For Immediate Release: November 9, 2004
Contact: Beverly Derringer 303-239-3765        
Steven Hall 970-244-3052
Vaughn Whatley 303-239-3766

CO BLM November oil and gas lease sale nets more than $3.6 million

DENVER - On Tuesday, November 9, at its quarterly oil and gas lease sale, the BLM Colorado State Office sold 41 parcels, totaling about 30,988 acres of federal land, which netted $3,663,033 in revenue.

The Mineral Leasing Act of 1920 and the 1987 Federal Onshore Oil and Gas Leasing Reform Act authorize leasing of Federal oil and gas resources.  The 1987 law, which amended the Mineral Leasing Act, requires each BLM state office to conduct oil and gas lease sales on at least a quarterly basis.  This sale was consistent with the 1969 National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and with the BLM’s existing land-use plans, which guide management of all activities on BLM public lands. 

“We want to protect wildlife and landscapes while working to develop our badly needed domestic sources of energy,” said BLM State Director Ron Wenker.  “Our focus is on smart upfront planning and solid implementation of best practices to reduce environmental impacts on public and private lands and resources.” 

Protections are in place to minimize potential impacts from oil and gas exploration, development and production.  Moreover, all leases offered by BLM contain a stipulation for the protection of threatened and endangered species habitat. “It is important to remember that energy development and protection of natural resources are not mutually exclusive on public lands,” said Wenker.  “BLM ensures that development of energy resources is done in an environmentally sound manner on all lands we manage.” 

BLM lease sales are competitive and conducted by oral bidding.  For most Federal oil and gas leases, 50 percent of the revenues collected are returned to the states where the oil and gas activity occurs.  In 2004, 36 states received a total of $1.24 billion (Colorado received $80 million) as part of their share of Federal mineral revenues collected by the Interior Department’s Minerals Management Service.  In 2003, 36 states collected a total of $1.1 billion of the Federal mineral revenues.  The total revenue shared with the states represents the states’ share of revenues collected from mineral production on Federal lands located within their borders, along with, in the case of certain states, any revenues from Federal offshore oil and gas tracts adjacent to their shores.

Less than one percent of the acreage managed by the BLM experiences surface disturbance from oil and gas activity.  To minimize such impacts (the “footprint”) on the land, the Bureau analyzes the potential environmental effects from exploration and development before offering any leases for sale.  All leases come with stipulations (general requirements) on oil and gas activities to protect the environment; stipulations also can include specific restrictions, such as limits on seasons when drilling can occur and restrictions on surface occupancy by oil and gas operators.

Once an operator proposes exploration or development on a BLM-issued lease, the Bureau carries out further environmental analysis under the 1969 National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and determines the site-specific need for various types of impact-limiting or "mitigation" measures.  These measures include re-vegetation, which controls soil erosion and helps curb the spread of weeds; the strategic placement of above-ground structures and machinery, with colors that blend in with the landscape, so as to reduce visual impacts; the establishment of any necessary buffer zones so that oil and gas activity does not adversely affect certain types of wildlife habitat; and the burying of power lines or pipelines under or adjacent to access roads to protect wildlife and minimize visual impacts.  In addition, many operators routinely use Best Management Practices -- such as remote sensing to monitor well production, which minimizes surface impacts – in conducting their oil and gas activities.

The BLM carries out its land-management mission under the authority of the 1976 Federal Land Policy and Management Act, which directs the agency to manage the public lands for multiple uses while protecting the natural, historical, and other resources of these lands.   Environmentally sound production of domestic energy from fossil and renewable resources is an important part of the BLM’s multiple-use mission, and energy from federally managed sources accounts for more than 30 percent of America’s energy production. 

Government estimates indicate that Federal lands contain about 68 percent of all undiscovered U.S. oil and 74 percent of undiscovered natural gas.  A detailed oil and gas inventory by the Interior and Energy Departments found that Federal lands in five key Western geologic basins – located in Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Colorado, and New Mexico – contain nearly 140 million trillion cubic feet of natural gas.  That is enough natural gas to supply the 56 million homes now using natural gas for the next 30 years.

The BLM, an agency of the U.S. Department of the Interior, manages more land – 261 million surface acres – than any other Federal agency.  Most of this public land is located in 12 Western states, including Alaska.  The Bureau, with a budget of about $1.8 billion, also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation.

- BLM -