Hi Everyone!! This article will share Melting Ice In Alaska Questions & Answers.
In my previous posts, I have shared the questions and answers of The Night The Ghost Got In, The Rock and The Sea and The Lake Isle of Innisfree so, you can check these posts as well.
Melting Ice In Alaska Questions & Answers
Question 1: Complete the flowchart:
Global warming
Thawing permafrost
1. flooding risks
2. more greenhouse gases released
Melting sea ice
1. storm surges
2. river bank erosion
Rising sea
accelerating river bank erosion
Question 2: What kind of difficulties has thawing permafrost caused to the Yup’ik people?
Answer: Thawing permafrost has caused roads, pipelines, and building foundations to buckle. It has caused the land around their homes to crumble and sink. The community landfill has washed away, fuel storage tanks lean precariously, and some houses have been torn down because they were in danger of collapsing.
Question 3: How is the Ninglick river a threat to Newtok?
Answer: The soil around Ninglick river is crumbling, bringing the waters dangerously close to homes. Floods frequently leave households isolated. One study in the early 2000s showed that vast sections of the town could become part of the river as early as 2027.
Question 4: Give a reason why the Yup’ik people have waited for two decades to move.
Answer: The Yup’ik people have waited for two decades to move because since 2003, when the government agreed to create the new village of Mertarvik, money has slowly come from state and federal agencies to build roads, a community centre, a landfill and a power station. A water treatment plant will be constructed and a new school will be functional in November.
Question 5: Read the lines and answer the questions:
In 2003, the government finally agreed to create the new village of Mertarvik on higher ground.
(a) What does ‘higher ground’ mean?
Answer: ‘Higher ground’ means a place that is located at a higher elevation or height from the sea level compared to the old place.
(b) Why is the new town being built on ‘higher ground’?
Answer: The new town is being built on ‘higher ground’ because the thawing permafrost has made the soil near Newtok unstable. Structures and buildings have been washed away or lean dangerously. The crumbling soil has brought the river close to the town, increasing the risk of flooding. These are the reasons why the new town, Mertarvik, is being built on ‘higher ground’.
(c) What are the challenges that the Yup’ik people face now?
Answer: While the new town of Mertarvik is being built, Newtok residents have to live without proper plumbing. They have to gather drinking water in jugs. Lack of proper sanitation has led to health problems, especially among infants. In the new town of Mertarvik, only about a third of the 60 new homes have been built. They have electricity but don’t yet have access to public water or sewer systems. Getting money to install running water and a sewer system could take years.
Melting Ice In Alaska Questions & Answers
Question 6: Read the lines and answer the questions:
The unwanted feelings about moving grow stronger. However, staying here isn’t fun though.
(a) What kind of ‘unwanted feelings’ is Martha talking about?
Answer: Martha is talking about the reluctance of the Yup’ik people to abandon their hometown Newtok and move to Mertarvik. Newtok has been their home and leaving it is not easy for them.
(b) Imagine yourself in Martha’s shoes. Why is staying here, in Newtok, no longer fun for her?
Answer: Staying in Newtok is no longer fun because the town is gradually becoming empty. It is no longer a safe place, so the Yup’ik people are leaving it for Mertarvik. Martha’s own home has been demolished. She and the other residents must miss their friends and neighbours – people with whom they have lived and grown up. That is why it is no longer fun staying there.
(c) Why do you think Martha did not go to Mertarvik with her family?
Answer: I think Martha decided to stay back at Newtok for a while because she was not prepared to leave Newtok permanently. Martha has lived her entire childhood in Newtok. It is her home and the home of her friends, neighbours and relatives. So, leaving Newtok is not easy for her.
Question 7: Read the lines and answer the questions:
“I think as a people, our greatest attribute has been our ability to adapt. Our people have been flexible. We’ve found a way.”
(a) How have the Yup’ik people adapted over time? In what ways have they been ‘flexible’?
Answer: The Yup’ik people were seasonally nomadic hunters. But with time, they adapted to the modern world and settled at Newtok in 1949, while keeping their culture and subsistence lifestyle alive. Now, with the deteriorating condition of Newtok, the Yup’ik people have adjusted to the difficulties of living in Newtok and Mertarvik. Both the towns lack necessary infrastructure and facilities, but the Yup’ik people are making the transition with patience and courage.
(b) How is the condition of the Yup’ik people a warning for the entire world?
Answer: The condition of the Yup’ik people is not an isolated event. The consequences of global warming and climate change are being felt across continents and by many communities. The rapid destruction of Newtok is a warning to the entire world about the far-reaching effects of global warming. If global warming ¡s not checked and the causes remedied, soon large sections of the global population will face hostile living conditions and there will be no escape.
Question 8: This article discusses the conditions of the Yup’ik people of Alaska. What larger message does it have for the reader? What does it make us think about? How, as readers, are we involved in this matter.
Answer: This article makes the reader think the effects of global warming and how easily the adversities faced by the Yup’ik people could become everyone’s problem. We are involved in this matter because global warming is not a problem for a few select communities in the world, it is a global problem and a global initiative and cooperation is needed to stop further damage to our planet.
So, these were Melting Ice In Alaska Questions & Answers.