Ambler Road is the common name of the "Ambler Mining District Industrial Access Project", a proposed industrial

haul road A haul road (also ''haulage road'' or haul track) is a term for roads designed for heavy or bulk transfer of materials by haul trucks in the mining industry. It is also used for freight-only roads in other contexts, for example in South Boston leadi ...

that would connect the

Dalton Highway The James W. Dalton Highway, usually referred to as the Dalton Highway (and signed as Alaska Route 11), is a road in Alaska. It begins at the Elliott Highway, north of Fairbanks, and ends at Deadhorse (an unincorporated community within t ...

to the area around the Ambler Mining District, allowing for future mining projects in the area. The project is being managed by the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority (AIDEA)—Alaska's state-owned economic development authority. It has been controversial due to its potential impact on the environment and regional communities. In April 2024, the

Bureau of Land Management The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior responsible for administering federal lands, U.S. federal lands. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the BLM oversees more than of land, or one ...

(BLM) issued a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) evaluating the project's potential impact on the environment and nearby communities. The BLM selected the "no action" alternative, effectively halting the project. In January 2025, US President

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

ordered the suspension of the SEIS and the reinstatement of an earlier Environmental Impact Statement, once again opening the door for the project to move forward.

History

Ambler Road Project Area Administered Lands

The Ambler Mineral Belt contains valuable deposits of copper, cobalt, and other minerals. After access to the area by

rail Rail or rails may refer to: Rail transport *Rail transport and related matters *Railway track or railway lines, the running surface of a railway Arts and media Film * ''Rails'' (film), a 1929 Italian film by Mario Camerini * ''Rail'' (1967 fil ...

barge A barge is typically a flat-bottomed boat, flat-bottomed vessel which does not have its own means of mechanical propulsion. Original use was on inland waterways, while modern use is on both inland and ocean, marine water environments. The firs ...

was determined to be unfeasible, the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities began working toward building a road. This project was transferred to AIDEA in 2013. The 1980

Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act The Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA) is a United States federal law signed by President Jimmy Carter on December 2, 1980. ANILCA provided varying degrees of special protection to over of land, including national parks, n ...

required the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, within the US Department of the Interior. The service manages all List ...

to grant right-of-way access through

Gates of the Arctic National Park Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve is a national park of the United States that protects portions of the Brooks Range in northern Alaska. The park is the northernmost national park in the United States, situated entirely north of the ...

to a road providing access to the Ambler Mining District. However, as the proposed road would have to pass through areas managed by the BLM, it was still subject to environmental review under the

National Environmental Policy Act The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) is a United States environmental law designed to promote the enhancement of the environment. It created new laws requiring U.S. federal government agencies to evaluate the environmental impacts of ...

. On February 11, 2020, Ambler Metals

LLC A limited liability company (LLC) is the United States-specific form of a private limited company. It is a business structure that can combine the pass-through taxation of a partnership or sole proprietorship with the limited liability of a ...

was formed to pursue mining projects in the Ambler Mining District. The company is a joint venture between Trilogy Metals and

South32 South32 Limited is a mining and metals company headquartered in Perth, Western Australia. It was spun out of BHP Billiton on 18 May 2015. It is listed on the Australian Securities Exchange with secondary listings on the Johannesburg and Londo ...

, with each company holding a 50% stake. In 2020, the BLM released its Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on the proposal, selecting AIDEA's proposed 211-mile route as its preferred alternative. This conclusion was challenged in court by environmental and tribal groups, leading the BLM to begin work on a broader Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) that would address shortcomings in the initial EIS. In October 2023, Doyon, Limited announced that it would not renew its land-use agreement with AIDEA once it expired in April 2024, blocking access to 10–12 miles of two potential routes for the Ambler Road, as well as gravel pits needed for road construction. This action was due at least in part to a dispute between Doyon and AIDEA regarding a separate project. The Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement was released in late 2023 and concluded that 66 communities would see their

subsistence A subsistence economy is an economy directed to basic subsistence (the provision of food, clothing and shelter) rather than to the market. Definition "Subsistence" is understood as supporting oneself and family at a minimum level. Basic subsiste ...

practices negatively impacted by the project instead of the 27 included in the initial EIS. The SEIS was finalized in April 2024, with the BLM this time selecting "no action" as its preferred alternative. This decision was announced at the same time as new restrictions on development within the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska were finalized. BLM's decision drew criticism from industry groups, the Alaska state government, and Alaska's congressional delegation.

NANA Regional Corporation NANA Regional Corporation, Inc. (NANA) is one of thirteen Alaska Native Regional Corporations created under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act of 1971 (ANCSA) in settlement of Alaska Native land claims. NANA was incorporated in Alaska on Jun ...

announced in May 2024 that it would not renew its land use agreement with AIDEA. NANA stated that it disagreed with AIDEA's management of the Ambler Road project, but continued to support future mine development and would maintain its partnership with Ambler Metals. In June 2024, Alaska Senator Dan Sullivan added a rider to the

National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2025 The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2025 (NDAA 2025) is a United States federal law which specifies the budget, expenditures, and policies of the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) for fiscal year 2025. Background The National ...

that would have required the BLM to grant the Ambler Access Project right-of-way within 30 days of the act's passage, citing national security interests. Sullivan's amendment was not included in the legislation's final version. Advocates of the project expected it to have a better chance of winning federal approval under the

second Trump administration Donald Trump's second and current tenure as the president of the United States began upon his inauguration as the 47th president on January 20, 2025. On his first day, Trump pardoned about 1,500 people convicted of offenses in the Janua ...

