ANCHORAGE—The Gwich’in Steering Committee and 12 allied groups filed a motion in U.S. District Court today requesting a preliminary injunction to stop the U.S. Bureau of Land Management from issuing any leases sold in the Jan. 6 sale of the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and from authorizing seismic exploration activities.
“The outgoing administration’s attempt to sell-off sacred lands in the last throes of its term is an act of violence toward the Gwich’in people, our way of life, and our survival,” said Bernadette Demientieff, executive director of the Gwich’in Steering Committee. “Today we asked the court to stop this violation of human rights and desecration of sacred lands. Tomorrow, and the day after that, and an infinite number of days after that, we will fight as our ancestors did to protect the lands that nourish the Porcupine caribou herd and our people.”
Trustees for Alaska filed the motion for a preliminary injunction in the Gwich’in Steering Committee’s current lawsuit filed in August. The motion calls out the administration’s unprecedented rush to turn over the coastal plain to private oil and gas interests on its way out the door, despite ongoing litigation and the deeply flawed analysis it used when approving the leasing program. The threat of seismic activity this winter and the expansive lease terms and rights proposed for the sale show that there is immediate threat to Arctic lands, animals, and communities if leases are issued.
“The impacts of opening the coastal plain, once done, cannot be reversed,” said Nicole Schmitt, the executive director of the Alaska Wildlife Alliance. “The coastal plain is critical for the Porcupine caribou herd, polar bears, thousands of birds, and other keystone arctic species already under pressure from climate change. This is too important to be rushed through by political whims, both for the future of Alaska’s wildlife and for those, like the Gwich’in, who depend on it.”
Read the full press release below:
You can speak up for the Arctic Refuge by using the 30 Days of Action toolkit created and supported by Defend the Sacred AK, Sovereign Iñupiat for a Living Arctic, the Gwich’in Steering Committee, and Native Movement.
The toolkit includes social media content, information on how to contact public officials and engage in the public process, corporate actions, and the International Day of Solidarity. Thank you!
