US BLM sets December California oil, gas lease sale
The US Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) California field office Oct. 1 announced a Dec. 1 oil and gas lease sale covering 43 parcels and about 35,000 acres in California, advancing President Trump’s plan to restart federal leasing in the state after years of litigation and environmental review.
While about 97% of the acreage offered lies in Kern County, BLM also plans to auction smaller, isolated parcels in Kings, Fresno, and San Luis Obispo counties. More than 95% of federal drilling operations in California currently take place in established fields in the Kern County area of the San Joaquin Valley, according to BLM.
More than half of the proposed lease acreage involves a split estate, in which the federal government owns the underlying oil and gas minerals while a private party owns the surface land.
The announcement opens a 30-day public protest period that will close Nov. 2. BLM completed initial scoping for the parcels in July and concluded a public comment period on the lease plan and environmental assessment in September.
California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta criticized BLM’s environmental analysis, released in August, saying the review relies on earlier planning documents and fails to adequately account for California’s restrictions on drilling near homes and schools and its phaseout of hydraulic fracturing.
About the Author
Cathy Landry
Washington Correspondent
Cathy Landry has worked over 20 years as a journalist, including 17 years as an energy reporter with Platts News Service (now S&P Global) in Washington and London.
She has served as a wire-service reporter, general news and sports reporter for local newspapers and a feature writer for association and company publications.
Cathy has deep public policy experience, having worked 15 years in Washington energy circles.
She earned a master’s degree in government from The Johns Hopkins University and studied newspaper journalism and psychology at Syracuse University.