Interior looks at behind-the-scenes land swap to allow road through wildlife refuge
By Juliet Eilperin October 15 at 6:31 PM
The Interior Department is preparing to set aside a decades-old ban on development in federally protected wilderness areas by pursuing a controversial proposal to build a nearly 12-mile road through a wildlife refuge in Alaska.
The project in the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge has long been a priority for Alaska officials, who say it is a “lifesaving” link needed to connect a remote Aleutian Islands town of 925 people with the rest of the state. The proposal, which entails turning federal land over to a tribal corporation, fits neatly with the Trump administration’s broader goal of giving more control to local communities like King Cove.
Yet environmentalists, several native Alaskan tribes and other critics warn that the road could disrupt the habitats of a variety of animals, most notably migratory birds that use the refuge as a crucial stopover on their marathon journeys along the Pacific Coast of North America. And allowing the project would violate the founding principle of federal wilderness — areas that are to remain pristine, off-limits to vehicles — and would set a precedent that could endanger other refuges, opponents say.
“If they can pull this off in Alaska, the entire Lower 48 is at risk,” said Defenders of Wildlife President Jamie Rappaport Clark, whose group obtained documents detailing Interior’s efforts under the Freedom of Information Act.
more
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/interior-looks-at-behind-the-scenes-land-swap-to-allow-road-through-wilderness-refuge/2017/10/15/c6458380-aeb7-11e7-9e58-e6288544af98_story.html
= new reply since forum marked as read
That's the purpose of the exercise. Trump could give a shit about a native community, but the chance to use it as a reason to despoil public lands in the contiguous U.S. is just to irresistible to pass up. The same for drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Reserve (which the evils call "ANWR"
. Even though the oil companies say it doesn't make economic sense to do so, drilling in the pristine environment sets a precedent for drilling or mining anywhere--even in national parks. This has been a GOP wet dream since as far back as I can remember.
Elections have consequences.
