Arctic District Office

The Arctic District Office manages 23.1 million acres of public lands north of the Brooks Range from its main office in Fairbanks and the Barrow Field Station in Utqiaġvik. The area covered by the Arctic District Office includes the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska, the largest contiguous block of federal land managed by a single agency. The petroleum reserve provides for significant oil and gas exploration and development activities, important habitat for migratory birds and caribou, and subsistence hunting and fishing access for rural residents.

View Arctic District Office Boundary Map

The district office's priority is to provide for the energy needs of the nation while protecting the environment and subsistence resources that are critically important to the people of the North Slope. The office is currently engaged in several land use plans and environmental impact statements related to oil and gas leasing and development in the Alaskan Arctic.