MARTHA WOODS

“I work at the IRA (Indian Reorganization Act, often used to refer to tribal governments that were organized under the federal act) Noatak Utilities, Water and Sewer. I am the utility manager. I take care of the payments and ordering our operators supplies. We have about 99 active customers, just about all the homes in the village are hooked up to water and sewer except for the old log cabins. We get our water from two water wells from the river. We notice the river getting shallower, but it hasn’t raised any concerns, the wells go deep into the ground. People say that Noatak has the best water.

Other than this job, I also do SAR (Search And Rescue) and I also work rippies (pull-tab gambling game) one week on, one week off. Cost of living here is high. We need to work, work, work. We pay $9.99 for stove oil or a gallon of gas. It’s all ordered and flown in. Years ago, barges would come up, but the water is too shallow now. I remember when I was really little, watching the barges pulling up. It’s really drying up.” — Martha Woods is Inupiaq and lives in Noatak, Alaska.