U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT NEWS RELEASE
Lewistown Field Office
Lewistown Field Office
| Contacts: | Craig Flentie 406-538-1943 | |||
BLM Seeking Comments on Application for Permit to Drill
The BLM is seeking public comments on an environmental assessment (EA) analyzing three alternatives that address the impacts of drilling a gas well in an existing lease, on BLM managed public land, in southern Blaine County.
The lease is in the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument and the proposed alternative would allow the lease holder, NFR Bear Paw Basin LLC, to drill one vertical well in the SENW quarter of Section 31, T25N, R20 E.
This EA is available for a 30-day comment period ending November 30, 2010. All substantive comments will be taken into consideration before making a decision on whether to approve the project. Specific comments addressing the adequacy of the scope of this EA or the impact analysis would be most useful.
Copies of the EA have been sent to key stakeholders. If you would like to review a copy, you can request a hard copy from the BLM’s Lewistown Field Office, 920 NE Main, Lewistown, MT 59457, attention Gary Slagel or Craig Flentie.
You can also review the EA on the BLM’s website at http://www.blm.gov/mt/st/en/fo/lewistown_field_office/nepa_log.html. Once on that site click on the Fiscal Year 2010 link in the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument column, then click on NEPA # 0020-EA.
Comments should be sent to Lowell Hassler at the Lewistown BLM’s Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument office at 920 NE Main, Lewistown, MT 59457. You can also e-mail
your comments to MT_Lewistown_FO@blm.gov.
The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land, the most of any Federal agency. This land, known as the National System of Public Lands, is primarily located in 12 Western states, including Alaska. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. In Fiscal Year (FY) 2011, recreational and other activities on BLM-managed land contributed more than $130 billion to the U.S. economy and supported more than 600,000 American jobs. The Bureau is also one of a handful of agencies that collects more revenue than it spends. In FY 2012, nearly $5.7 billion will be generated on lands managed by the BLM, which operates on a $1.1 billion budget. The BLM's multiple-use mission is to sustain the health and productivity of the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations. The Bureau accomplishes this by managing such activities as outdoor recreation, livestock grazing, mineral development, and energy production, and by conserving natural, historical, cultural, and other resources on public lands.
Lewistown Field Office 920 NE Main Lewistown, MT 59457