Trump strips protections from public lands in the Western Arctic
The National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska is a vitally important area for Nuiqsut and other North Slope communities that depend on its diverse wildlife, including caribou, birds and fish.
Bob Wick / BLM
The move is part of a sweeping effort to sell off our national public lands
ANCHORAGE, ALASKA (June 2, 2025) – The Trump administration announced today that it is rescinding protections for high-value wildlands and habitat in the Western Arctic.
The move is part of the administration’s sweeping effort to deregulate industry, sell off our national public lands and allow oil companies to exploit and damage those lands without safeguards for wildlife, fish, or local subsistence needs.
Officially named the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska, the 23-million-acre Western Arctic is America’s largest tract of public land and was designated by Congress in the Naval Petroleum Reserves Production Act to be managed for both conservation and energy production.
The Wilderness Society released the following statement from Alaska Senior Manager Matt Jackson in response to today’s announcement:
“Everyone who cares about public lands and is concerned about the climate crisis should be outraged by this move to exploit America’s public lands for the benefit of corporations and the president’s wealthy donors. The Trump administration is destroying safeguards for globally significant and invaluable resources and the local communities who depend on them for their way of life.
“Worst of all, this move will accelerate the climate crisis at a time when the ground beneath Alaska communities is literally melting away and subsistence foods are in decline,” Jackson added. “Eliminating this rule would remove vital protections for caribou and migratory birds, clean air and clean water.”
