Biden Administration Announces Delayed Response to Ambler Mining Road Lawsuits

The Department of Interior filed a 30-day extension today, in response to litigation brought by groups including the National Parks Conservation Association and others, on the previous administration’s approval of the 210-mile Ambler mining road in Alaska. Today’s filing indicates February 22, 2022 as the new response date.

“We remain hopeful that Interior Secretary Deb Haaland and the Biden administration will reverse course on the disastrous and illegally authorized Ambler mining road,” said Alex Johnson, Alaska senior program manager for the National Parks Conservation Association. “We urge this administration to protect the caribou and wild places of Northwest Alaska alongside conservation organizations, Alaska Native tribes, and the people of the region who would be most affected by the road and related industrial development. The administration should reject the road permits and take a stand against the foreign mining corporations pushing for a private driveway through Gates of the Arctic National Preserve.”

Highlighting the flawed process and threats that the Ambler Road poses to Alaska Natives, the Tanana Chiefs Conference issued a press statement today, after members were blocked from a recent Ambler Road Subsistence Advisory Committee meeting. Tanana Chiefs Conference also has a lawsuit against the administration’s approval of the Ambler mining road.

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About the National Parks Conservation Association: Since 1919, the nonpartisan National Parks Conservation Association has been the leading voice in safeguarding our national parks. NPCA and its nearly 1.6 million members and supporters work together to protect and preserve our nation’s most iconic and inspirational places for future generations. For more information, visit www.npca.org.