Trump in final push to open up Alaska’s Arctic refuge to oil and gas drilling | US news | The Guardian

The US interior department will auction leases before the end of the year, secretary David Bernhardt told the Wall Street Journal. That could make it harder for Democrats to reverse the decision if Joe Biden wins the election in November.

The 19-million-acre refuge in north-east Alaska, known as ANWR, is a wellspring for wildlife. The move will open up the 1.6 million-acre coastal plane, where polar bears and foxes reside and to or through which millions of migratory birds fly. The porcupine caribou herd is critically important to the indigenous Gwich’in people, many of whom make their homes on or near its migration route.

Source: Trump in final push to open up Alaska’s Arctic refuge to oil and gas drilling | US news | The Guardian

%d bloggers like this: