55 Democrats Urge Biden to Expand Arctic Protections

(Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

A group of 55 Democratic lawmakers is calling on the Biden administration to enhance protections for the Arctic, citing the urgent need to address climate change and safeguard wildlife habitats, The Hill reported.

Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., and Rep. Jared Huffman, D-Calif., have spearheaded an effort by more than 50 Democratic lawmakers urging the Biden administration to expand federal protections in the Arctic. The lawmakers addressed their concerns in a letter to the U.S. Department of the Interior, requesting additional safeguards for critical Arctic regions threatened by climate change and potential industrial development.

The letter arrives as the Interior Department reviews whether to extend protections across a 23-million-acre section of the western Arctic. This follows a July call for public comments on the issue, marking an important step in ongoing conservation efforts in the area.

The push for additional protections comes as the effects of climate change become more pronounced in the Arctic. “This opportunity to take a renewed look at needed protections is especially timely, as the effects of climate change in the Arctic — from declining sea ice, permafrost thaw, and record temperatures — are felt more acutely than ever before,” the lawmakers wrote. “New extractive development encroaches more and more into important habitat and subsistence areas.”

The Interior Department has played a key role in designating “Special Areas” within the Arctic since the 1970s. Earlier this year, the Biden administration expanded protections across 13.3 million acres, including Teshekpuk Lake, Utukok Uplands, and Peard Bay Special Areas. These regions are known for their globally significant habitats that support species such as grizzly and polar bears, caribou, and vast numbers of migratory birds.

In April, the Biden administration’s rule codified a ban on new oil and gas leasing across 10.6 million acres, consistent with the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska’s (NPR-A) Integrated Activity Plan. This move restricted future industrial development in many of the region’s most critical ecosystems.

The letter was signed by several high-profile Democratic senators, including Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and 45 House Democrats. They argue that the rapidly changing climate is creating a critical need for stronger protections in the Arctic to support both wildlife and local communities.

Tracy Stone-Manning, director of the Bureau of Land Management, emphasized the importance of these Special Areas. “With the rapidly changing climate, the Special Areas are increasingly critical to caribou movement and herd health, as well as other wildlife, migratory birds, and native plants,” she said in a statement.

“There’s no place else on earth quite like the Western Arctic, and the animals there are as unique and majestic as the landscape,” said Ellen Montgomery, Public Lands Campaign Director at Environment America. She stressed the importance of preserving wildlife habitats, especially as warming temperatures degrade the region, FOE reported in July.

Despite their support for these protective measures, environmentalists have criticized the Biden administration’s approval last year of the Willow oil drilling project in Alaska, which many argue threatens the long-term health of the Arctic ecosystem.