One of the constellation of executive orders President Donald Trump signed on his first day in office to encourage oil and gas drilling, mining and logging in Alaska. While state political leaders welcome the move, environmental groups find it troubling.
State political leaders see the development of the fossil fuel industry as critical to Alaska’s economic future.
“What do they mean?” Republican Governor Mike Dunleavy he said on X on executive orders. “That means Alaska is back in business!”
“It means the timber industry in the Tongass National Forest can start again. It means Alaska can start the process [of] he finally gets his rest[ing] acres of land from the federal government.” He went on to say that the move creates an opportunity for “thousands and thousands of jobs.”
President Donald Trump aims to contribute to the national economy by using Alaska’s natural resources, which include large deposits of oil, natural gas and various other minerals. (Murat Usubali/Anadolu)
Order, titled “Unleashing Alaska’s Extraordinary Resource Potential,” seeks to open up an area of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge considered sacred to the native Gwich’in to oil and gas drilling. It also aims to roll back restrictions imposed by the Biden administration on drilling activities in Alaska’s North Slope National Petroleum Reserve and reverse restrictions on logging and road construction in the temperate rainforest.
Gwich’in leaders oppose drilling on the coastal plain, citing its importance to the caribou herds they rely on. Leaders of the Iñupiaq community in Kaktovik, which is located inside the refuge, support the drilling and have expressed hope that their voices will be heard in the Trump administration after being frustrated by former President Joe Biden.
ALASKA SUES BIDEN ADMINISTRATION OVER ‘IRRATIONAL’ TRUMP-ERA LIMITS ON OIL AND GAS DRILLING MANDATES
The snow-covered coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. (Lindsey Wasson)
“It’s morning again in Alaska,” Republican Senator Dan Sullivan published at X Monday evening. The senator’s subsequent announcement prompted Alaskans to read President Trump’s executive order.
Kaktovik Lagoon and the Brooks Range Mountains of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. (Lindsey Wasson, File)
Cooper Freeman, director of the Alaska Center for Biological Diversity, told The Associated Press that the president “just can’t wave a magic wand and make these things happen.” Environmental laws and regulations must be followed, and legal challenges to Trump’s plans are almost certain, he said.
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“We are ready and looking forward to the fight of our lives keep Alaska greatwild and abundant,” Freeman said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
