Trump Administration Transfers 1.4 Million Acres of Previously Protected BLM Lands to Alaska for "Resource Development"
Most of the Dalton Utility Corridor, which links three national wildlife refuges and a national park, is now owned by the state of Alaska
On February 20, I wrote about the Interior Department’s intention to transfer 2.1 million acres of federal public land to the state of Alaska.
On that day, with the simple stroke of a pen, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum issued Public Land Order 7966, which effectively revoked two other long‑standing Public Land Orders—PLO 5150 and PLO 5180, implemented by Richard Nixon.
Those orders had withdrawn roughly 2.1 million acres of Bureau of Land Management (BLM) lands in the Dalton Utility Corridor from mining claims, state land selections, and other forms of privatization.
The Dalton Utility Corridor was created in the 1970s as a 244-mile-long buffer zone to protect the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS). Since then, it has been managed by the BLM as public land, providing access and protection to some of the country’s most spectacular landscapes and intact wildlife migration routes.
The corridor’s southern section borders the Kanuti National Wildlife Refuge in the west and the sprawling Yukon Flats National Wildlife Refuge in the east. Its northern section is flanked by both Gates of the Arctic National Park and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge—two of the greatest gems in America’s public lands system.
It connects three wildlife refuges and one national park.
However, literally overnight on that chilly Friday in February, land that had been off‑limits for 50 years became newly available for staking, selection, transfer, and development.
By signing that order, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum effectively offered those federal lands to Alaska, which could then pick and choose the tracts and parcels it wanted.
After Burgum opened up those BLM lands for selection to the state of Alaska, ten environmental organizations immediately filed a lawsuit. Those included the Alaska Wilderness League, Northern Alaska Environmental Center, Earthworks, The Wilderness Society, National Parks Conservation Association, and Alaska Wildlife Alliance.
And now, in a press release issued today, May 6, the Interior Department announced it has, indeed, transferred 1.4 million acres of Dalton Corridor public land to Alaska.
“The transfer is part of the Trump administration’s broad agenda to reverse decades of environmental conservation measures on federal lands and open as much of Alaska as possible to oil and gas drilling, mining, logging, and other development,” wrote Bobby Magill from Bloomberg Law. “The land is a key to building a 211-mile road to the remote Ambler mining district and part of the proposed route for the Alaska Liquefied Natural Gas project, the department said.”
On the maps below, the Dalton Utility Corridor is the yellow area in the middle, a vast area of previously federal public lands and waters that connect a national park and three wildlife refuges. Most of this sprawling area has now been transferred to Alaska, which will soon be followed, undoubtedly, by mining, drilling, infrastructure, and other forms of industrialization.
This map by the BLM shows the 1.4 million acres of federal public land in the Dalton Utility Corridor that are now owned by the state of Alaska. You can explore the online map further here.
This is, once again, the opposite of responsible conservation. It is another blatant push for more polluting mining, oil and gas development in one of our most pristine ecosystems—one of our last large functioning ecosystems, home to the Porcupine Caribou herd.
In fact, in Interior’s 532-word press statement, “conservation” was mentioned exactly zero times. There was no mention of “wildlife” either, nor was their any word on “protecting” anything at all. On the other hand, “resource(s)” was used seven times; “economy” or “economic” three times, and “energy” twice.
A main driver behind this move is the industrial Ambler Road—which would be a private access road to be used exclusively by mining companies, running through unspoiled wildlife habitat. That road would connect to the Dalton Highway at milepost 161.
“The [Ambler] road is intended to facilitate mine development and transportation of ore as part of the Ambler Access Project. The road would be controlled access for approved commercial uses only; no public access would be allowed,” the Alaska Department of Natural Resources, which now controls most of the Dalton Corridor, says on its website.
While Alaska is entitled to 105 million acres of federal land under the 1959 Alaska Statehood Act—that is the law—this particular move is not about protecting the environment or wildlife but about private access and corporate profits.
No one’s even trying to hide that.
“This decisive action puts Alaska at the forefront of American Energy Dominance,” said Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum in a statement. “President Trump is delivering on his commitment to unleash Alaska’s vast resources—advancing the Alaska Liquefied Natural Gas project, the Ambler Road, and the Trans-Alaska Pipeline—to strengthen our economy, bolster national security, and drive down costs for American families.”
