Nominations for Oil Shale Research Leases
Demonstrate
Significant Interest in Advancing Energy Technology
In response to its announcement of an oil shale research, development,
and demonstration program, the Bureau of Land Management has received
19 nominations for parcels of public land to be leased in Colorado, Utah,
and Wyoming. The program, announced in June, advances the development
of America’s oil shale to meet the nation’s energy demands.
The BLM sought nominations of parcels of public lands in Colorado, Utah,
and Wyoming for research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) leasing
that will advance efforts to boost domestic oil production and respond
to growing interest in oil shale from high-technology groups. The agency’s
oil shale program received additional mention in the Energy Policy Act
of 2005, which President Bush signed into law in August.
Ten nominations were received for parcels in Colorado. Parcels in Utah
are included in eight applications, with one application received for
land in Wyoming.
“We recognize the importance of making public lands available
to promote all forms of energy, including oil shale, but in a way that
provides for prudent site selection and sound environmental management,”
said Tom Lonnie, the BLM’s Assistant Director for Minerals, Realty
and Resource Protection. “Congress also recognized the great potential
in oil shale, and the response to our call for lease nominations shows
that the time is right to move ahead with the program.”
An interdisciplinary team will consider the potential of each nomination
to advance oil shale technology; the team will also consider economic
viability and environmental effects and then make recommendations for
awarding leases. Depending on the quality of the proposals, the BLM may
award one or more leases in each of the three States.
Representatives from the three States (Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming),
and the Department of Energy, and the Department of Defense have been
invited to participate on the team, as have BLM staff members from the
affected States. The team will begin reviewing nominations in late October.
In addition to furthering development of oil shale resources, RD&D
leasing will assist the BLM in developing appropriate regulations for
commercial oil shale leasing, which the Energy Act calls for beginning
in 2007.
The United States holds significant oil shale resources underlying a
total area of 16,000 square miles. This represents the largest known concentration
of oil shale in the world and holds the equivalent of 2.6 trillion barrels
of oil. More than 70 percent of American oil shale is on Federal land,
primarily in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming. The Energy Policy Act directs
that public lands in these three States be made available for RD&D
leasing within six months of the measure becoming law.
The BLM initiated an oil shale development program in 2003 in support
of President Bush’s National Energy Policy, which seeks a diverse
supply of affordable energy for American families and businesses. The
Energy Policy Act establishes that oil shale, tar sands, and other strategic
unconventional fuels should be developed to reduce the nation’s
dependence on imported oil.
The BLM manages more land -- 261 million surface acres -- than any other
Federal agency. Most of this land is located in 12 Western States, including
Alaska. With a budget of about $1.8 billion, the Bureau also administers
700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the U.S., giving
the BLM a central role in implementing the Energy Policy Act of 2005.
Acting as the steward of numerous energy resources – coal, oil and
gas, geothermal, hydropower, solar, wind, and biomass – the BLM
carries out a multiple-use mission, which is to sustain the health and
productivity of the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present
and future generations.
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