WASHINGTON – Friday, U.S. Representative Mary Sattler Peltola, D-Alaska and U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan, both R-Alaska, issued the following statements condemning the U.S. Department of the Interior (Interior) for selecting the “no action” alternative in its Record of Decision (ROD) for the Ambler Access Project (Ambler). The ROD rejects Ambler, a private haul road that would provide economic benefits in Alaska and facilitate domestic supplies of key minerals, after the project was previously fully approved in 2020.

“All too often, promises made to Alaska Natives by Congress haven’t been kept; this decision is in contradiction to ANILCA,” Peltola said. “There’s a path forward where local buy-in for this project is real and sustainable. As we continue to work through NDAA, we will seek to affirm permanent private road access that will make these resources available in a way that works for stakeholders in the area.”

“Nine years in federal permitting. Access to critical and strategic minerals that are essential for everything from clean energy to national security. A rare opportunity for development in rural Alaska under the highest standards, so we don’t have to import from unstable nations that have no protections for people or the environment,” Murkowski said. “Somehow, none of that mattered to the Biden administration on the Ambler project. They have ignored federal law, our national vulnerabilities, and Alaska’s strong record of responsible development, all in the name of election year politics.”

“There he goes again: President Biden’s announcement on the Ambler Road is lawless, hurts Alaska’s future and jobs for our state, undermines America’s national security, and only makes our country more dependent on adversaries like Communist China for critical minerals,” Sullivan said. “These minerals are critically important for our national defense, economy, and renewable energy sector. ANILCA mandates the right-of-way for this road. Career professional staff from the Obama and Trump administrations studied and then approved it after several years. Consultations with Alaskan stakeholder groups were extensive and far-reaching. But no matter, Lower 48 eco-colonialists told Joe Biden to kill the road, and he obeyed. Sanctioning Alaska more than terrorist states, like Iran and Venezuela, and adversaries, like China, is now commonplace policy for the Biden administration. But I’m fighting back. I was able to get strong bipartisan support for my amendment in this year’s NDAA that mandates this road and ensures the destiny of this project is controlled by Alaskans.”

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