13 Million Acres of Alaskan Arctic Is Now Protected From Oil Drilling In The U.S.

The Biden administration has introduced new and final regulations aimed at preserving 13 million acres of ecologically sensitive areas within the 23-million-acre National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska. These regulations enhance protections against oil and gas development and will completely ban any new oil and gas leasing on 10.6 million acres designated as Special Areas in the Reserve.

Following significant engagement with the public, Alaska Native Tribes, and Alaska Native Corporations, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) finalized the Management and Protection of the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska (NPR-A). The new rule will ensure maximum protection for significant resource values on the more than 13 million acres of Special Areas in the western Arctic, while supporting subsistence uses and needs for Alaskan Native communities.

The BLM is also announcing that it will publish a Request for Information in the coming weeks to solicit public comment on whether to consider adding resource values to existing Special Areas, expanding Special Areas, or creating new Special Areas within the NPR-A.

“This rule is critical to protecting the Western Arctic,” said Marshall Johnson, chief conservation officer at National Audubon Society. “As the Arctic rapidly warms, these new regulations will ensure that critical bird habitats like the Teshekpuk Lake Special Area will be resilient in the face of climate change. It is long past time that these lands and waters are given maximum protection.”

The 23-million-acre National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska is the nation’s largest tract of public land. Five designated Special Areas cover more than 13 million acres within the NPR–Alaska, making them some of the nation’s largest swaths of protected public land.

“As the Arctic undergoes dramatic climatic changes, this new rule is absolutely necessary to protect birds, caribou, and fish,” said David Krause, interim executive director at Audubon Alaska. “Durable protections of these intact and functional ecosystems are essential for habitat and species adaptation, and the continuation of cultural resources and practices throughout the region.”

Congress transferred management of the National Petroleum Reserve–Alaska from the Navy to BLM in 1976, directing them to balance oil and gas development with the management and protection of these sensitive landscapes. The previous administration worked to expand oil and gas leasing in the reserve and reduce protections for the Special Areas, but the Biden administration reversed its course in 2022.

Last week’s rule will ensure the durability of Special Areas protections going forward by requiring that they remain in place for as long as the values and characteristics in those areas are present. At least every five years, BLM will review and gather public input on whether existing Special Areas should be expanded, whether new Special Areas should be designated, and whether additional resources within Special Areas should be identified for protection.

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