North Slope eastern coast open for travel
Petroleum News
The eastern coastal area of the North Slope opened for winter off-road travel Jan. 5, having met criteria of 6 inches of snow and soil temperatures colder than minus-5 degrees C at 30 centimeters depth.
The Alaska Department of Natural Resources’ Division of Mining, Land and Water said in its opening announcement that the opening applies only to operators with valid off-road vehicle travel permits to operate on state-owned lands on the North Slope.
The western coastal area opened for winter-season tundra travel Dec. 17.
The division said that while overall snow cover is good, it may be thin in some areas, and those areas should be avoided or special construction methods used to protect tundra surface.
The division’s stipulations for winter off-road vehicle travel require adequate frost and snow cover and approval of individual routes of travel.
Site inspections will be conducted periodically to ensure compliance.
- Petroleum News
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