Northwest Arctic Borough: progressing through unity.

• Author: Barbour, Tracy
• Position: Regional Review

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The Northwest Arctic Borough is one of the most remote and sparsely populated areas in the state. The second-largest borough in Alaska, the Northwest Arctic Borough spans about 39,000 square miles along the Kotzebue Sound, Wullik, Noatak, Kobuk, Selawik, Buckland and Kugruk rivers. The borough's climate is marked by long, cold winters and cool summers; temperatures range from -52 to 85 degrees Fahrenheit.

Communities in the Northwest Alaska Borough aren't connected by roads. Consequently, the main modes of transportation are by plane, snow machine, four-wheeler and dog sled. During winter, some people travel in vehicles across improvised ice roads.

The Northwest Alaska Borough has been occupied by Inupiat people for at least 10,000 years. It's comprised of 11 communities: Ambler, Buckland, Deering, Kiana, Kivalina, Kobuk, Kotzebue, Noorvik, Selawik, Shungnak and Noatak. Kotzebue, with about 3,100 residents, is the borough's largest city and the hub of Northwest Alaska.

Kotzebue lies on a sand spit at the end of the Baldwin Peninsula in the Kotzebue Sound where the Noatak, Kobuk and Selawik rivers end. Kotzebue Sound was named after Otto von Kotzebue, who "discovered" it while exploring on behalf of Russia in 1818. The site was a trading location for area Natives for hundreds of years. In 1899, a post office was established in Kotzebue. The local name for the site is Kikiktagruk, which means "almost an island" in Inupiaq.

BOROUGH'S ECONOMY STEADY

Major industries that drive the Northwest Arctic Borough are government, health care and mining. And, as with many other remote places in Alaska, the residents depend on subsistence hunting and fishing to augment their wage and salary jobs. The area's largest employers are the Northwest Arctic Borough School District, Maniilaq Association, which operates the Maniilaq Health Center in Kotzebue, and Red Dog Mine.

Alaska Department of Labor Economist Alyssa Shanks describes the borough's economy as fairly stable, with no big growth and no big declines. The borough's future movements, in terms of jobs, she said are highly correlated to Red Dog and the Northwest Arctic Borough School District. "Since it's such a young borough, I don't think that the school district is in danger," she added.

The Northwest Arctic Borough is the second-youngest borough or census area in the state. According to Shanks, the 2008 median age of population in the borough was just under 23 years old. The young borough population translates to higher birthrates. In 2008, the borough's birthrate was the highest of all Alaska boroughs and census areas at 29.1 births per 1,000 residents. In comparison, the birthrate for Anchorage Municipality was 15.8.

Despite the...