JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — The Trump administration said Thursday it is rescinding federal rules that were aimed at protecting from future oil and gas leasing vast swaths of a petroleum reserve in Alaska that provide key habitat for migrating birds, caribou and other wildlife.
The U.S. Interior Department said the final rule would be published next week but announced it is repealing rules put in place last year. Those rules restricted future leasing and industrial development in areas within the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska designated as special for wildlife, subsistence or other values.