For Immediate Release: February 9, 2006 |
Contacts: | Theresa Sauer 303-239-3861 |
BLM Colorado February oil and gas lease sale nets $11.8 million
DENVER?Today the BLM Colorado State Office sold 129 parcels (of 148 offered) at its quarterly oil and gas lease sale, or about 134,582 acres (out of the 160,273 acres of public lands offered). The lease sale earned $11,798,163 in proceeds, half will ultimately go to the State of Colorado, the other half to the Federal Treasury.
All of the parcels within the City of Grand Junction and the Town of Palisade’s watershed did receive bids, as did the parcels in San Miguel County not already deferred. Before a final decision is reached to issue any of these leases, a thorough review of the protests on these parcels will be undertaken said BLM Colorado Deputy State Director Lynn Rust.
Parcels nominated by industry for inclusion in a lease sale can be protested. The sale notice is posted in the affected BLM field offices and the state office at least 45 days before the sale. Anyone can file a protest. While these protested parcels may still be offered, bidders are notified that no lease can be issued until the protests are resolved. If a protest is upheld, the lease is not issued and the winning bidder’s money is refunded.
“All of the applications for permits to drill on public lands receive a thorough review by environmental and technical experts before development occurs,” said Rust. “Additionally, in cases where someone other than the federal government owns the surface land, called split-estate, we require industry to work with landowners to reach an agreement for use of their land before BLM will issue a permit.”
All leases 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.
“Gas production from Colorado’s federal lands continue to play an important part in meeting the nation’s energy needs,” said Rust. "However, our focus is on smart planning and working with industry to use best practices to reduce environmental impacts on public and private lands.”
All areas where parcels were offered for lease had land use plans which were developed with public input and review and which allow for energy development. 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. All parcels offered for lease in this sale were analyzed on a case-by-case basis to determine whether existing environmental analysis was adequate.
Of the lands managed by the BLM, less than one percent of the acreage experiences surface disturbance from oil and gas activity. To minimize impacts on the land, the Bureau analyzes potential environmental effects from exploration and development before offering any leases for sale. “BLM ensures that energy resources are developed in an environmentally sound manner on all lands we manage,” said Rust.
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