SAN FRANCISCO — Alaska Gov. Bill Walker announced this week that he is allowing the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority to spend up to $3.6 million, which had already been appropriated, to continue early work on a proposed bond-financed road project.
Walker made the announcement that he was allowing the spending based on a clarification of Administrative Order 271, a December memo that halted all new spending on six major projects, including the Ambler Road Project. The project, still in the Environmental Impact Statement phase, would be an approximately 200-mile industrial access road from the Dalton Highway to the mineral-rich Ambler Mining District in northwest Alaska. AIDEA funds and bonds would be used in conjunction with private capital for the construction and operation of the road, according to the AIDEA website.
“My team reviewed this project and has clarified what ‘discretionary spending’ means for this project,” Walker said. “As we wrestle with a $3.5 billion deficit, it’s important that we examine all spending. With the Ambler Road project, the $3.6 million had already been appropriated, so this clarification allows the project to progress to a natural stopping point instead of stalled mid-step.”
The money allows AIDEA to begin the EIS process.
