The US Department of the Interior has made progress in the last 6 months in responsibly developing oil and gas on public land, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said on June 24. It has offered 2.5 million acres, and companies have paid $60 billion in bonus bids and leasing fees for 782,280 acres, he reported.
“We have held 17 oil and gas lease sales since January and plan to hold another 20 sales in the next 6 months,” Salazar said. So far this year, BLM has offered 1,749 parcels totaling 2,261,854 acres and has sold leases on 866 parcels totaling 782,280 acres, collecting $60,108,904 in revenue.
Salazar’s statements came a day after Utah’s BLM office held its second lease sale for 2009. It was quieter than one that took place Dec. 18, 2008, when conservation groups sued because they felt the tracts were too close to national parks and monuments. Salazar agreed soon after becoming secretary and ordered BLM to reject the 77 successful bids.
But the June 23 sale still generated comment. Utah’s BLM office delayed issuing the 31 sold leases until protests arriving after the deadline are resolved.
Deviation from procedures
“The deviation from the set procedures by accepting the late protests does not promote confidence that the Obama administration is committed to an orderly and predictable lease sale process that allows development of energy resources that belong to the American people,” American Petroleum Institute Pres. Jack N. Gerard said on June 24.
Bethany Crandall, a Utah BLM spokeswoman, said the move was not a change. “We told bidders we were evaluating additional protests which had been received late, and to be aware that they may successfully bid for a parcel which has been protested,” she said on June 26.
The Center for Native Ecosystems and the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership (TRCP) each notified Utah’s BLM office that they intended to protest leases at the sale but would miss the filing deadline by a few hours, according to Crandall. “The only unusual part of the situation was that we accepted the protests late,” she said.
Protests are routine
BLM officials in other states told me that protests are routine. Sometimes, they can lead to delays for a few leases. Other times, all awarded tracts are put on hold.
Joel Webster, TRCP’s associate director of campaigns, welcomed the Utah decision. The group protested 2.5 million acres in five western states in 2007 and 2008 after concluding that fish and wildlife resources or hunting and fishing could be significantly affected if the areas were developed as proposed, he said.
“Sportsmen unreservedly support oil and gas production on America’s public lands. But responsible administration of these resources demands a consistent approach to leasing and development activities in order to sustain fish and wildlife, and to provide companies wishing to extract energy from our lands and waters an increased level of certainty in their investments and planning,” Webster said.
