Interior Department blocks 13 million acres of northern Alaska from oil and gas development

The Interior Department will finalize regulations Friday to block 13 million acres of public land from oil and gas drilling in the National Petroleum Reserve – Alaska.

“These natural wonders demand our protection," President Joe Biden said in the announcement. "I am proud that my administration is taking action ... in the Western Arctic and to honor the culture, history, and enduring wisdom of Alaska Natives who have lived on and stewarded these lands since time immemorial.”

Native groups, however, have criticized the administration for pursuing its anti-fossil fuel agenda, even when it conflicts with the interests of Native Alaskan communities.

Prior to the official announcement, the Voice of the Artric Iñupiat, which represents more than a dozen Native communities on Alaska’s North Slope, strongly disagreed with the decision.

Group President Nagruk Harcharek said the "decision to unilaterally restrict development in the NPR-A is categorically unjust. It will make it more difficult for our communities to provide and maintain these services for future generations and incorporate new services, such as telecommunications and utility corridors, not to mention access to our traditional hunting grounds."

A draft of the rule announced in September would limit future oil and gas leasing, as well as other industrial development, on 13 million acres of the NPR-A. The rule would also establish an outright prohibition on new leasing on 10.6 million acres — 40% of the reserve.