BLM Colorado August oil and gas lease sale nets $4.8 million

DENVER?Today the BLM Colorado State Office sold 118 parcels, of 158 offered, at its quarterly oil and gas lease sale, or about 139,555 acres out of the approximate 169,194 acres of public lands offered. The lease sale earned $4,823,078 in proceeds.

BLM manages more than 8 million acres of public lands for multiple use in Colorado, in addition to over 27 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate. 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.

In addition to overseeing mineral leasing on BLM public lands, the Bureau also administers mineral leasing on all other federal lands. For instance, BLM leases minerals under lands managed by the US Forest Service once BLM obtains Forest Service approval to offer the parcels at one of its quarterly competitive lease sales. At Thursday’s auction, 17 parcels (21,787 acres) of National Forest System lands containing potential roadless areas were sold out of the 22 parcels (25,942 acres) nominated.

BLM also is mandated, by the Federal Land Policy and Management Act, to manage the public lands for multiple uses ­- which may include energy development - under existing, approved land-use plans developed with considerable public input and extensive environmental analysis. All areas where parcels were offered in Thursday’s lease sale had land use plans.

“Natural gas production from Colorado’s federal lands continues to play an important part in meeting the nation’s energy needs,” said Lynn Rust, BLM Colorado Deputy State Director for Energy, Lands and Minerals. “Our focus is on smart up-front planning, solid implementation of best practices and working with industry to reduce environmental impacts.”

When preparing land use plans, or when parcels are nominated for leasing, the BLM considers any available new information to determine if any significant new circumstance or impact has occurred since the completion of the most recent land use plan. The parcels offered for lease in this sale were analyzed individually to determine whether existing environmental analysis was adequate.

BLM also consults with other federal, state and local agencies, partners, environmental groups and industry throughout the land-use planning process on lands available for energy production. “We continue to work with the local communities, as well as with our government partners as we move forward with energy development on the public lands,” said Rust.

Protections are in place to minimize potential impacts from oil and gas exploration, development and production. “Energy development and protection of natural resources are not mutually exclusive,” said Rust. “BLM ensures that development of energy resources is done in an environmentally sound manner on all lands we manage.”

Leases for oil and gas development come with general requirements to protect the environment from oil and gas activities; additional specific stipulations are also included, such as limits on seasons when drilling can occur and restrictions on surface occupancy by oil and gas operators. Such stipulations protect resources and values such as wildlife habitat and scenic vistas. Once an operator proposes exploration or development on a BLM-issued lease, the Bureau conducts further environmental analysis and determines what site-specific, impact-limiting, or mitigation measures are needed.

BLM Colorado also has increased its outreach efforts to notify the public of the lease sale. Efforts include: providing the public with the sale notice 15 days earlier than required by law; notifying media outlets statewide when the lease sale notice is posted; informing counties of parcels being offered for lease in an upcoming sale through the Colorado Oil and Gas Commission’s county liaison program; giving presentations about the oil and gas process at county meetings; and posting a map of parcels and other lease sale information on the BLM Colorado Website.

Anyone may file a protest on a parcel nominated for inclusion in a lease sale; however, all protests must be received by mail or fax at the Colorado State Office by 4 p.m. (Mountain Time), 15 days prior to the date of the sale to be considered. This policy allows the Bureau to review protests in advance of the sale, allow for an appropriate announcement of protests at the sale, and attempt to meet the statutory deadline for issuing leases. Protested parcels may still be offered, although bidders are notified that BLM will not issue a lease until the protests are resolved.

The BLM, an agency of the U.S. Department of the Interior, manages more land -- 262 million surface acres -- than any other Federal agency. Most of the country's BLM managed public land is located in 12 Western states, including Alaska. The Bureau also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the Nation.

The BLM's multiple-use mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations. The BLM accomplishes this by managing such activities as outdoor recreation, livestock grazing, energy and mineral development, and by conserving natural, historical, cultural, and other resources on the public lands.

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