President Joe Biden rolled out new actions on Friday to curb oil production and mining in Alaska, drawing criticism from Republicans and local leaders who say the move will compromise national security and hurt the economy.
The action, taken through the Department of Interior, blocks the granting of any new leases for oil drilling or mining on 13 million acres of the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska. Alaska is also blocked from building a road to a copper deposit in the Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve. The deposit was estimated to contain a …