The seven-member Newhalen Tribal Council is recognized by the Bureau of Indian Affairs as the tribal governing body of the Alaska Native residents of Newhalen. The lake area is home to some of the world's largest caribou herds, salmon, trout and numerous wildlife species. Newhalen is a remotely located incorporated city under Alaska code.
Most residents support themselves and their families by subsistence and seasonal fishing.
Some travel as far down river as Bristol Bay. The region's closest substantial population centers are the Bristol Bay area to the west and Anchorage to the northeast. Bristol Bay takes an hour by air or six hours by boat down the Kvichak River. Travel to Anchorage takes an hour flight or six hour boat ride across the Cook Inlet. The village of Newhalen has approximately 15 miles of gravel roads that stretch as far as the Nondalton landing, fourteen air miles away.