Frequently Asked Questions about the Conservancy's work in Alaska's Arctic.

What area is the focus of the Conservancy’s Arctic program?

Alaska’s Arctic is an enormous area encompassing the Brooks Range mountains and foothills and the coastal plain of the Beaufort Sea. It extends west from the Canadian border all the way to the Bering Sea. The area includes 75 million acres—roughly the size of New Mexico, the 5^th largest state in the union. The Conservancy is focused primarily on the Arctic coastal plain (also known as the “Beaufort Coastal Plain ecoregion” or “The North Slope”) because of its very high value for biodiversity. The coastal plain is approximately the size of Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Connecticut combined.

Are the Arctic coastal plain and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge the same thing?

No. The coastal plain is a low-lying area of tundra and wetlands that extends east to west across the entire Beaufort Sea coast of Northern Alaska. The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (Arctic Refuge) is located in the northeastern portion of Alaska. It includes a portion of the Arctic coastal plain, a portion of the Brooks Range foothills and mountains, and a portion of the Davidson Mountains. At 19.6 million acres, the Arctic Refuge is roughly the size of South Carolina.

The “1002” section of the Arctic Refuge has long been the subject of controversy over potential oil drilling and exploration. These lands are primarily in the coastal plain portion of the refuge. At 1.5 million acres, the 1002 lands are twice the size of Rhode Island.

What is the Conservancy’s stance on the legislative debate to open the 1002 lands of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas exploration and drilling?

The Conservancy has not taken a position for or against the opening of the Arctic Refuge.

Why isn’t the Conservancy taking a position for or against opening the refuge?

The debate over oil drilling in the Arctic Refuge is highly polarized and divisive. Both sides have very significant values at stake and both sides have brought science to bear in support of their arguments. One of the Conservancy’s core approaches is a cooperative, solutions-based approach to conservation. We have carefully evaluated the situation and determined that the most effective and powerful contribution our particular organization can make to conservation of Arctic fish and wildlife is to focus on bringing diverse Arctic stakeholders together rather than further delineating sides.

Why is it important for the Conservancy to focus on bringing diverse Arctic interests together?

According to the Conservancy’s Arctic ecoregional assessment, 68% of the Arctic coastal plain—including both areas that have and have not been developed—is an area of high biological significance, yet there is no comprehensive strategy to conserve this vast, rich wildlife nursery over the long term. The Conservancy is working to develop and implement such a strategy with partners. This is essential to the conservation of Arctic fish and wildlife whether or not the 1002 lands of the refuge are opened to oil development.

How is the Conservancy developing this strategy?

Through our Arctic ecoregional assessment and community-based action in the Arctic, the Conservancy has established working relationships with the full range of stakeholders, including among others, local Native villages and tribal entities, the North Slope Borough, the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation, the Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Park Service, the State of Alaska, oil and gas companies such as ConocoPhillips and BP, and conservation organizations such as The Audubon Society and the Alaska Conservation Foundation. We are currently in discussions with these partners on how we can work together to establish a representative network of conservation reserves balanced with sustainable development of natural resources.

What is the ecoregional assessment and what is its role in this work?

The assessment is the first comprehensive biodiversity assessment of the entire region.

The assessment allows land managers across jurisdictions to work together to ensure their individual land use decisions are made in a regional context. Most studies of the Arctic address only specific portions of the region, with manmade boundaries such as planning units for federal management areas. No one else has undertaken such an assessment based on the natural boundaries of the habitats that the Arctic’s wide-ranging and migratory species use.

The assessment also identifies areas of biological significance—areas with important values to fish and wildlife. If managed with an emphasis on biological diversity, these areas would likely make a significant difference in the ability of the region’s fish and wildlife to thrive over the long term. The map of the areas provides a first step in ensuring that our network of conservation reserves are located in the most important areas for biological diversity.

Are the 1002 lands of the Arctic Refuge an area of biological significance according to the assessment?

Yes.

Does the assessment address whether or not oil development should occur in the 1002 lands?

No, the assessment does not address the compatibility of oil development and biodiversity conservation in any of the areas of biological significance. Because of the large scale of Arctic ecosystems and the wide-ranging nature of species that use them, these areas are necessarily very large. The scale of the assessment and its data are not fine enough to resolve use conflicts in specific areas of biological significance.

