Hoh tribal land diminishes as the water rises

Hoh tribal members use sandbags
to protect homes against flooding

According to CNN the Hoh tribe's land, which is only one square mile, is diminishing because of increased flooding of the Hoh river.

The Hoh are located right next to the Pacific Ocean in Washington state. The land is part of a rain forest, and the Hoh river runs through the land. Recent increased flooding of the Hoh river has resulted in water damage to some tribal members' houses, some of which have been on the site for 100 years.

According to the report at CNN , "The tribe can't say what's made flooding worse. Some blame logging upstream, others, climate change. State scientists say ocean levels are rising, and could increase another foot and a half this century." "It's not the river," said Mary Leitka, a tribal elder. "It's because of the things we human beings have done that have changed it." source The Hoh have bought land to expand their reservation and are planning on moving to higher ground.

The Hoh are the canaries in the coal mine here in the Pacific northwest, but there are other communities worldwide being effected by climate change and the resultant rising waters.

Tribal elder Mary [Leitka]