Trump Administration to Open Alaska Wilderness to Drilling and Mining
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said the Biden administration had exceeded its authority last year when it banned oil and gas drilling in more than half of the 23 million-acre area, known as the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska.
The proposed repeal is part of President Trump's aggressive agenda to 'drill, baby, drill,' which calls for increased oil and gas extraction on public lands and the repeal of virtually all climate and environmental protections.
'We're restoring the balance and putting our energy future back on track,' Mr. Burgum said in a statement.
The National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska is an ecologically sensitive expanse of land about 600 miles north of Anchorage, bounded by the Chukchi Sea to the west and the Beaufort Sea to the north. It is the largest single area of public land in the United States. It covers crucial habitat for grizzly bears, polar bears, caribou, thousands of migratory birds and other wildlife.
Created in the early 1900s, the reserves were originally envisioned as a fuel supply for the Navy in times of emergency. But in 1976, Congress authorized full commercial development of the federal land and ordered the government to balance oil drilling with conservation and wildlife protection.
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