Repairing Damages Caused by Glacial Mud Slides at Mile 139 - A.E.C. Railway
HGK Verso: 3 meter north of Birchwood. Alaska Railroad - Anchorage to Matanuska. Birchwood. [construction crew repairing damage to tracks at mile 139 along Turnagain Arm after mud slides]
AEC H63 HGK Verso: 3 meter north of Birchwood. Alaska Railroad - Anchorage to Matanuska. Birchwood. [construction crew repairing damage to tracks at mile 139 along Turnagain Arm after mud slides]
The development of the Alaska Railroad had a profound negative impact on Alaska Native Peoples. Although it was intended to connect communities across the state, the construction of the railroad led to an influx of new populations, the destruction of thousands of acres of pristine land, the creation of pollution where there was none, and in some cases, the diversion of waterways that disrupted salmon populations—an essential food source for Alaska Native Peoples. These destructive changes disrupted the Ahtna way of life, and their lasting effects continue to influence the work of the Tribe's Environmental Stewardship Department, which is dedicated to reversing this damage.
Mile 139 of the Alaska Railroad lies within the ancestral homelands of the Idlughet Qayeht’ana (Eklutna Village Dena’ina) and is also considered an extension of Nay'dini'aa Na' Kayax (Chickaloon Native Village) ancestral lands. Although these lands were never ceded and are no longer under the legal ownership of either Tribe, both Tribes, along with the broader Dena'ina and Ahtna communities, work collaboratively to ensure these lands are responsibly stewarded and that their history is appropriately acknowledged.