BLM Publishes Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Commercial Oil Shale Leasing

The Bureau of Land Management has published an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) to support preparation of a future proposed rule supporting a commercial leasing program for oil shale resources on public lands.  The ANPR is published in today’s Federal Register.  Congress directed the BLM to establish a commercial leasing program for oil shale in Section 369 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005.

The Advance Notice requests comments from the public on several key components of commercial leasing: royalty rate and royalty determination point; fair market value for conversion of preference-right acreage and for commercial leasing; diligence; and the appropriateness of small tract leasing.  Comments on other aspects of commercial oil shale leasing are also welcome.

“A commercial oil shale leasing program represents the next step in our phased approach to oil shale development on public lands,” said Tom Lonnie, the BLM’s Assistant Director for Minerals, Realty and Resource Protection.  “Comments on these key issues will help us propose a rule that ensures an economically and environmentally sound approach to unlocking this very promising domestic energy source.”

The ANPR is the second step in the BLM’s effort to develop oil shale on public lands.  The BLM has already taken the first step in developing oil shale resources when it solicited nominations for research, development and demonstration (RD&D) oil shale recovery projects on public lands in Colorado, Utah and Wyoming in the summer of 2005.  The environmental effects of six RD&D proposals are currently being analyzed under the National Environmental Policy Act.

The BLM will accept comments and suggestions until September 25, 30 days after publication of today’s ANPR.  Comments may be submitted electronically through the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal, www.regulations.gov; or via e-mail to Comments_washington@blm.gov  (Include “Attn: 1004-AD90” in the subject line).  Comments submitted by mail should be addressed to Director (630) Bureau of Land Management, Administrative Record, Room 401 LS, Eastern States Office, 7450 Boston Boulevard, Springfield VA 22153.  Hand- or messenger-delivered comments should be brought to Room 401; 1620 L Street, NW; Washington DC 20036.

U.S. oil shale resources are estimated to hold the equivalent of 2.6 trillion barrels of oil – the largest known concentration of oil shale in the world, with roughly 72 percent of it underlying federal lands.  The BLM is currently preparing a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) analyzing the environmental, social and economic issues associated with alternate approaches to oil shale leasing.  The PEIS will help the BLM identify which public lands in Colorado, Utah and Wyoming will be available for oil shale leasing and under what constraints.  The Energy Policy Act requires final regulations establishing commercial leasing to be published no later than 180 days after completion of the PEIS. 

Information about the PEIS and all opportunities for public involvement is available on the project website: http://ostseis.anl.gov .  For a copy of today’s Federal Register notice: http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20061800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2006/pdf/06-7136.pdf

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