New NOAA report finds Arctic now emits more carbon than it stores

Correction: In this piece, we incorrectly described Alaska Natives as Native Alaskans. We regret the error.

This summer in the Arctic was the wettest on record and the second warmest in more than a century. These findings, from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's 2024 Arctic Report Card, present significant challenges for Indigenous people.

“This Arctic report card serves as an early warning sign for America as a nation that Alaska, the Arctic, is getting hit first and worst. And as a nation, we need to be prepared,” said Max Neale, manager at Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium’s Center for Environmentally Threatened Communities.

The report card found that the Arctic, which typically traps carbon in its frozen soil, now emits more carbon than it stores because of increased wildfires and melting permafrost. That shift, scientists say, will make climate change worse. Here's a look at what these warnings mean in particular for Alaska's Indigenous communities.

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