The US Department of the Interior will open 7 million acres of additional Alaska lands to oil and natural gas leasing in a plan released June 25. Receive daily email alerts, subscriber notes & personalize your experience. Register Now Interior officials have approved a Final Environmental Impact Statement for a revised land management plan in the 23 million-acre National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska. NPR-A is west of currently producing fields on the North Slope, which are on state-owned lands. A Record of Decision, formally approving the new plan, is expected in 30 days, Interior said in a statement. Agency officials chose the most aggressive alternative under the plan, which would open 18.6 million acres of the 23 […]