Metal contamination of food and water resources is a known public health issue in Arctic and sub-Arctic communities due to the proximity of many communities to mining and drilling sites. In addition, permafrost thaw may release heavy metals sequestered in previously frozen soils, potentially contaminating food and water resources by increasing the concentration of metals in freshwater, plants, and wildlife. Here we assess the enrichment of selected heavy metals in Alaskan soils by synthesizing publicly available data of soil metal concentrations. We analyzed data of soil concentrations of arsenic, chromium, mercury, nickel, and lead from over 1,000 samples available through the USGS Alaskan Geochemical Database to evaluate 1) the spatial distribution of sampling locations for soil metal analysis, 2) metal concentrations in soils from different land cover types and depths, and 3) the occurrence of soils in Alaska with elevated metal concentrations relative to other soils. We found substantial clustering of sample sites in the southwestern portion of Alaska in discontinuous and sporadic permafrost, while the continuous permafrost zone in Northern Alaska and the more populous Interior are severely understudied. Metal concentration varied by land cover type but lacked consistent patterns. Concentrations of chromium, mercury, and lead were higher in soils below 10 cm depth, however these deeper soils are under-sampled. Arsenic, chromium, mercury, nickel and lead concentrations exceeded average values for US soils by one standard deviation or more in 3.7% to 18.7% of the samples in this dataset. Our analysis highlights critical gaps that impede understanding of how heavy metals in thawing permafrost soils may become mobilized and increase exposure risk for Arctic communities.

Arctic societies, like Arctic environments, exhibit variability and rapid change. Social and environmental changes are sometimes interconnected, but Arctic societies also are buffeted by socioeconomic forces which can create problems or drive changes that eclipse those with environmental roots. Social indicators research offers a general approach for describing change and understanding causality through the use of numerical indices of population, health, education, and other key dimensions that can be compared across places and times. Here we illustrate such work with new analyses of demographic indicators, particularly involving migration, for contemporary communities of three predominantly Inuit Arctic regions: northern Alaska, Greenland, and Nunavut. Many places exhibit persistent outmigration, affecting population growth. Net migration and growth rates are not significantly different, however, comparing northern Alaska communities that are or are not threatened by climate-linked erosion. Stepping back to compare the three regions highlights their contrasting birth rates (high in northern Alaska and Nunavut) and outmigration (high in Alaska and Greenland)-yielding divergent population trajectories of gradual decline in Greenland, erratic but slow growth in Alaska, and rapid growth in Nunavut. Evidence for one consequential pattern observed in northern Alaska and Greenland, disproportionate outmigration by locally-born women, appears weak or absent in Nunavut.