Obama denies Newtok’s request for disaster declaration

The village of Newtok, seen from above in the summer of 2016. (Photo courtesy of Romy Cadiente)
President Barack Obama has turned down a request from the western Alaska village of Newtok for a disaster declaration.
Newtok applied for relief based on erosion and thawing permafrost that are expected to destroy the village within three years. It was a test of whether the nation’s disaster laws apply to slow-moving impacts linked to climate change.
On Wednesday, the answer from the W