, and

Project 2025 Project 2025 (also known as the 2025 Presidential Transition Project) is a political initiative to reshape the federal government of the United States and consolidate executive power in favor of right-wing policies. The plan was published in ...

called for the government to "immediately approve" the Ambler Road. Trilogy Metals stock increased in value after the

2024 presidential election This is a list of elections that were held in 2024. The National Democratic Institute also maintains a calendar of elections around the world. *2024 United Nations Security Council election *2024 national electoral calendar *2024 local electoral ...

. On January 15, 2025, the

Biden Administration Joe Biden's tenure as the List of presidents of the United States, 46th president of the United States began with Inauguration of Joe Biden, his inauguration on January 20, 2021, and ended on January 20, 2025. Biden, a member of the Democr ...

directed the

United States Army Corps of Engineers The United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is the military engineering branch of the United States Army. A direct reporting unit (DRU), it has three primary mission areas: Engineer Regiment, military construction, and civil wo ...

to revoke the project's

Clean Water Act The Clean Water Act (CWA) is the primary federal law in the United States governing water pollution. Its objective is to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the nation's waters; recognizing the primary respo ...

permits, but this process was not completed for unclear reasons, leaving the permits merely suspended. On the day of his second inauguration, President

signed Executive Order 14153, titled "Unleashing Alaska's Extraordinary Resource Potential", which among other things, ordered the suspension of the 2024 SEIS pending review, along with the reinstatement of the 2020 EIS. Despite this, the project is still expected to face significant procedural and legal hurdles.

Reactions

Arguments against the project

Opponents of the project have cited the potential negative impacts on the regional environment, culture, and subsistence practices from the road itself and subsequent mining projects. There has been a particular focus on potential disruptions of

caribou The reindeer or caribou (''Rangifer tarandus'') is a species of deer with circumpolar distribution, native to Arctic, subarctic, tundra, boreal, and mountainous regions of Northern Europe, Siberia, and North America. It is the only represe ...

migration patterns, as well as the impact on rivers, wetlands,

fisheries Fishery can mean either the enterprise of raising or harvesting fish and other aquatic life or, more commonly, the site where such enterprise takes place ( a.k.a., fishing grounds). Commercial fisheries include wild fisheries and fish farm ...

and fish populations from any future releases of mining waste. There has also been concern that the road could be opened to the public—as happened with the Dalton Highway—potentially allowing outside hunters and

bootleggers A bootleg is the upper part (or shaft) of a boot. Bootleg, bootlegging or bootlegger(s) may also refer to: Common meanings * Rum-running, the illegal business of transporting and trading in alcoholic beverages * Moonshine, illicitly made an ...

to more easily access the region. A group of regional residents called Protect the Kobuk has organized opposition to the road in the

Northwest Arctic Borough Northwest Arctic Borough is a List of boroughs and census areas in Alaska, borough located in the U.S. state of Alaska. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 7,793, up from 7,523 in 2010. The borough seat is Kotze ...

. In addition to Protect the Kobuk, several notable organizations have publicly opposed the project, including the

Tanana Chiefs Conference The Tanana Chiefs Conference (TCC), the traditional tribal consortium of the 42 villages of Interior Alaska, is a non-profit organization that works toward meeting the needs and challenges for more than 10,000 Alaska Natives (mostly Alaskan Atha ...

, the

Sierra Club The Sierra Club is an American environmental organization with chapters in all 50 U.S. states, Washington, D.C., Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico. The club was founded in 1892, in San Francisco, by preservationist John Muir. A product of the Pro ...

, the

Center for American Progress The Center for American Progress (CAP) is a public policy think tank, research and advocacy organization which presents a Modern liberalism in the United States, liberal viewpoint on Economic policy, economic and social issues. CAP is headquarter ...

, and numerous other environmental and

Alaska Native Alaska Natives (also known as Native Alaskans, Alaskan Indians, or Indigenous Alaskans) are the Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous peoples of Alaska that encompass a diverse arena of cultural and linguistic groups, including the I ...

organizations. Former Alaska congresswoman

Mary Peltola Mary Sattler Peltola (born August 31, 1973) is an American politician and former tribal judge who served as the U.S. representative from from 2022 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party, she previously served as a judge on the Orutsararmiut ...

also opposes the road, though she had previously joined the other members of Alaska's congressional delegation in supporting it.

Arguments for the project

Supporters of the Ambler Access Project have cited its potential to bring jobs and economic growth to the region. They have also pointed out that the minerals that could be extracted from the Ambler Region would aid the nation's transition to

clean energy Energy is sustainable if it "meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs." Definitions of sustainable energy usually look at its effects on the environment, the economy, and s ...

and

electric vehicle An electric vehicle (EV) is a motor vehicle whose propulsion is powered fully or mostly by electricity. EVs encompass a wide range of transportation modes, including road vehicle, road and rail vehicles, electric boats and Submersible, submer ...

s. Supporters have warned that if mining projects in the United States are blocked, the same minerals will have to be sourced from countries with weaker protections for

human rights Human rights are universally recognized Morality, moral principles or Social norm, norms that establish standards of human behavior and are often protected by both Municipal law, national and international laws. These rights are considered ...

and the environment. Supporters include Alaska governor Mike Dunleavy and Alaska's two Senators—

Lisa Murkowski Lisa Ann Murkowski ( ; born May 22, 1957) is an American attorney and politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States senator from the state of Alaska, having held the seat since 2002. She is the first woman ...

and Dan Sullivan. The project is also supported by

mining industry Mining is the extraction of valuable geological materials and minerals from the surface of the Earth. Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through agricultural processes, or feasibly created artificially in a la ...

groups, some Alaska Native groups, and the Northwest Arctic and North Slope

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English language, English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History ...

governments.

References

External links

{{Commons category, Ambler Road
Ambler Road
on BLM National

NEPA The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) is a United States environmental law designed to promote the enhancement of the environment. It created new laws requiring List of federal agencies in the United States, U.S. federal government agenc ...