Nalemp

The Native Village of Eklutna received a $690,082.53 cooperative agreement awarded on September 29, 2025, by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (ENDIST Alaska) under the Native American Lands Environmental Mitigation Program (NALEMP), CFDA 12.116, funded through the Department of Defense Appropriation Act of 2003. The two-year agreement, concluding September 28, 2027, supports environmental mitigation and restoration activities on Alaska Native lands affected by Department of Defense operations. Under this cooperative agreement, the Native Village of Eklutna will develop prioritization systems for environmental remediation, conduct environmental impact assessments, and implement restoration projects addressing environmental remnants such as abandoned structures, debris, and contaminated sites resulting from past DoD activities in the Chugiak, Alaska area.

The program emphasizes addressing environmental impacts that affect traditional cultures and subsistence activities on tribal lands while building tribal environmental management capacity. Through this agreement, the Native Village of Eklutna will work collaboratively with the Army Corps of Engineers to identify, assess, and remediate DoD-related environmental impacts that might otherwise receive lower priority under standard federal cleanup systems due to remote location and low population density considerations. Technical assistance and capacity-building components of the award strengthen the tribe's ability to manage environmental remediation efforts and participate in the NAMSEI tracking system, which facilitates coordination between the Department of Defense and federally recognized tribes on mitigation efforts.