Biden administration blocks controversial mining road in Alaska

The Biden administration is blocking a controversial proposed road that would have enabled mining in Alaska, the administration is announcing Friday. 

In addition, it is separately indicating that it will decline to open up 28 million acres of currently protected lands to oil and gas development as well as mining. 

The decision to protect the lands from mining is not official, still requiring final approval, but the decision to block the road is final.

“Today, my Administration is stopping a 211-mile road from carving up a pristine area that Alaska Native communities rely on, in addition to steps we are taking to maintain protections on 28 million acres in Alaska from mining and drilling. These natural wonders demand our protection,” President Biden said in a written statement. 

The decision to block the road is a reversal of the Trump administration’s approval of the project.

In 2020, the Trump administration said that approving the road, a project of Ambler Metals, would provide mining access to an area with significant copper and cobalt deposits. 

The Biden administration is arguing, however, that blocking it would protect at-risk wildlife including the Western Arctic caribou herd, which it described as a “critical” food source for Native communities. 

The move is not a surprise, as the administration had previously indicated that it planned to block the road.

The decision not to open up the additional 28 million acres is also a reversal of a Trump-era effort. The Biden administration said that its move would protect tribal hunting and fishing .