Deb Haaland Secretary at U.S. Department of Interior | Official website
Following an extensive public process, Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland finalized the decision to retain protections for 28 million acres of public lands across Alaska. Many Alaska Native Tribes, Native Corporations, and Tribal entities have emphasized that these lands are crucial for protecting natural, cultural, and subsistence resources. This action responds to the previous administration's decision to end longstanding protections without adequate analysis or compliance with legal requirements.
The previous administration's decision was halted to ensure thorough consideration of potential impacts and engagement with the public and Alaska Native communities. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) conducted a robust public process, including 19 community meetings and received approximately 15,000 comments on the draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).
"Tribal consultation must be treated as a requirement – not an option – when the federal government is making decisions that could irrevocably affect Tribal communities," said Secretary Deb Haaland. "I am grateful to the team at the Bureau of Land Management for taking the time to ensure that we approached this decision with the benefit of feedback from Alaska Native communities."
The announcement builds on actions by the Biden-Harris administration to conserve millions of acres in Alaska. These include implementing protections for over 13 million acres in Special Areas in the western Arctic, protecting approximately 2.8 million acres of the Beaufort Sea from new oil and gas leasing, and rejecting proposals like Ambler Road to prevent harm to Tribal subsistence uses.
The Record of Decision adopts BLM’s preferred "No Action" alternative in the final EIS. The analysis found that revoking any protections would likely harm subsistence hunting and fishing in affected communities and negatively impact wildlife, vegetation, and permafrost.
These withdrawals are established under Section 17(d)(1) of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) across various planning areas including Bay, Bering Sea-Western Interior, East Alaska, Kobuk-Seward Peninsula, and Ring of Fire.
Today's decision does not affect land available for selection by eligible individuals under the Alaska Native Vietnam-era Veterans Land Allotment Program. Approximately 1,900 veterans are eligible to select their land entitlement under this program.
The Public Land Order will be published in the Federal Register later this week.
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