The Trump Administration has, unfortunately, given the green light for the incredibly controversial Alaskan Ambler Road Mining Project, something that it's been fighting to advance ever since the President's first term in office. Worse yet, not only will we not benefit from the dirt roads and trails created by the project, but we're actually paying the mining company to build said roads on these fragile ecosystems.
They can't even be bothered to do it themselves and are using your taxes to create roads we aren't allowed to use. It's a lose/lose, and is absolutely in line with the administration's war against any and all public lands. It's horseshit, is what it is.
The move, which has been fought tooth and nail by virtually everyone and their mother, is just another attack on our public lands by the current administration and the federal government. And as such, it's been widely condemned by everyone who advocates for them, including Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, the Sierra Club, The Wilderness Society, and everyday hunters, anglers, backpackers, hikers, and more. It's a veritable who's who of folks who love the outdoors, and I'm proud to be one of those speaking out, too.
Because, though some groups will have you believe we'll get more off-road access to Alaska's interior, that's just a straight-up lie. We get nothing. You get nothing. Actually, you're paying for the lack of access, and the lost access to one of the coolest places on Earth. All because of a fake energy dominance crisis drummed up by billionaires who want more money to flow to their billionaire friends.
According to the White House, "The Amber Road Project is a proposed 211-mile industrial road from the Dalton Highway to Alaska’s remote Ambler Mining District (District) that would enable access to large deposits of copper, cobalt, gallium, germanium, and more. The permits for the road have been held for years due to protracted litigation, and the President has finally allowed this project to go forward to support the Administration’s energy dominance agenda. The decision finds that the road is in the public interest given our need for access to domestic critical minerals, and there is no economically feasible and prudent alternative route. The decision directs the Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to reissue necessary permits to construct the road."
First and foremost, we produce more energy than we already need, but we're cutting energy production because some of that energy is clean energy and not coal and oil and natural gas. So we're manufacturing an energy crisis when there isn't one. So that's great.
But the Ambler Road cuts through an incredibly fragile ecosystem in Alaska, one that's already in danger due to climate change and other pollution. It's also home to one of the largest herds of caribou in the state, and some amazing fishing opportunities. That is if you're brave enough to pack in there or get dropped off by bush plane. It's untouched, and that's what makes it great.
Second, the administration states that "the U.S. government is announcing a partnership with Trilogy Metals," a Canadian mining firm, and is "investing $35.6 million to support mining exploration in Alaska’s Ambler Mining District." Investing is a fun term for giving a multi-billion dollar mining company a bunch of taxpayer cash to build a road that US taxpayers can't actually use and won't really benefit from, given the company isn't American. But sure, a few thousand supposed jobs and cutting through a national refuge is a great idea.
Worse yet, as per reporting by our friends at Outdoor Life, "A 2023 feasibility study by Trilogy Metals stated, 'it was assumed that delivery of all concentrates would be to a smelter in the Asia Pacific region.' It further noted that 'the significance of the Chinese market for concentrate cannot be understated.'" What that means is that while the Trump administration is saying we'll be getting the benefit from this mineral extraction, the most likely patron of these materials will be China and its production facilities.
And let's talk about us not being able to use the gravel roads that this will likely spur, as the language of "Industrial Road" means that it's designed for a specific use by specific people, i.e. mining operations. You and I aren't miners, and won't have access to those roads. They won't be public, even though they're giving away public lands to do so. So if you hear someone state we get more roads in Alaska, please correct them.
Again, condemnation of the administration's decision to push forward has been swift and nearly universal.
"Communities along the proposed route of the road have consistently made their voices clear in opposing this damaging project," said Athan Manuel, director of Sierra Club's Lands Protection Program, adding, "This order ignores those voices in favor of corporate polluters. The Ambler Road will lead to significant harm to fragile Alaskan landscapes and the local communities and wildlife that rely on them. This is no ordinary road – it’s an industrial corridor through intact forests and Alaskan landscapes long enough to connect Washington, D.C. to Philadelphia. Moreover, it would divide the migration route of the Western Arctic Caribou Herd, causing irreversible damage. ”
The Wilderness Society furthered, "The Wilderness Society strongly opposes today’s unprecedented Presidential order approving construction of a 211-mile industrial mining road through one of Alaska’s most wild, pristine places, as well as announcing the investment of millions of taxpayer dollars in the foreign development company behind this project. Over a dozen Alaska Native governments, as well as the Western Arctic Caribou Herd Working Group, have previously submitted resolutions and letters opposing the Ambler Road project. The Wilderness Society will continue to stand with the many local Alaskan groups and Indigenous communities opposed to this project in order to conserve one of America’s greatest wild spaces for future generations.
More condemnation has poured in, both by local groups and peoples, as well as national interests, and the clear villain of these is the current administration, as it seems they, and Triology Metals, are the only ones who want this bullshit. Luckily, while Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, who shares Senator Mike Lee's disdain for public land, stated that construction would begin next spring, most folks who are more attuned to the project have no idea what the hell he's talking about.
Again, according to reporting by Outdoor Life, Burgum's comments were "a surprise to Ambler insiders, who note that AIDEA applied for road permits without firm construction plans for building one, and has a lot of work to do before development could even begin."
Likewise, as with everything this administration has done, as well as prior plans to put the Ambler Road on the map, there's going to be a lot of litigation. The whole thing stalled until this current administration after the first Trump term was sued non-stop for its push for the Ambler Road. That'll absolutely happen again, especially given that all the outdoor groups are finally coming together and fight as one block. So if Burgum and Trump think this will be a cake walk, they have another thing coming.
Right now, you can still call your representatives and tell them you don't support this federal seizure of public lands, just as you did with the Big Beautiful Bill, as it will help strengthen the backbones of your representatives to fight against this blatant abuse of power. So do it.