The Conservancy employs a finer-scale conservation planning process at specific areas of biological significance. This “5-S Framework for Conservation Project Management” includes identifying focal species and ecosystems and the stresses affecting them, determining the source of that stress, and developing both strategies to abate the stress and success measures to gauge the efficacy of our work. This process is undertaken with stakeholders and often involves a comprehensive situation analysis of local economic, political and social conditions and stakeholder interests.

What is the National Petroleum Reserve Alaska? Are there important places for conservation within the reserve?

Slightly larger than the state of Indiana, the National Petroleum Reserve Alaska (NPRA) was originally set aside in 1923 as an oil reserve for the U.S. Navy. In 1976, Congress transferred management to the Department of the Interior with a caveat that fish and wildlife values also be protected as petroleum was produced.

Large portions of the reserve, located both in the coastal plain and in the foothills, are in areas of biological significance. The area around Teshekpuk Lake, for example, is particularly important. Lands surrounding the lake, particularly those to the north and east, are very significant for waterfowl and caribou. Tens of thousands of geese go through their vulnerable molting stage here, including as much as 30% of the world’s Pacific black brant.

What is the Conservancy’s stance on Teshekpuk Lake?

In a recent EIS process for the northeast planning unit of NPRA, the Bureau of Land Management has recommended opening the areas around Teshekpuk Lake to oil exploration and drilling, with certain stipulations. The final record of decision is currently pending. The Conservancy did not advocate for a particular EIS alternative, but we participated in the public comment process, providing information from our ecoregional assessment on the very high regional importance of the area to biological diversity and certain species. The Conservancy recommended that protection of important species and habitat within the area of Teshekpuk Lake be of paramount importance. Click here to view the comments.

Why is the Conservancy working in the northwest Arctic on the Wainwright Traditional Use Area Project?

The traditional subsistence use area of the Inupiaq people of Wainwright includes Kasegaluk Lagoon and the Utokok Uplands among other areas of biological significance. Kasegaluk Lagoon provides important habitat for spotted, ringed, and bearded seals, and a major summer concentration of beluga whales. The richness and diversity of bird species is greater at Kasegaluk than any other lagoon system in the Chukchi or Beaufort Seas. The Utokok Uplands serve as calving grounds for the Western Arctic Caribou Herd.

The Wainwright Traditional Council believes its best opportunity to ensure the future of the fish and wildlife on which its people depend is to plan now in advance of development. The Council has enlisted the Conservancy to help develop a conservation plan it can take the federal, state, borough and Native corporate entities that manage the land. The Conservancy hopes that Wainwright’s project will inspire other villages in both developed and undeveloped Arctic areas to embark on similar projects for their traditional use areas.

The Arctic is the location of some of the fastest warming on Earth in terms of global climate change, and Arctic species are expected to be highly impacted. How does the Conservancy’s program address the very significant threat of climate change?

The Conservancy, through its Global Climate Change Initiative, is identifying and implementing strategies that will help slow the rate of global warming and protect plants, animals and our natural environment against its inevitable impacts.

At present, deforestation accounts for one-quarter of annual carbon dioxide emissions, while the protection and restoration of forests may be able to offset up to 20% of carbon dioxide emissions over the next 50 years. The Conservancy is demonstrating the value of forest and grassland conservation in reducing emissions by implementing climate action projects, including six in the United States, Belize, Bolivia and Brazil. These projects safeguard more than 1.7 million acres while reducing the build-up of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

Along the Arctic coast of Alaska specifically, Conservancy climate change scientists are studying the susceptibility of caribou and other target species to climatic changes, identifying areas that may offer them refuge. This information may then be used along with the Arctic ecoregional assessment to help identify important areas for conservation.

To learn more about the climate change initiative, click here.

Where does the funding come from for the Conservancy’s work in the Arctic?

Funding for the Conservancy’ work in Alaska’s Arctic comes from a wide range of sources, including both public agency support and private sources, such as individuals, corporations, and foundation. The Wainwright project, for example, is largely funded by a grant from the Environmental Protection Agency to the Wainwright Traditional Council. We are seeking additional funding for this project. The Arctic Ecoregional Assessment was funded by our full range of contributors, including oil companies such as ConocoPhillips and BP and the conservation organization The Audubon Society. The largest funding contributions to the assessment came from federal agencies, including the US Fish and Wildlife Service and the Bureau of Land Management. General support for our Arctic Program staff comes from our general operations fund for the Alaska Chapter. Climate Change work is also funded via the Conservancy’s Global Climate Change Initiative.