Polar bears gather outside Kaktovik, the only settlement in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, every summer to feast on whale carcasses left by hunters, according to multiple reports. The bears drew more than 1,000 tourists each year before the pandemic and a federal order largely ended the industry. Kaktovik leaders hope to revive polar bear tourism, saying it could be worth millions to the local economy.
As tourism grew, the federal government imposed regulations requiring tour operators to have permits and insurance, squeezing locals out of the industry. Larger out-of-town operators moved in, and crowds of tourists arrived during the six-week viewing season. Locals complained that tourists gawked at them or traipsed through their yards. Small plane capacity became an issue, with residents sometimes battling tourists for flights to larger cities for medical appointments. In 2021, the federal government halted boat tours, mostly over concerns about how tourists were affecting bear behavior and overrunning the town.
We definitely see the benefit for tourism. The thing is, it can’t be run like it was before.
Federal officials declared polar bears a threatened species in 2008, and scientists have said most polar bears could be wiped out by the end of the century due to rapid Arctic warming. Charles Lampe, president of the Kaktovik Inupiat Corp, which owns 373 square kilometers of land, told Euronews that the village sees the benefit of tourism but it cannot be run as before. Alaska Native leaders are now in talks with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to renew polar bear tourism with changes, though specific details of the discussions remain unclear.