JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — Interior Secretary Deb Haaland has not decided the position she will take on a proposed land exchange aimed at building a road through a national wildlife
Haaland hasn t made decision on Alaska refuge road issue apnews.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from apnews.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Interior chief to visit Alaska amid road fight, filing says
by Becky Bohrer, The Associated Press
Posted Jul 20, 2021 8:43 pm EDT
Last Updated Jul 20, 2021 at 8:56 pm EDT
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland is expected to visit Alaska in September, according to a court filing in a long-running dispute over a proposed land exchange aimed at building a road through a national wildlife refuge.
Haaland committed during her confirmation process to meeting with residents of King Cove, a community at the center of the dispute, according to the filing from Justice Department attorney Michael T. Gray. Those meetings aren’t possible before an appeals court is set to hear arguments in the case Aug. 4 because people in the community will be busy with the subsistence fishing season, Gray said.
Interior chief set for Sept AK trip ketchikandailynews.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from ketchikandailynews.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Print article The Biden administration is defending a Southwest Alaska land swap that was supported by the Trump administration, which aims to allow construction of an 11-mile road through the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge. Residents in the Alaska Peninsula community of King Cove have long sought the road, arguing it would provide access to emergency care, but conservation groups have sued to stop it, citing the importance of the 310,000-acre refuge to migrating waterfowl and other wildlife. The Department of Justice on Monday filed a legal brief in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals defending a 2019 land exchange between the Interior Department and King Cove’s Alaska Native village corporation. The land exchange would pave the way for the road.