Alaska Board of Game proposes hunting, trapping rules for Ambler Road

The Alaska Board of Game is proposing regulations to restrict hunting and trapping near the proposed Ambler Road corridor of the 211-mile industrial route is built across the southern Brooks Range. The changes would affect Game Management Units 23 and 24, which cover large portions of Northwest Alaska and the central Brooks Range.

The board issued a public notice June 12 proposing amendments to two sections of state hunting and trapping regulations: one which identifies areas closed to taking big game, and another which establishes areas where trapping is prohibited or restricted.

The regulations would take effect only if the road is constructed.

The proposed Ambler Road remains subject to federal permitting by the Bureau of Land Management, which released a draft supplemental environmental impact statement in 2023 analyzing impacts to subsistence, wildlife, fisheries, and other resources. Construction is not guaranteed.

Unit 23 includes Kotzebue Sound, the Noatak and Kobuk river drainages, and portions of the western Brooks Range. Unit 24 covers interior drainages of the central Brooks Range, including portions of the Koyukuk and upper Kobuk rivers.

The board will hold hearings July 22-23 at the Westmark Fairbanks Hotel & Conference Center, from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., and may extend to July 24 to accommodate those present before 1:00 p.m. on July 22 who did not have an opportunity to comment.

The board's notice states that there will be no cost associated with hunting and trapping in the vicinity of the Ambler Road initially, but there could be a cost associated with implementation of the regulations if the road is built.