On January 23, the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities released a study that was created to evaluate and consider natural resource development opportunities west of the Susitna River.
The study was conducted by the DOT’s Roads to Resources Initiative and looked at the 6.2 million acres south of Denali National Park and Preserve which offer an abundance of natural resources, some of which include oil and gas, forestry and timber, hardrock minerals, coal, and alternative energy options.
Friday at the Industry Outlook Forum, CEO of Cook Inlet Energies, David Hall said that they have been in contact with the Roads to Resources Initiative and consider it very important to get a road system over there.
Hall: “It wasn’t a new project, the idea’s been around for a while. There was a right of way for that system many many years ago and it kind of fell off they radar so we’ve been trying to push for it for a long time now.
Much of the study area is inaccessible to existing road systems and access is limited to air or river travel. One objective of the study was to “identify locations that may benefit from a proposed surface connection”.
No decisions have been made about specific routes.