The protected area dates back to 1960. In 1968, the discovery of oil in the area near the refuge sparked a struggle between industry, politicians, Indigenous governments and scientists that has continued ever since.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The land is home to migratory birds, whales, polar bears, wolves, lynx and \u2014 most important for the Gwich\u2019in \u2014 it\u2019s the calving ground for the Porcupine caribou herd. <\/p>\n
“Worse case scenario, [development] would have tremendous impacts,” said retired biologist Don Russell, who has studied the Porcupine herd for 50 years. “Potential is really high for total disruption, and it’s not like there are alternatives. It’s just a special area. It’s quite sensitive. <\/p>\n
“I had hoped not to see this.” <\/p>\n
\u2018We can\u2019t protect it because it\u2019s in another country\u2019<\/p>\n
The refuge is located on the traditional territory of both the Gwich’in and the I\u00f1upiat.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Arctic Slope Regional Corporation, which represents In\u0303upiat shareholders, owns title to over 37,000 hectares of subsurface rights within the wildlife refuge, with the Kaktovik I\u00f1upiat Corporation owning title to surface rights.\u00a0<\/p>\n
![\"aerial](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1761608468_114_default.jpg\")
A file photo of an airplane flying over caribou from the Porcupine Caribou Herd on the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in northeast Alaska. (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service via AP)<\/p>\n
In Kaktovik, a village within the refuge in Alaska, leaders say the move is an important step towards self-determination, and could help pay for essential public services. <\/p>\n
“Developing the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge\u2019s coastal plain is vital for Kaktovik\u2019s future,” said mayor Nathan Gordon Jr. in a press release.<\/p>\n
But Kristen Moreland, executive director of the Gwich’in Steering Committee, says she\u2019s shocked and devastated by the announcement.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOpening up the entire coastal plain for oil and gas development threatens our Gwich’in people and our way of life,\u201d Moreland said. \u201cWe all know there\u2019s consequences that come with oil development: pollution, habitat destruction, increased human traffic, a rise of violence, drugs, missing and murdered Indigenous peoples.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
![\"woman](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1761608468_214_default.jpg\")
Kristen Moreland is the executive director of the Gwich\u2019in Steering Committee, which is based in Fairbanks, Alaska, representing members in both Canada and the U.S. (Emily Sullivan\/Gwich\u2019in Steering Committee)<\/p>\n
Moreland points to the legacy of the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill<\/a> in southern Alaska, as well as research on the impacts of ongoing development to the south.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe have data showing roads and industrial development has already caused severe impacts to other caribou herds across Alaska,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n By comparison, Moreland says the northern coast is still a \u201cpristine, beautiful landscape\u201d where you can drink fresh water right out of the glaciers.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWhat we have right now, with the land untouched\u2026 I don\u2019t know why anyone would want to drill in it,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Pauline Frost, chief of the Vuntut Gwitchin in Old Crow, says what happens in Alaska will also have critical impacts on this side of the border for her community in northern Yukon, which continues to rely on caribou for sustenance.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThis is the one last sacred area we have and we want to protect it, but we can\u2019t protect it, because it\u2019s in another country,\u201d said Frost.<\/p>\n For the Gwitch\u2019in, the area is known as \u201cthe sacred place where life begins.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIf we think about mothers giving birth, how sacred that is\u2026 this is where the caribou have gone for millennia to give birth,\u201d said Frost. \u201cAnd during that time, no one goes in there. We don\u2019t go in there and disturb them.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Frost says both the Gwitch\u2019in and the caribou pre-date the colonial border.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe caribou does not distinguish between the United States and Canada,\u201d she said. \u201cThey migrate between.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Acknowledgement of that migration led to a bilateral agreement between the two countries back in 1987, when Canadian and U.S. governments promised to work together on the conservation of the Porcupine caribou herd.\u00a0<\/p>\n Level of industry interest is unclear<\/p>\n![\"woman](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/1761608469_342_default.jpg\")
Pauline Frost is the Chief of the Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation in Old Crow, Yukon. (Alistair Maitland\/Yukon government)<\/p>\n