“On behalf of the State of Alaska, I want to thank Interior Secretary Burgum and his dedicated staff for completing the transfer of the Dalton Utility Corridor to state ownership,” said Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy. “This milestone represents a leap forward in advancing Alaska’s ability to responsibly develop its resources and advance economic opportunity across Alaska. We appreciate our partnership and collaboration with President Trump that made this transfer possible, and we look forward to putting this corridor to work for the benefit of all Alaskans. President Trump delivered when other presidents did not.”
In one fell swoop, America’s federal public domain just shrank by another 1.4 million acres.
Under the Alaska Statehood Act, the state is allowed another 3.8 million acres of federal public land before its 105-million-acre entitlement is fulfilled. Those lands haven’t yet been selected or announced.
In response to this massive land acquisition by the state, the Alaska Department of Natural Resources has announced “a plan to collect feedback from the public through June 26, 2026.” You can find more information, details, and updates on their website.
To be continued…
For a much deeper dive into what this means on the ground—with respect to wildlife habitat, migration routes, public recreation access, Native subsistence rights, and protecting the pipeline itself—I recommend reading my previous article on this below.
Interior Plans to Transfer 2.1 Million Acres of Public Land to Alaska for "Energy, Minerals, and Infrastructure"
“Today’s action sets the stage for the state of Alaska to take ownership of millions of acres of our nation’s public lands. The result would be fewer protections for subsistence, conservation, and other sustainable land uses. It’s yet another attack on federal public lands in Alaska, where short term profits and industrialization are being prioritized over the people in state who rely on clean air, lands, waters, and healthy wildlife populations.”
In Other News
As wild as the public lands and waters news cycle has been in the past eighteen months, it is showing no signs of slowing down. Rather the opposite, in fact, it’s been another crazy week.
Here are three stories that I think you should know about but didn’t have the time to write about myself.
Home on the Range No More: Trump Wants Bison Gone - The New York Times
“This winter, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management reversed course and canceled the bison grazing permits. Citing the Taylor Grazing Act of 1934, the agency said the federal grasslands where the animals grazed should go to livestock being raised for food, not bison largely enjoying their right to roam. The agency deemed the bison to be wildlife, not production livestock.”
We Are Bombarding America’s Forests With Roundup - Mother Jones
“The Forest Service and private loggers say they use glyphosate because it helps commercially attractive conifers like pine and Douglas fir rebound faster after fires and timber harvests. It does so by killing deciduous trees, native shrubs, flowering plants, and anything else that might compete for water, nutrients, and sunlight. In short, a key rationale for spraying a disputed chemical in natural settings boils down to executives and regulators treating forests, including our national forests, as tree farms.”
Why Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument Relies on a Strong Management Plan - Utah News Dispatch
“Using the Congressional Review Act to overturn this management plan — as proposed by Utah Sen. Lee and Rep. Celeste Maloy — is not reform, it’s a demolition that will upend the lives of communities, visitors, ranchers, and scientists who have learned to work within its framework, and will corrode intergovernmental trust with Indigenous tribes. It will also throw into question management plans for other land and water conservation areas across our United States.”
Thanks for reading!
See you on our public lands and waters,
Bram
Image 1: Craig McCaa / BLM
Image 2: Craig McCaa / BLM
Maps: BLM
I need to read and re-read this thoroughly, but WOW. Your work should be the lead media story and on the front page of every newspaper left in this country. Just when you think Burgum and his band of greedy, blinded idiots cannot go ANY lower, they actually BRAG about this purposeful degradation of lands heretofore deemed important enough to protect decades ago. Not to mention these are vital CORRIDORS without which these mighty animals, large and small, have nowhere to go. THANK YOU PUBLIC LANDS!!!
I must be myopic in the sense that I cannot begin to fathom how these greedy, shallow idiots cannot even begin understand Nature's majestic interconnectedness. I understand the arguments for good jobs, but the real mission point of these actions is to repeatedly shower elaborate gifts on every extractive industry on the planet... 😡☠️😡