BLM Seeks Public Comment on First Oil Shale RD&D EA

Denver — The Bureau of Land Management today announced the release of the first of three oil shale Research, Development and Demonstration (RD&D) Environmental Assessments (EA) for a 30-day public comment period, which closes on September 1, 2006.

The first EA, involving one of five Colorado proposed projects, covers the RD&D proposal from EGL Resources, Inc. Two more EAs, one for Chevron Shale Oil Company and another for Shell Frontier, will be released for public comment in the coming weeks.  Shell Frontier’s EA covers three separate proposals.  All projects under consideration are in Rio Blanco County within the Piceance Basin on public lands near Meeker and administered by BLM's White River Field Office. 

The EAs may be reviewed online at: http://www.co.blm.gov/wrra/nepa.htm.  Also, hardcopy versions are available for public viewing at the BLM Colorado State Office in Lakewood, Colorado, and at the White River Field Office in Meeker, Colorado.

“We want to hear from the public, so we ask that people give us their input through the public comment process,” said Kent Walter, BLM White River Field Manager.  “We will carefully evaluate the substantive comments we receive and will incorporate them into any final decisions we make.”

The BLM recommends submitting comments by mail to ensure your suggestions are received.  Comments may be submitted in writing to:

Bureau of Land Management
White River Field Office
73544 Highway 64
Meeker, CO 81506
Attn: Jane Peterson

Public comments can also be submitted online at: Colorado_OSRDDEA@blm.gov.  The BLM cannot guarantee receipt and consideration of comments mailed to other BLM e-mail accounts due to memory and security issues.  To maximize the value of your comments, the BLM suggests they be as specific as possible and cite suggested changes, sources, or methodologies used in the EAs.  The BLM will compile and incorporate public comments into its final decision record for this EA. 

The RD&D leasing program is a separate initiative from the commercial oil shale leasing program that is being examined through a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS). To the extent possible, information available from the RD&D leasing program will be incorporated into the PEIS.  The BLM’s RD&D leasing program and the PEIS are being developed as required by the Energy Policy Act of 2005. 

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