A federal judge has blocked a land-swap deal that would have allowed a road to be built through the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge in southwestern Alaska.
The decision was made by Judge Sharon L. Gleason of the U.S. District Court for the District of Alaska. She ruled that the Trump administration violated the law when it approved the deal in October.
This comes as a blow to the White House and a victory for the Alaska Native tribes and environmental groups that filed the lawsuit.
Under the terms of the deal, the Department of the Interior was to transfer 490 acres of land within the refuge to the King Cove Corporation. In exchange, the corporation would transfer thousands of acres of its own land to the government, some of which would have been incorporated into the refuge.
Izembek has remained the center of intense controversy for decades, affecting both Alaska and Washington. The first Trump administration approved a similar deal in 2019, but it was overturned under Biden in 2023.
Proponents of the road argue that it is necessary to connect the remote village of King Cove to an airport, from where patients could be evacuated to hospitals in Anchorage.
Opponents warn of irreparable damage to tribes that depend on hunting and fishing, as well as to migratory birds.
Judge Gleason, appointed by Barack Obama, determined that the administration violated the Endangered Species Act by failing to study the road's impact on rare animals. Furthermore, provisions of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act were also violated.
Can regional development be considered justified if it puts unique nature and a traditional way of life at risk?
