LAWRENCE — Two teenagers, who have ventured deep into the Alaskan wilderness to help the natives destroy beaver dams, said the work does not conflict with their Christian beliefs.
The dams are constricting water flow and threatening to compromise villagers' food and water supplies, they said.
Chris Talavera, 17, of Methuen, and Edward Nunez, 18, of Lawrence are members of Royal Rangers, an evangelical Christian group similar to Boys Scouts of America.
They and 12 other boys from around New England are spending nine days in the Alaskan village of Emmonak. The village, just below the Arctic Circle, has no electricity or running water, and the boys had to travel by bush plane and all-terrain vehicles to reach the remote area and set up camp.
"I think it's going to be a good experience for a Christian like me to go out into the world and use what I've learned in church to help other people," said Nunez, who recently graduated from Notre Dame High School in Lawrence.
Both boys have extensive survival training.
The Royal Rangers are working with the Yukon River Inter-Tribal Watershed Council to help the Yupik people of the Yukon River Delta restore the environmental balance to the area.
Over the past 30 to 50 years, warmer temperatures have caused willow and alder trees to grow farther downriver near the Yukon Delta, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Because beavers use these trees the build dams, they, too, have migrated downriver and built new dams near the village. This has caused problems for the natives because the new dams are blocking fish migration and causing food shortages for the villagers who rely on fish as a primary food source.
Water pollution also is a concern since the dams threaten to flood the village waste lagoon and mix with the drinking water. With no water treatment plant, this threat could cause serious problems for the villagers, according to the panel.
The Royal Rangers are tearing down the dams so that the river can flow freely.
"I think it's important that we're helping people in need," said Brent Maracle, district mission coordinator for southern New England Royal Rangers. "Even though we're are a Christian organization, it doesn't mean we can't show love in all types of ways. We are showing love through a physical labor."
In addition, the beaver population will be eradicated from the area. Though not directly involved in this, the Royal Rangers will be exposed to the traditional harvesting practices of the natives who use every part of the beaver.
"Animals are here for a purpose, but when they do become a threat to the survival of humans they have to be removed," said Talavera, a recent graduate of the Greater Lawrence Technical School in Andover.
"No matter how bad it might sound, it means life or death for these people," he said.
A simple relocation of the beavers is not economically feasible as transport and shipping costs are more than the Yupik people can afford.
Since the beavers' predators have failed to make the migration as of yet, there is no way to help naturally curb the population.
In April 2007, 22 elders from the local tribes met to discuss the problem and create a sustainable approach to the population management of the beavers. Through a co-op system they are able to help market the raw and finished products from the beaver and thus create economic incentive that will help lower to beaver population and offer a source of revenue to the villagers.
"We need to take firm control of the adaptation strategies that are crucial to our survival," said Bryan Maracle, lead scientist for the watershed council. "We need to bring light to the reality of climate change."
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game allows beavers to be harvested year-round with no limit to how many are killed.
The Royal Rangers also have set up a Bible camp for the Alaskan natives called Camp Agaiutim Nune or "The place of God," where ministers are teaching the natives about Christianity.
"It's a good way to help out other people and bring them closer to Christ," Talavera said.
When Nunez and Talavera return from Alaska, each will receive the Royal Ranger Gold Medal of Achievement Award, which is nationally recognized as the equivalent to the Eagle Scout award, the highest rank the Boy Scouts offer.
