A plan outlining development in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska released by the DOI won praise from the TRCP. Photo by Dusan Smetana.
A plan outlining development in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska released by the Department of the Interior won praise from the TRCP for its responsible approach and acknowledgment of the region’s unique fish and wildlife values.
The federal government’s direction for the reserve, which encompasses valuable energy resources, abundant fish and wildlife populations and important areas of habitat, was recently released in its record of decision document. The TRCP and other sportsmen’s groups had submitted comments and recommendations on the draft plan and supported a management alternative that has been adopted in the ROD.
“The plan adopted by this record of decision for the NPR-A demonstrates many of the key principles of balanced, responsible energy development supported by the TRCP and other sportsmen’s organizations,” said Ed Arnett, director of the TRCP Center for Responsible Energy Development.
“This balance between economic opportunity and protecting the integrity of key waterfowl and wildlife habitats is a forward-thinking approach to conservation and one that will serve as an important example for our nation going forward,” said Dale Hall, CEO of Ducks Unlimited.
Located on Alaska’s North Slope and nearly 23 million acres in size, the NPR-A contains extraordinarily valuable fish and wildlife habitat. Millions of migratory birds use the area around Teshekpuk Lake for nesting, molting and staging and migrate throughout the United States to winter in nearly every state.
The Utukok River Uplands also provide key habitat for the Western Arctic caribou herd, the largest in Alaska, currently estimated at 348,000 animals. The reserve is the single-largest block of federally managed land in the United States.
“Sportsmen should applaud the BLM’s decision to manage the NPR-A in a balanced fashion,” said Scott Hed, director of the Sportsman’s Alliance for Alaska. “America can benefit from this decision – and not at the expense of our hunting and angling heritage.”
Read the TRCP 2013 Conservation Policy Agenda.
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