States / Alaska

Alaska

83%

Population of State Living in Coastal Areas

$14.9 Billion

Coastal Employment
Annual Wages

3

Climate and Weather Disasters
(Affecting Alaska 2010 to 2018)*

Coastal Demographics

Of the total population of 733,400 in Alaska, 611,000 people live in coastal portions of the state.

Coastal Economy

Coastal Alaska employs about 275,000 people annually, earning a total of $14.9 billion. This equates to approximately $44.9 billion in gross domestic product.

Natural Hazards

Three weather disasters affected Alaska in 2018—and a total of 16 affected the state between 2010 and 2018.* One of these events—the Western and Alaskan Wildfires—caused damages in the billions and burned over five million acres of Alaskan land.**

Alaska graphic

Sources:

American Community Survey Five-Year Estimates (NOAA Data)

**Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters (NOAA Website)

*Disaster Declarations for States and Counties (FEMA Website)

(All economic and demographic facts represent the latest data available [2015] and are regularly updated as new data become available)

Making a Difference
in Alaska

NOAA Provides Assistance to Coastal Communities

The Takeaway: Some U.S. coastal communities have plentiful data for creating robust resilience plans. Others are struggling to catch up. NOAA’s Office for Coastal Management is focused on providing equal access to the data, tools, and expertise they deserve.

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