ANCHORAGE, Alaska - The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is seeking public input on a draft supplemental environmental impact statement (SEIS) evaluating the effects of a proposed land exchange involving certain lands owned by King Cove Corporation and lands owned by the Interior Department located within the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska. The notice will be published in the Federal Register this week.
The draft SEIS supplements the Service’s 2013 EIS on the impacts of a then-proposed land exchange and road corridor and the viability of alternatives to provide safe and reliable transportation for noncommercial health, safety and subsistence uses between the City of King Cove and the airport at Cold Bay, Alaska.
In addition to the action alternatives presented in the 2013 EIS, this draft SEIS includes updated analysis and an additional new land exchange alternative for consideration. While alternatives 2 and 3 were brought forward from the 2013 EIS, they are no longer viable alternatives and were included for comparison purposes only.
On March 14, 2023, Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland withdrew from a 2019 Exchange Agreement with King Cove Corporation. Her decision memorandum identified concerns with the analysis of the potential impacts of the exchange on subsistence and highlighted shortcomings in the record regarding the National Environmental Policy Act and Endangered Species Act analyses. In addition, the memorandum expressed concerns with the terms of the exchange agreement and the nonpublic manner in which the 2019 Exchange Agreement was accomplished.
In a statement announcing that decision, Secretary Haaland said “I am a lifelong conservationist, and I believe deeply in the need to protect our lands and waters and honor our obligations to Tribal Nations. Respecting Tribal sovereignty means ensuring that we are listening – really listening – to Tribal communities.” In April 2022, Secretary Haaland traveled to King Cove to hear from the community about the significant health and safety challenges they face with the area’s existing infrastructure.
Unlike the last administration's exchange, the new SEIS makes it clear that promoting economic development does not provide legal support for the exchange – any land exchange must advance the conservation purposes of the wildlife refuge system in Alaska, while protecting subsistence uses and habitat. The draft demonstrates how conservation and subsistence are enhanced through this exchange: the refuge system will increase by 30,000 acres and over 1,700 of those acres will come into Wilderness status.
On May 17, 2023, the Service published a Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare this SEIS in the Federal Register. The NOI opened public scoping from May 18–June 20, 2023. Following the scoping period, the Service used public comments to inform updates to the information used in the 2013 EIS and to inform the scope of issues to be addressed in this SEIS. The Service consulted with Tribal governments and Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act corporations during the SEIS process and will continue to conduct consultations. In-person and virtual public meetings, as well as Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act section 810 hearings, will also be offered on this proposal.
Once the public comment period closes, the Service will review the comments received and revise the Draft SEIS, as appropriate, to prepare the final SEIS. For more information about the proposed action, public comment process, and how to provide substantive comments, please visit: Land Exchange Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement Information and Documents.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service works with others to conserve, protect, and enhance fish, wildlife, plants, and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. In Alaska we are shared stewards of world-renowned natural resources and our nation’s last true wild places. Our hope is that each generation has the opportunity to live with, live from, discover and enjoy the wildness of this awe-inspiring land and the people who love and depend on it.
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