Be careful what you wish for

In rural Alaska villages, families struggle to survive - CNN.com

(CNN) -- Thousands of villagers in rural Alaska are struggling to survive, forced to choose between keeping their families warm and keeping their stomachs full, residents say.
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To get to the nearest store, Ann Strongheart and her husband, who live in Nunam Iqua, Alaska, take an hour-and-15-minute snowmobile ride to Emmonak, Alaska. Their town does not have a store of its own.

Normally, they would each ride a snowmobile, in case one broke down. But now, they can't afford to waste the fuel, so they just take one and hope for the best.

At the store, the Stronghearts buy groceries and supplies for the family for the week, which cost more than $400. They buy only as much as their snowmobile can carry.

In many stores, 2 pounds of cheese costs between $15 and $18, milk costs $10 a gallon, a 5-pound bag of apples costs $15, and a dozen eggs costs $22 -- more than double the price in the area just two years ago.

Many area residents don't even bother with fruits and vegetables, which can be damaged by freezing on the trip home.
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The trip sets them back about $50 in fuel alone.

On top of high food prices, some residents are paying nearly $1,500 a month to heat their homes.
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Then a brutal early winter brought the longest cold snap in five years. In September the temperature in many villages dropped as low as 20 degrees, a record low for many, according to the Alaska Center for Climate Assessment and Policy.

The 1,200-mile Yukon River, which the villages use as a highway, froze completely in September, at least two months earlier than usual. That left residents cut off from some basic necessities, and forced them to have pricey bulk fuel flown in.

Satya Feb 05: Interview with Sheila Watt-Cloutier

We are Inuit who live and thrive on ice and snow. We thrive on it being frozen. That is what our culture depends upon. In essence we are fighting for our right to be cold.