Methods for Rural / Non-Rural Determinations for Federal Subsistence Management in Alaska - Final and Summary Reports

Abstract

This report presents alternative methodologies for identifying rural and non-rural areas for federal subsistence management in Alaska. It is the final report for the project, Rural/Non-Rural Determinations for Federal Subsistence Management in Alaska (Contract No. 701811CO58), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Alaska Region. The project was a joint research effort of the Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER) at the University of Alaska, Anchorage, and Robert J. Wolfe and Associates. The report develops two alternative methodologies for distinguishing rural and non-rural populations in Alaska for federal subsistence management. The methodologies use measures drawn from the federal decennial census and the State of Alaska’s harvest records, among other relevant data sources. An overriding goal of the project was to use a minimal number of criteria that clearly, effectively, and defensibly distinguish between rural and non-rural populations. The two methodologies are tested on a selection of Alaska communities.