Conservation groups sue government over Alaska mining road

Conservation groups filed a lawsuit challenging a right-of-way permit through the Northwest Alaska wilderness for an industrial road to the Ambler Mining District that was approved by the federal government.

Trustees for Alaska and the Western Mining Action Project filed the lawsuit Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Alaska on behalf of the Northern Alaska Environmental Center and eight other groups, The Anchorage Daily News reported.

The Bureau of Land Management and other defendants failed to follow federal environmental laws and regulations, the lawsuit alleged.

The gravel road will pollute the region's land and water and harm wildlife and residents, the lawsuit claims.

Defendants named in the lawsuit include the bureau, the U.S. Department of the Interior, the National Park Service, the Army Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Coast Guard.

The road would link Alaska's road system north of Fairbanks to the mineral-rich Ambler Mining District, ending near Ambler and other villages. Part of the road would cross Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve.

The Alaska Industrial and Development Export Authority applied for the right-of-way permit.

The land management bureau issued a record of decision in July saying the road stretching about 322 kilometreswill serve the public interest, boost state revenues and employ thousands of workers during road and mine construction.