Alaska state agencies aren’t above using deception to advance plans for an unpopular road.
The West Susitna is roadless for a reason. It’s a global salmon stronghold—home to all five species of salmon found in Alaska—and beloved by outdoor recreationalists of all stripes.
That uniqueness is why Alaskans have said no to past projects that put this area at risk. And it’s why they’re gearing up to say no to the West Susitna Industrial Access Road this spring, when the latest phase of this project opens for public comment.
This road would be devastating for the West Susitna region, says Wild Salmon Center Alaska Director Emily Anderson. For starters, it would run for 100 miles into the heart of the West Susitna backcountry, crosscutting and damaging at least 83 free-flowing salmon streams in the process. This damage would come at public expense: costing at least $600 million in public funding all to the benefit foreign mining companies.
“The West Susitna is one of the most visited areas in the state,” Anderson says. “West Su tourism supports hundreds of small businesses and thousands of jobs. This road risks all that, and puts Alaskans on the hook for hundreds of millions of dollars.”
Since 2014, the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority (AIDEA) has pushed for this road despite strong opposition from Alaska business owners, Tribes, hunters, anglers, mushers, and outdoor enthusiasts. The Defend the West Susitna coalition has been key to making Alaskans’ voices heard throughout this long process, Anderson says.
“Alaskans can’t afford to waste these public funds to subsidize foreign mining companies,” she notes. “Especially now, when state funding is sorely needed for essential services like education.”
Because the original road proposal has become so unpopular, some agencies are now trying to advance the industrial road through indirect means. In July 2024, the Alaska Department of Transportation (DOT) proposed what it said was an unrelated 22-mile “recreation” road—albeit one that ends exactly where AIDEA’s industrial road begins. Local business leaders called out the deception.
“West Su tourism supports hundreds of small businesses and thousands of jobs. This road risks all that, and puts Alaskans on the hook for hundreds of millions of dollars.”
Wild Salmon Center Alaska Program Director Emily Anderson
When scoping for the DOT road’s public review opened in August 2024 , thousands of Alaskans again spoke out in opposition. (Later this year, when DOT’s environmental assessment is released, the public will have another chance to speak up.)
Now, there’s a third road proposal in the works—one that aims to pick up at the other end of AIDEA’s industrial road. Australia’s Nova Minerals—one of the speculators that stands to benefit from publicly-funded access to its remote mining claims—has applied to build its own 12.4-mile road at an airstrip that marks the tail end of the 100-mile road.
“Alaskans can’t afford to waste these public funds to subsidize foreign mining companies. Especially now, when state funding is sorely needed for essential services like education.”
Wild Salmon Center Alaska Program Director Emily Anderson
“Nova is banking on Alaskans to invest at least $600 million to subsidize its speculation,” Anderson says. “But state leaders need to listen to what Alaskans have been saying for the past decade: we don’t want the West Su to be privatized, let alone at public expense.”
The West Su is an Alaskan treasure, she says—a special place where the value of unparalleled fishing, hunting, and outdoor recreation clearly outweighs industrial development.
That’s why this year, and for as long as it takes to stop this project, we’ll be there to hold state agencies accountable—alongside Alaska business owners, Tribes, hunters, anglers, mushers, and outdoor enthusiasts.
“State leaders need to listen to what Alaskans have been saying for the past decade: we don’t want the West Su to be privatized, let alone at public expense.”
Wild Salmon Center Alaska Program Director Emily Anderson
