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The decision comes as President Joe Biden's administration faces
heavy criticism from environmental groups for its approval
earlier this week of a massive oil and gas development in
Alaska's Arctic.
In a statement, the Interior Department said Secretary Deb
Haaland withdrew the 2019 land exchange deal between the agency
and the Alaska native King Cove Corporation, but would be open
to examining other proposals to replace it.
Supporters of the land swap in the Izembek National Wildlife
Refuge in southeast Alaska have argued that a road is crucial to
giving residents of King Cove, an Aleut village of about 1,000
people, access to an airstrip at the village of Cold Bay in case
of medical or other emergencies.
Environmentalists have said a road would destroy valuable
habitat for birds along Kinzarof Lagoon, and would set a
dangerous precedent for other wildlife refuges.
The deal set by Trump's Interior Secretary David Bernhardt in
2019 was particularly controversial because it left open the
door to commercial use of the road.
Haaland said the debate had "created a false choice, seeded over
many years, between valuing conservation and wildlife or
upholding our commitments to Indigenous communities."
She directed her agency to review previous land exchange
proposals, including one that was rejected by the Obama
administration in 2013 that would have allowed a road for
primarily health and safety purposes.
(Reporting by Nichola Groom; Editing by Bill Berkrot)
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