AIDEA: AMBLER ROAD WON’T NEGATIVELY IMPACT CARIBOU
during migrations for many years. These observations suggest the WAH migrations will not likely be blocked by the Ambler Road. n Natural factors as primary influences: Predation by bears and wolves, especially on calves, and winter weather and icing events, are primary factors impacting the WAH. The Ambler Road’s influence on the WAH will likely be minor compared to these natural factors. n Regular road crossings by caribou: Caribou regularly cross highways and mining roads during migrations in other parts of Alaska and Canada. The proposed Ambler Road will be closed to the public, with only mining vehicle traffic. No hunting will be permitted on or from the road. n Ambler Access Project Subsistence Advisory Committee (AAP SAC) Oversight & Recommendations: The AAP SAC adopted and improved upon the best practices in place of the Red Dog Road and Port Subsistence and Wildlife Policies. The SAC has request- ed the Department of Interior to implement predator control around the Western Arctic herd in NPR-A and all federal lands where predator control is allowed, to reduce the impacts of predation on the WAH.
maintenance of wildlife populations similar to Red Dog.”
Key findings from the report, noted by AIDEA, include:
n Minimal habitat loss: The proposed road footprint is less than 0.005% of the WAH’s 92.2-million-acre range and is unlikely to negatively affect habitat loss. n Lack of interference with major migration routes: The primary migration routes of the WAH have been west and north of the proposed road. The number of collared caribou crossing the proposed road route during fall migrations and winter has been small in past years. n Ambler Road and mine’s location are not near WAH calving grounds: The Ambler Road and associ- ated mines are located over 150 miles away from the Western Arctic Caribou core calving grounds, some of which are in and near the National Petroleum Reserve– Alaska (NPR-A). n Demonstrated migration resilience across existing infrastructure: Caribou have successfully crossed the Dalton Highway and other roads in Alaska and Canada
district.
COURTESY AIDEA A new independent scientific review commissioned by the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority (AIDEA) concludes that the proposed Ambler Access Project is unlikely to have significant negative impacts on the Western Arctic Caribou Herd (WAH), the largest caribou herd in Alaska. Wildlife geneticist Matthew A. Cronin, Ph.D., of Northwest Biology and Forestry Company LLC, con- ducted the review and compiled his findings into a report titled “A Review of Information on Caribou in Relation to the Ambler Road Project in Northern Alaska.” It evaluates decades of caribou movement data, existing infrastructure impacts and the proposed design and operating rules of the 211-mile proposed private Ambler Road in northern Alaska that would connect the Dalton Highway to the Ambler mining
“There has been concern that the Ambler Road could impact the WAH numbers, migration and habitat use,” AIDEA officials noted upon release of the review data. “The findings of the report indicate that it is unlikely the project will have significant impacts, given the proposed Ambler Road’s design and management, and the herd’s past distribution and movements.” In addition, AIDEA notes that “Previous reports of the Red Dog Road negatively affecting caribou migration failed to highlight the effects of hunting activity and predation. The report notes that AIDEA’s Red Dog Road and Port infrastructure typically allows the WAH to cross during their fall migration. The Ambler Access Project is an example of a resource development project that can coexist with subsistence harvest and
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THE ALASKA MINER - THE MAGAZINE OF THE ALASKA MINERS ASSOCIATION
WINTER 2026 | ALASKAMINERS.ORG
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