US delays some Alaska mineral developments for 2 years

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — The U.S. Interior Department has announced a two-year delay of several orders issued by the Trump administration that looked to open 28 million acres of land in Alaska for mineral development. A statement by Interior Press Secretary Tyler Cherry on Thursday said the federal government’s decision will allow a review of five public land orders issued by the agency in the final days of the Trump administration. The decision covers land that Alaska can select for state ownership. The Anchorage Daily News reported that it also covers many of the lands that about 2,000 Vietnam-era Alaska Native veterans can select for allotments under a 2019 law.