bering Sea. The first of these samples was taken in Pilot Station 

(fig. 6). The Pilot Station water-quality sampling site represents the outlet of the Yukon River before entering the delta. 

A full suite of water quality samples, including mercury, were 

processed from this site. Under-ice Acoustic Doppler Current 

Profiler (ADCP) discharge measurements were attempted at all 

Figure 4. Community meeting in Chevak. sites, but the extreme weather conditions (–46 °C wind chill) 

Figure 5. Left: Under-ice water sampling by students, Ningliqvak 

River, Chevak. Right: Snow water equivalent measurements by 

students, Active Layer Network site, St. Mary’s. 

Figure 3. Aerial view of Chevak.
caused equipment malfunctions that prevented a measurement. 

The Pilot Station site is equipped with a USGS gaging station; 

thus, discharge and water quality data, real time and historical, are available online at http://waterdata.usgs.gov/ak/nwis/

uv/?site_no=15565447&PARAmeter_cd=00065,00060. 

come up with a seasonal calendar of subsistence resources 

and community activities. The groups then each presented one 

season to the rest of the groups. If activities or resources were 

overlooked, the rest of the group corrected them and they were 

added to the calendar. Then the groups were each asked to create a map based on the season they just presented (fig. 7). For 

example, if they presented a calendar of subsistence resources 

for winter, they drew a map of the community indicating where 

winter resources were harvested. Finally, as each group presented their maps to the larger group, they received feedback, 

and again elements that had been overlooked were added to 

the maps.

Interviews 

Interviews were conducted with community members in 

four of the villages visited: St. Mary’s, Pilot Station, Kotlik, 

and Chevak. A total of 55 community members participated in 

interviews: seven participants in St. Mary’s, nine participants 

in Pilot Station, twenty-four participants in Kotlik, and fifteen 

participants in Chevak. The gender of participants was nearly 

evenly split: there were 25 female and 30 male participants. The 

participants’ ages ranged from 24 years old to people in their 

70s and 80s. However, the majority of the interview participants 

were between the ages of 40 and 65. 

Many interview participants were recruited by our local 

Tribal Contacts in the community; this was especially true in 

Kotlik, Chevak, and Pilot Station, where our Tribal Contacts 

provided us with a list of interview candidates. Additionally, in each community (with the exception of Pilot Station), 

participants were recruited at the community meeting. Mapping participants were also asked to give one-on-one follow-up 

interviews in all villages, which proved to be a valuable method 

of recruitment, especially in St. Mary’s, where difficulties using 

other recruitment methods were encountered. Interviews were 

conducted in people’s homes (fig. 8), the Tribal Council offices, 

at the village school, and at the city hall in St. Mary’s. Participants received an honorarium for participating in an interview. 

As word spread throughout the community, interested candidates sought us out and inquired about interviews. 

Subsequent samples were collected at the three main 

distributaries of the Yukon River (near Kotlik, Kawonak Pass, 

and near Emmonak) and very close to the Bering Sea within six 

days of the Pilot Station sample. This approach to water quality 

sampling is known as a “synoptic.” Essentially it is a “snap 

shot” in which samples are collected in a defined reach in a 

very short time frame under constant conditions (that is, winter 

base flow). To our knowledge, this represents the first wintertime synoptic sampling of the Yukon River from inland outlet 

(Pilot Station) through the delta to the Bering Sea. This unique 

data set will provide insight in the dynamics of biogeochemical processes occurring between the Yukon River outlet and the 

Bering Sea with implications for nutrient transport and effects 

of climate change.

Participatory Mapping

Participatory mapping workshops were conducted in the 

three villages targeted for comprehensive field work. Six people 

participated in St. Mary’s, sixteen in Kotlk, and eighteen in 

Chevak. First, the participants were asked to agree on a list of 

common landmarks to include in their hand-drawn maps. Next, 

the participants were separated into four groups and asked to 

Figure 7. A winter season map made in Kotlik. 

