Groups seek to block lease plans for Alaska refuge

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) _ Indigenous and conservation groups asked a federal judge Tuesday to block the

Trump administration from issuing oil and gas leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

The groups in separate filings requested a decision by Jan. 6, the date of a scheduled lease sale.

They say the issuance of leases and proposed seismic exploration should be halted pending resolution of their claims challenging the adequacy of environmental reviews on which the sale

and exploration plans are based.

Karlin Itchoak, Alaska state director for The Wilderness Society, in a statement said the...