📷 Izembek harbors one of the largest eelgrass beds in the world, which is why this marine wetland complex was the first American site designated under the RAMSAR Convention | Gerrit Vyn / Cornell Lab of Ornithology

The Department of the Interior recently announced that Secretary Deb Haaland rescinded a 2019 proposed land exchange in the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge that authorized a road to be constructed through the heart of this pristine Alaskan landscape. The National Wildlife Refuge Association has worked for decades to protect the Izembek NWR from this threat and celebrates this important step towards safeguarding America's most ecologically significant national wildlife refuge.

In its statement, the Department recognized that this land exchange process was flawed and not consistent with Departmental policy. They now intend to renew the process to review other proposals for a land exchange that would allow a road. These critically important wetlands must be protected for future generations, as Congress intended. Construction of a road would have devastating impacts on more than half a million Pacific brant, emperor geese, swans, and other wildlife, resulting in habitat fragmentation, disturbance, and pollution.

We hope the withdrawal of this land exchange agreement signals a commitment to preserving the conservation values of the refuge and the rest of Alaska’s conservation lands. The Refuge Association will continue to work towards permanent protection of the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge.