Overview
- Three lawsuits filed in federal court challenge last month’s land exchange approved by Interior Secretary Doug Burgum to enable a road through Izembek National Wildlife Refuge.
- The agreement would convey about 490 acres to King Cove Corp. for a potential corridor, add roughly 1,739 acres to the refuge, and require the corporation to relinquish selection rights to additional federal lands.
- A decision document states the proposed road would be about 19 miles and largely within the refuge, though some earlier descriptions cited a shorter route.
- King Cove Corp. is designated to obtain the necessary permits and funding before any construction could proceed.
- Alaska’s governor and congressional delegation back the road as a medical-evacuation lifeline, while the Interior Department declined to comment on the litigation.