Alaskans React to Trump’s Approval of The Ambler Road Project

By Aaron Thomas

On October 6, President Trump approved an appeal made by the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority, or AIDEA, which authorized the Ambler Road Project. In the following days, the U.S. Senate overturned The Central Yukon Resource Management Plan, a Biden-era land management plan that blocked the development of the road. 

Photo courtesy of State of Alaska

Map of the proposed Ambler Mine.

The Ambler Road Project is a proposed 211 mile industrial access road to the Ambler mining district in Northwest Alaska. The road would run from milepost 161 on the Dalton Highway to the Ambler mining district near Kobuk. Ambler contains vast deposits of copper, zinc, and lead at an estimated value of $7.5 billion. 

Reactions from the highest level of Alaskan politicians have sided towards the further development of the project. Yet many Alaskan voices oppose the development of the road, citing environmental concerns, encroachment on subsistence hunting grounds, and concerns about foreign corporate interests. 

April Monroe, a local activist, has long opposed the development of the Ambler Road Project. Monroe grew up in Evansville, a Native village in the foothills of the Brooks range, in the area where the road would go through. Monroe described the project as “harmful” and “frankly un-American.” 

“This foreign company, you know, wants to use dollars through AIDEA that came out of the permanent fund of Alaskans to build a private road for a foreign mining company to get to mine, extract copper-rich ore, and then ship that ore to China,” Monroe said.

The prospect of securing critical minerals from the mine to decrease dependence on foreign entities was cited as an argument in favor of the mine. “By advancing this access, we are creating new opportunities for Alaskans while strengthening America’s supply chain and reducing dependence on foreign adversaries for our critical mineral needs. I applaud the President’s decision to support this appeal, and I look forward to working with the Administration, state leaders, and Alaska Native communities to ensure this project moves forward in a way that benefits all Alaskans,” said Nick Begich.

"I want to thank President Trump and his team, especially Secretary of Interior Doug Burgum, for granting this appeal under Section 1106 of ANILCA, rolling back the Biden administration’s egregious and lawless denial of a right-of-way for the Ambler Access Project. This appeal is great news for Alaska, for jobs for our workers, for American national security, for reducing our country’s critical mineral dependence on China, and for the incredible Alaskans of the region,” said Dan Sullivan.

While major steps have been taken to advance the project in the past weeks, several roadblocks still remain for the project before it can proceed. AIDEA would have to reallocate vast amounts of taxpayer money to invest in the project for it to be profitable for mining corporations. Without the use of public funds, the economic viability of the project remains somewhat questionable.

“There's no indication that this is a really good investment,” Monroe said. “So these foreign corporations are excited about the proposition we wrote going forward because in every iteration of the plan, it's actually Alaskans who would pay for it.”

“The proposal from the Alaska Industrial and Export Authority would still require incredible amounts of field and environmental work and must go through the gauntlet of lawsuits,” said Alaskan State Senator Scott Kawasaki. He expressed doubt at the feasibility of the project and cited economic concerns.

“In addition, the AIDEA would have to come back to the Legislature if it were to need bond approval for a potential private roadway that could cost hundreds of millions of dollars and is still speculative. I would not want Alaskans to be shouldered with the future burden of having to pay off a road that no Alaskans would even be allowed to drive on,” Kawasaki said.

The Tanana Chiefs Conference, a collective group of 37 Tribes in Interior Alaska, has opposed the development of the road. The TCC stated that the road will permanently disrupt subsistence hunting practices of 30 Native Alaskan communities, damage vulnerable populations of caribou, salmon, and sheefish, serve international interests at the cost of Alaska’s land and people, and will set a dangerous precedent for future mining projects in Alaska. A total of 89 Alaskan Tribes have gone on the record opposing the project. 

“NANA recognizes the significant value and economic potential the Upper Kobuk Mineral Projects has for the region and to provide critical minerals for the energy transition. However, any resource development project and its associated transportation methods must align with necessary criteria to ensure protection of subsistence and our traditional way of life. The Ambler Access Project, as proposed, does not meet NANA’s criteria,” said NANA, a Native corporation based in Kotozebue that helps manage other mining projects in the region such as Red Dog Mine.

The proposed road cuts through The Gates of the Arctic National Park and will likely impact caribou migration corridors. The road would cross wetlands, fragile tundra ecosystems, eleven major rivers, and thousands of smaller waterways. The threat to subsistence hunting in the region has left some wary of the project. 

However, the creation of jobs in local communities and the potential boost to the economy in Alaska has been an argument in favor of the mine. “This decision will unleash development opportunities, create new jobs for Alaskans and secure access to strategic minerals,” said Governor Mike Dunleavy. 

“There are communities who are very, very supportive of the road. They feel it will bring economic opportunity to them,” said Senator Lisa Murkowski. 

The Sierra Club, a prominent environmental advocacy group, dubbed the executive order authorizing the road as “Trump's latest attempt to hand over some of our most cherished public lands to corporate polluters.” The Sierra Club described the project as an escalation of efforts to promote extraction industries in Alaska’s wilderness.

“The Ambler Road isn't just a path for trucks. It is a symbol of what is at stake for Alaska and public lands nationwide. It would pave the way for decades of pollution, habitat destruction, and climate chaos. These lands are critical for providing subsistence hunting, fishing, and gathering opportunities that sustain local communities' ways of life,” said the Sierra Club in a statement on the Ambler Project. 

While Trump’s executive order has rescinded restrictions on the development of the project, negotiations between Native Corporations, Ambler Metals, and several other legal and corporate entities would have to come to an agreement before any construction begins. 

NANA and Doyon, the two Native Corporations whose land the Ambler Road Project would cross, have discontinued their permits to allow AIDEA to utilize their lands for the project. AIDEA would have to create a proposal that holds up to the two corporations' standards for protecting subsistence ways of life for the project to move forward.

Additionally, AIDEA estimates that the road will cost $350 million, but that money would initially need to be borrowed. Until the state legislature comes to a consensus funding AIDEA’s proposal, economics of the project are uncertain. 

Whether or not the Ambler Road Project will proceed remains an open question. 

Amber McCain contributed reporting to this story.