Don't know if this is the correct forum, but maybe it should be posted in each forum. :eekster:
This is awful!
BLM offers 55,000 acres on Roan Plateau for oil, gas leases
AP
Posted: 2008-06-09 18:12:32
DENVER (AP) - About 55,000 acres on the Roan Plateau will be offered in an August auction of federal oil and gas leases despite calls by Gov. Bill Ritter for more protection for the western Colorado landmark.
Roughly 34,000 of the 55,186 acres up for lease are on top of the plateau, an area considered particularly sensitive by some because of the wildlife habitat, including streams home to genetically pure native cutthroat trout dating to the last ice age.
The U.S. Bureau of Land Management, which will offer the leases in an Aug. 14 auction in Denver, has said that efforts by Sen. Ken Salazar and Reps. Mark Udall and John Salazar to modify the management plan for the Roan Plateau wouldn't stop the agency from offering the leases.
"I am deeply disappointed that the administration is proceeding with its plan to auction off the entire top of the Roan Plateau for oil and gas development despite objections by the state of Colorado," Sen. Salazar said.
The BLM approved a final management plan in March that projects drilling 1,570 wells from 193 sites, or well pads, on the public land on the plateau over 20 years.
That includes 210 wells from 13 pads on top.
A bill by the three Colorado Democrats is similar to a plan by Gov. Bill Ritter that the BLM rejected. They propose that roughly 39,000 acres on the plateau be declared too environmentally sensitive to drill.
That's up from the 36,184 acres recommended by the governor and the 21,034 acres in the federal plan.
The bill includes the state's suggestion to phase in leases on top of the plateau rather than leasing the land all at once.
The Roan Plateau has become a focus as Colorado's natural drilling has increased. The BLM estimates the plateau about 180 miles west of Denver contains 9 trillion cubic feet of recoverable natural gas and could generate between $428 million and $565 million in royalties and lease payments for the state.
Conservationists have questioned the BLM's estimates, saying the amount of gas is likely lower. They also say the Roan provides crucial winter habitat for some of the country's largest elk and mule deer herds and is home to mountain lions, peregrine falcons, bears, rare plants and native cutthroat trout.
Several area communities have opposed drilling on public land on the plateau's top. There is drilling on private land.
This is awful!
BLM offers 55,000 acres on Roan Plateau for oil, gas leases
AP
Posted: 2008-06-09 18:12:32
DENVER (AP) - About 55,000 acres on the Roan Plateau will be offered in an August auction of federal oil and gas leases despite calls by Gov. Bill Ritter for more protection for the western Colorado landmark.
Roughly 34,000 of the 55,186 acres up for lease are on top of the plateau, an area considered particularly sensitive by some because of the wildlife habitat, including streams home to genetically pure native cutthroat trout dating to the last ice age.
The U.S. Bureau of Land Management, which will offer the leases in an Aug. 14 auction in Denver, has said that efforts by Sen. Ken Salazar and Reps. Mark Udall and John Salazar to modify the management plan for the Roan Plateau wouldn't stop the agency from offering the leases.
"I am deeply disappointed that the administration is proceeding with its plan to auction off the entire top of the Roan Plateau for oil and gas development despite objections by the state of Colorado," Sen. Salazar said.
The BLM approved a final management plan in March that projects drilling 1,570 wells from 193 sites, or well pads, on the public land on the plateau over 20 years.
That includes 210 wells from 13 pads on top.
A bill by the three Colorado Democrats is similar to a plan by Gov. Bill Ritter that the BLM rejected. They propose that roughly 39,000 acres on the plateau be declared too environmentally sensitive to drill.
That's up from the 36,184 acres recommended by the governor and the 21,034 acres in the federal plan.
The bill includes the state's suggestion to phase in leases on top of the plateau rather than leasing the land all at once.
The Roan Plateau has become a focus as Colorado's natural drilling has increased. The BLM estimates the plateau about 180 miles west of Denver contains 9 trillion cubic feet of recoverable natural gas and could generate between $428 million and $565 million in royalties and lease payments for the state.
Conservationists have questioned the BLM's estimates, saying the amount of gas is likely lower. They also say the Roan provides crucial winter habitat for some of the country's largest elk and mule deer herds and is home to mountain lions, peregrine falcons, bears, rare plants and native cutthroat trout.
Several area communities have opposed drilling on public land on the plateau's top. There is drilling on private land.