Figure 6. Collecting under-ice water samples at Pilot Station during 

sub-zero (wind chill –46 °C conditions. Note the ice accumulation on 

the carabineer attached to the water sampling bottle.

Figure 8. Louise Crane and her husband Isidore Mike in their home 

in St. Mary’s after participating in an interview.
Interview questions covered the themes of seasonal shift 

and water resources (in all its forms: snow, ice, lakes, rivers, 

ocean, and other forms of precipitation). The theme of seasonal 

shift was explored by asking questions about when seasons 

typically begin, what signals the participants noted as being the 

start of a new season, and whether there has been a change in 

expected or “typical” weather for each season. Water resources 

were discussed by asking the interview participants to describe 

key qualitative features about the river, including river ice and 

precipitation, particularly snow. Interviewers refrained from 

using the term “climate change” during the interview in an 

effort to remove potential bias and understand what the interview respondents attributed changes to, if a change was noted. 

Finally, participants were asked to describe their community 

and what they most valued about their community. This value 

question helped provide an indication of the impact of present 

climate change, and what effects future climate change may 

have on the community. 

Conclusion

The data collected during this project will be developed 

into a number of products for both the Yukon village communities and the scientific community. Researchers from the 

SNOWY team (fig. 9) are currently working with the Exchange 

for Local Knowledge and Observations of the Arctic 

(http://eloka-arctic.org/) to create an online atlas where these 

data will be housed and can be accessed by LYRB and YK 

Delta community members. The data that will be accessible 

from the atlas include the water-quality data, snowpack data, 

photos, interview text and audio, maps created by community 

members, and video from interviews and field work. With the 

permission of the LYRB and YK Delta communities involved, 

this atlas will be accessible to the public, and become a place 

where the knowledge that these community members hold 

about their environment and the observations of change they are 

experiencing can be shared with the world. 

Acknowledgments

It is an honor to acknowledge all the participating Tribes and 

members of the communities that participated in this research. 

Their openness in sharing their knowledge with us and assisting with the research made this a truly rewarding project and 

has formed the basis for a long-term partnership between the 

researchers and the communities. We would also like to acknowledge the USGS Office of Tribal Relations and the USGS National 

Research Program for funding the publication of this Fact Sheet.

Figure 9. The Strategic Needs of Water on the Yukon research 

team and Kotlik Tribal Partner. Left to right, back row: Ryan Toohey 

(U.S. Geological Survey [USGS]), Kelly Elder (U.S. Forest Service; 

http://www.fs.fed.us/research/people/profile.php?alias=kelder), 

Victor Tonuchuk Jr. (Kotlik Tribal Council), Maggie Massey (Yukon 

River Inter-Tribal Watershed Council [YRITWC]; http://www.yritwc.

org/Departments/Science.aspx), and Paul F. Schuster (USGS; 

https://profile.usgs.gov/pschuste). Left to right, front row: Melinda 

Laituri (Colorado State University; http://warnercnr.colostate.edu/

ess-people/faculty), Nicole Herman-Mercer (USGS), and Elli Matkin 

(YRITWC; http://www.yritwc.org/Departments/Science.aspx).

ISSN 2327-6916 (print)

ISSN 2327-6932 (online)

http://dx.doi.org/10.3133/fs20143060

Indigenous Communities Involved

 Kotlik Traditional Council

 Hamilton Tribal Council

 Bill Moore’s Slough Elder Council

 Pilot Station Traditional Council

 Yupiit of Andreafski

 Algaaciq Tribal Council

 Chevak Traditional Council

For additional information contact:

 Nicole M. Herman-Mercer

 U.S. Geological Survey

 3215 Marine Street, Suite E127

 Boulder, Colorado 80303

 Phone: (303) 541-3012

 Fax: (303) 541-3084

 Email: nhmercer@usgs.gov

 Paul F. Schuster

 U.S. Geological Survey

 3215 Marine Street, Suite E127

 Boulder, Colorado 80303

 Phone: (303) 541-3052

 Fax: (303) 541-3084

 Email: pschuste@usgs.gov

Cooperators