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The Gulkana handbook

Living in Gulkana, AK: what to set up and who to call

The Gulkana Village water system reported 10 health-based violations to EPA in the last five years: disinfection byproducts (TTHM) ×10. 78% of systems its size reported none. Gulkana has no town government of its own, so Copper River Census Area runs its elections and most services, and its children attend Copper River School District.

Gulkana has no town government. It’s a census-designated place in Copper River Census Area, so the county and regional agencies provide most services. This page answers what we can; the same answers appear on Gulkana’s town page under “Getting set up”.

I’m new in town

What to set up in Gulkana, and who provides it. Tap an answer for the details and where they come from.

Home services

Power, water and internet

Who to call to start service at a new address in Gulkana.

Electricity

Power comes from Birch Creek Village Elec Util

Birch Creek Village Elec Util (Birch Creek Village Elec Util - (AK)), a municipal utility, serves all of Gulkana.

Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.

Drinking water · reported to EPA

Water comes from Gulkana Village water system

The Gulkana Village water system supplies Gulkana: about 38% of residents live in its service area. About 62% of homes are outside any mapped community water system, most likely on private wells, which EPA doesn’t regulate. It draws surface water and serves 54 people in all.

10 health-based violations reported to EPA in the five years to October 2026: disinfection byproducts (TTHM) ×10, the latest beginning Apr 2026. 78% of the 11,392 systems serving <=100 people had none.

Lead, 90th percentile2.7 ppb
015 ppb action level20

The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan–Dec 2024, was 2.7 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. The highest in five years was 11.3 ppb. That’s higher than 79% of similar systems’ latest results.

The system’s full record: EPA ECHO report

EPA SDWIS via Envirofacts (violations pulled Oct 9, 2026) and ECHO (lead samples, 2026Q3); service area: EPA Community Water System Service Area Boundaries v3.0. Violations are counted by the start of their compliance period. AK2380214.

Internet

1 home internet providers serve Gulkana

97% of 74 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 97% can get fiber.

ProviderTechnologyAddressesFastest (Mbps)
Copper Valley TelephoneFiber, DSL96%1,000/1,000

FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.

Trash & recycling

We don’t have Gulkana’s trash rules yet

Pickup rules, the dump and recycling in Gulkana.

Trash, recycling and bulk pickupNot on fileGulkana has no town government of its own, so look for trash and recycling rules on the county’s site.
Schools

Where your child goes to school

Public school districts and the school path by grade.

Gulkana kids go to
PK–124 schoolsDepends on your address

Gulkana is in Copper River School District.

Test scores and every school: see Schools →

U.S. Department of Education, NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25. Enrollment rules and registration are the district’s.

Government & voting

No town hall: the county runs things

Gulkana is unincorporated, so Copper River Census Area is the local government.

Local governmentCopper River Census AreaGulkana is a census-designated place: no town hall of its ownCensus
Who runs elections hereAbsentee and Petition OfficeElections here are run by State of Alaska (state election office). 3651 Penland Pkwy Floor 2, Anchorage, AK 99508 · (907) 270-2700FVAP, Jun 2025
Register to voteOnlineIn Alaska you can register online until 30 days before Election Day, in person until 30 days before Election Day, or by mail (received 30 days before).vote.govCheck your registration and polling placemyvoterportal.alaska.govThe state’s voter lookup

Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Jun 2025; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Sep 30, 2026.

ZIP codes & area codes

Gulkana spans 2 ZIP codes

ZIP codes where Gulkana residents live, with the share of the town in each.

ZIPPost office nameShare of GulkanaZIP’s residents in Gulkana
99586Gakona, AK91%21%
99588Glennallen, AK9%1%

Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, by census block; post office names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). ZIPs created since 2020 are missing.

Everyday places

Getting around, the ER and the library

One line each; the subject pages have the rest.

ER: CMS hospital data. Library: IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FY2024.

Questions about living in Gulkana

Who supplies Gulkana’s drinking water, and has it had violations?

The Gulkana Village water system (EPA ID AK2380214). It reported 10 health-based violations to EPA in the five years to October 2026: disinfection byproducts (TTHM) ×10. 78% of systems its size had none. Its latest lead 90th percentile was 2.7 ppb (Jan–Dec 2024), against a 15 ppb action level.

Who provides electricity in Gulkana?

Birch Creek Village Elec Util (Birch Creek Village Elec Util - (AK)), a municipal utility.

What internet providers serve Gulkana?

Copper Valley Telephone (FCC, as of December 2025).

What ZIP codes are in Gulkana?

99586 (91%), 99588 (9%), by share of residents. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.

What school district is Gulkana in?

Copper River School District.

How do I register to vote in Gulkana?

In Alaska you can register online until 30 days before Election Day, in person until 30 days before Election Day, or by mail (received 30 days before). Elections here are run by the Absentee and Petition Office. Check your registration at myvoterportal.alaska.gov.

Sources & dates

Every answer above names its source. Here they are with their dates.

  • Water: EPA SDWIS (Envirofacts, pulled Oct 9, 2026), ECHO SDWA 2026Q3, EPA CWS Service Area Boundaries v3.0.
  • Power: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map Aug 2023); EIA-861 final 2025.
  • Trash: OpenStreetMap, Geofabrik extract of Oct 9, 2026. © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
  • ZIP codes: Census 2020 ZCTA relationship files; GeoNames postal codes (CC BY 4.0).
  • Schools: NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25.
  • Registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 30, 2026 (read Oct 10, 2026). Official sites and area codes: Wikidata.
  • Election office: FVAP local election office directory (fetched Oct 10, 2026; each record dated), EAC EAVS 2024 jurisdictions; registration and lookup links from vote.gov’s state data, checked Oct 10, 2026.
  • Internet: FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025.