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Any discussion of conserving the Western Arctic must include the National Petroleum Reserve–Alaska (NPR–A). Despite its name, the NPR–A is an area with incredible ecological and cultural values. These lands are home to extraordinary wildlife and the Iñupiaq people, who have lived here for thousands of years. 

Within the Reserve, five designated Special Areas, totaling approximately 13-million acres, are recognized for their outstanding subsistence, recreational, fish and wildlife, or historical or scenic value. These areas include Teshekpuk Lake, Colville River, Utukok River Uplands, Kasegaluk Lagoon, and Pear Bay Special Areas. 

The Coastal Plain of Alaska’s North Slope, which makes up a large portion of the Western Arctic, is one of the largest wetland complexes in the circumpolar Arctic. This unique habitat attracts a globally significant abundance of waterfowl, shore­birds, and raptors. Birds from the Western Arctic disperse along all four major migratory flyways of the United States, as well as to Asia and beyond. Iconic Arctic mammals gather here too, including caribou, muskoxen, and polar bears.   

The Teshekpuk Lake Special Area, one of Alaska’s most unique and fragile ecosystems, teems with birds in the spring and summer and is one of the most ecologically important wetlands on Earth. The Teshekpuk wetlands complex provides abundant habitat for birds and wildlife, including tens of thousands of molting geese, 600,000 nesting shorebirds, threatened species such as the Spectacled Eider, and the Teshekpuk Caribou Herd. 

Climate change and the expansion of oil development threaten the ecological integrity of this landscape. By law, the federal government is required to protect the Reserve’s Special Areas and unique values. For decades, ̽»¨¾«Ñ¡ has worked to ensure these protections and to advance stewardship across the region.