Native, Conservation Groups In Lawsuit Challenging Alaska Gas, Oil Lease Sales

The Gwich’in Steering Committee is one of the key plaintiffs in a joint lawsuit challenging the federal government’s plans to lease areas around Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for drilling purposes. Here’s more from the Anchorage Daily News:

Their amended filing, in U.S. District Court in Anchorage, renews the effort to stop the oil and gas leasing program approved by President Donald Trump’s Interior Department.

A lease sale, which allows bidding that could lead to oil exploration, must take place before July 4, according to federal law. 

The groups suing include the Gwich’in Steering Committee, representing Indigenous communities in Alaska and Canada who hunt the Porcupine caribou herd that calves in the coastal plain. Other groups include the Alaska Wilderness League, the Alaska Wildlife Alliance and the Sierra Club.