Defenders' Experts
Izembek National Wildlife Refuge and Wilderness Threatened by Road
Congress passes public lands package
April 15, 2009 - The package of more than 160 public lands bills assembled by Congressional leaders (H.R. 146) cleared the House on March 25, 2009 and was signed by President Obama on Monday, March 30.
While the vast majority of measures passed in the package are good for American wildlife, and natural lands and waters, the legislation also authorizes a harmful and unnecessary land swap for a road to be built through the heart of the pristine Izembek National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska.
The fate of Izembek Refuge is now in the hands of Department of the Interior, whose Secretary can decide whether or not to proceed with the land exchange and road construction. Defenders is working to make sure that Interior Secretary Ken Salazar is fully aware of the negative and unnecessary impacts this road would have.
Read our press release to learn more about the full public lands package >>
On the tip of the Alaska Peninsula, Izembek National Wildlife Refuge supports a wide diversity of wildlife, including millions of migratory birds, salmon, and many charismatic land and sea mammals.
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Izembek Refuge is one of the few truly pristine areas remaining in the United States, upon which many unique species depend. The wetlands of Izembek Refuge were the first in the U.S. to be designated as "Internationally Important" under the Ramsar Convention, and the National Audubon Society and American Bird Conservancy have both formally recognized Izembek Refuge as an “Important Bird Area.” Most of Izembek Refuge's 315,000 acres are designated as Wilderness, which adds additional protections to the Refuge.
The Threat: Road Construction
Two public lands bill allows for new road construction in the biological heart of the Izembek Refuge; between Izembek and Kimzarof Lagoons.
The new road would scar and erode the fragile tundra and divide now-pristine wildlife habitat for grizzly bear, caribou, moose, salmon, and countless migratory birds. Passage of these bills would also require the de-designation of Wilderness, setting a terrible precedent for pristine Wilderness areas everywhere.
Wildlife Value of the Refuge
The narrow strip of rolling tundra between Izembek and Kinzarof lagoons provides important nesting or feeding areas for tundra swans and many other species. The shallow lagoons support possibly the largest eelgrass beds in the world, which provide vital food for more than 98% of the world's Pacific black brant before they fly non-stop to wintering grounds in Mexico each fall.
Other sensitive species that depend on these intact wetlands and eelgrass beds include emperor geese, federally threatened Steller’s eiders, and millions of other waterfowl and shorebirds.
Caribou use the Izembek Refuge as wintering grounds and brown bear use the area around the isthmus for denning. Red fox, wolves and wolverines are found on the refuge and harbor seals and sea otters can be seen along the coastline and in the lagoons. Coho, chum, sockeye and pink salmon return in great numbers to the many streams of Izembek Refuge to spawn each year.
The road is not needed.
The road is proposed to connect the small villages of King Cove and Cold Bay. Proponents of the road say that it is necessary to provide a reliable route for King Cove residents to get to the airport in Cold Bay for subsequent transport to Anchorage during medical emergencies. However, this issue was resolved in 1998 when Congress provided $37.5 million through the King Cove Health and Safety Act. That money amounts to more than $45,000 per King Cove resident, and funded dramatic improvements to the medical clinic in King Cove and the purchase of a $9 million state-of-the-art hovercraft to provide regular ferry service and emergency medevac transport to Cold Bay. The hovercraft can operate in high winds and seas and just recently, rescued the captain and crew from their burning ship.
The road would cause significant harm to wildlife.
Congress rejected the road proposal in 1998 because of the extreme negative environmental impacts it would have on the Izembek Refuge. The proposed road would result in dramatic impacts to wildlife that rely on the pristine tundra and fertile lagoons. Some anticipated impacts include all the well-known negative effects of habitat fragmentation, disturbance from vehicle traffic, soil erosion, litter, and water pollution. Further, a road through what is now pristine, remote Wilderness would facilitate off-road vehicle abuse and possible poaching of wildlife.
The land exchange sacrifices internationally recognized wildlife habitat.
Last year, proponents of the road attempted to sweeten the deal by offering a land exchange. The Izembek Refuge and Alaska Peninsula Refuge would receive a total of 61,000 acres and in exchange, would sacrifice 206 acres of Izembek’s wilderness to the state of Alaska for road construction. Sounds like a good deal on the surface, but no amount of compensation can offset the fact that the biological heart of Izembek Refuge would be forever ruined. The 61,000 acres offered are mostly upland areas, inferior in quality and wildlife diversity to the internationally recognized wetland habitat that the 206 acres now provide. Simply exchanging these lands would not make up for the habitat lost to construction, nor would the newly acquired land provide habitat for the same species. Finally, the exchange lands are under no threat of development, meaning that there would be no net conservation benefit to this deal.
The road is incompatible with Izembek NWR's stated purpose.
Izembek Refuge was established for the purpose of conserving wildlife and habitat. And a Congressional designation of “wilderness” adds extra protection to the refuge. Building a road through this area is not compatible with Izembek's intended uses and violates principles and protections made clear in that National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997. Further, road construction would require Congress to de-designate this wilderness area, setting a terrible precedent for other wilderness areas to be destroyed.
Resources
Izembek National Wildlife Refuge Map
Press Release: Rep. Don Young's pet road project to come under House scrutiny (4/21/2008)
Other National Wildlife Refuges at risk
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