The Department of the Interior (DOI) has re-instated protections against mining and oil and gas development on more than 28 million acres of public lands across Alaska.
The protections, which were established in 1971, were removed in January 2021 under the Trump administration.
In an Aug. 27 press release, Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland said the department finalized the decision after an “extensive public process” in which it sought input from Alaska native tribes and native corporations, rural and urban communities, and the general public.
Many Alaska native tribes, native corporations, and tribal entities have said the lands are “vital to protecting important natural, cultural, and subsistence resources,” Haaland said. […]
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