Field Trip: Gates of the Arctic National Park
Today we join Lillian Cunningham on a \u201cField Trip\u201d to one of the most remote and least-visited national parks as she confronts the question facing its future: whether a portion of this untouched wilderness will soon include a path for industry.
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Established in 1980, Gates of the Arctic marked a radically different way of thinking about what a national park should be. Compared to previously established parks, it\u2019s hard for the public to access. This park is truly undeveloped \u2014 there are no roads or infrastructure. And it\u2019s immense. You could fit Yosemite, Glacier, Everglades, White Sands, Death Valley and the Grand Canyon within its borders and still have room to spare.
But even here, in one of the most remote and least-visited of the national parks, the outside world is finding its way in.
Ten miles west of the park, mining companies are drilling for copper. The metal is necessary for a number of green technologies, including electric vehicles, solar panels and wind turbines. The mines could support President Biden\u2019s goals to reduce the use of fossil fuels and beef up domestic sources of critical minerals.
To access these mines, the state has proposed an access road that would cut through 211 miles of Arctic tundra. Twenty-six miles of the road would cross through Gates of the Arctic. Biden has pledged to conserve nearly a third of U.S. land and water by 2030, and his administration has stopped similar mining projects. Environmentalists and some Native American groups are also fighting to have the wilderness preserved.
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