The primary public interests in retaining areas of state land surface in public ownership are (1) to make them available on a sustained-yield basis for a variety of beneficial uses including subsistence, energy development, aquaculture, forestry, grazing, sport hunting and fishing, hiking, snowmobiling, skiing, and other activities of a type which can generally be made available to more people and conducted more successfully if the land is in public rather than private ownership; (2) to facilitate mining and mineral leasing by managing appropriate public land for surface uses which are compatible with subsurface uses; (3) to protect critical wildlife habitat and areas of special scenic, recreational, scientific, or other environmental concern; (4) to restrict development in hazardous locations such as floodplains and avalanche zones; and (5) to guide the location of settlement and development to minimize public costs and maximize social and economic benefits.
Alaska Legal Code