BLM's National News Release Feed

BLM Presents 2013 "Making a Difference" National Volunteer Awards

Thu, 23 May 2013 10:00:00 -0600

The Bureau of Land Management today presented its prestigious “Making a Difference” National Volunteer Awards to four individuals, one couple, one group, and one BLM employee for outstanding volunteer service or volunteer leadership on BLM-managed lands.

BLM Employees Receive Outstanding Public Lands Professional Awards from Public Lands Foundation

Tue, 21 May 2013 12:55:50 -0600

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Principal Deputy Director Neil Kornze honored two BLM employees today at a ceremony held by the Public Lands Foundation. Bill Childress and Jon Reponen were presented with national awards for their commitment and exceptional dedication to managing America’s public lands.

The first honoree is Bill Childress, the BLM-New Mexico Las Cruces District Manager, a position he has held since 2008. Bill received the Outstanding Public Land Professional Managerial/Administrative Award for his work on the highly controversial Alamogordo Regional Water Supply Project. Bill focused his work on creative problem solving and coalition building in order to engage stakeholders to resolve conflicts. He demonstrated outstanding leadership throughout this project while maintaining the general leadership and direction of the Las Cruces District.

The Foundation also honored Jon Reponen, a Supervisory Forester for the BLM-Oregon Burns District, as the recipient of the Outstanding Technical/Operational Award. The award recognized Jon for his dedication to the District’s stewardship activities and for his ability to “reach across the aisle” and work with various interests. His extraordinary performance in an operations/technical role in these and many other resource improvement activities within the Burns District have helped the district better manage public lands and collaboratively work with its partners.

Interior Releases Updated Draft Rule for Hydraulic Fracturing on Public and Indian Lands for Public Comment

Thu, 16 May 2013 11:05:10 -0600

Commonsense Measure Will Support Safe and Responsible Production of America’s Domestic Energy Resources

Secretaries Vilsack and Jewell Highlight Federal Preparedness for 2013 Western Wildfire Season

Mon, 13 May 2013 11:35:50 -0600

Officials emphasize interagency partnership, public awareness as keys to protecting communities from wildfire

BLM Holds Public Forums to Kick Off Updates to Onshore Oil and Gas Orders

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 11:40:50 -0600

Changing Outdated Measurement Standards Will Help Ensure Taxpayers Get Fair Return

WASHINGTON – The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has begun gathering stakeholder feedback on updates to several Federal Onshore Oil and Gas Orders (Orders) that would help ensure that the American people get a fair return for the development of these resources on public lands.

The BLM is proposing to update Onshore Oil and Gas Orders 3, 4, and 5 to keep pace with changing industry practices and new technologies, and to respond to recommendations from the Government Accountability Office (GAO), the DOI’s Office of the Inspector General, and the DOI’s Subcommittee on Royalty Management. The Orders, which regulate production accountability and the measurement of oil and gas, were last updated in 1989.

“The BLM is in the early stages of updating these orders, and we are looking for practical feedback from stakeholders as the process moves forward,” said BLM Principal Deputy Director Neil Kornze. “This is the beginning of a dialogue that we believe will enhance our efforts to bring these orders up to date.”

To kick-off the effort, the BLM held a two-day public forum April 24 and 25 at the Department of the Interior headquarters that attracted representatives from Indian lands, environmental groups, the Federal government, and the oil and gas industry in person and via the Internet. The group discussed potential revisions to the Orders that affect how oil and gas is measured for royalty collection. In on-going tribal consultation efforts that were initiated in 2011, the BLM discussed possible revisions to the Orders with tribal representatives.

Input from the listening sessions and from future sessions will be taken into consideration as the proposed Orders are updated. BLM officials anticipate being able to publish the text of the proposed Orders in the Federal Register later this year, which will initiate a formal public comment period.

Video and other materials from the two-day session, along with instructions on how to provide input on the potential Order revisions, are available at http://www.blm.gov/live until May 31.

Land Management Rule Will Facilitate Renewable Energy Development on Public Lands

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 08:10:40 -0600

In support of the Administration’s strategy to develop environmentally responsible renewable energy on public lands, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is issuing a regulation that will facilitate right-of-way applications for lands with wind and solar energy development potential.

President Proposes $1.2 Billion for BLM in Fiscal Year 2014 to Protect Resources and Manage Uses of Public Lands

Wed, 10 Apr 2013 10:10:40 -0600

WASHINGTON, DC – Focusing on renewable energy, safe and responsible mineral development, outdoor recreation and other key priorities, the President’s budget has requested $1.2 billion in appropriations for the Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Land Management for fiscal year (FY) 2014. The request, announced today, represents a $32.6 million or 2.9 percent increase over the agency’s congressionally enacted FY 2012 budget.

Secretary Salazar Celebrates Establishment of San Juan Islands National Monument

Mon, 1 Apr 2013 09:45:10 -0600

ANACORTES, WA - Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar joined local, tribal, and federal leaders today to dedicate San Juan Islands National Monument, a beautiful archipelago of more than 450 islands, rocks, and pinnacles in the northern reaches of Washington’s Puget Sound.

BLM Announces Three Selections for National Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board

Wed, 27 Mar 2013 10:05:30 -0600

The Bureau of Land Management announced today that the Secretaries of Interior and Agriculture have made selections for three positions on its National Wild Horse and Burro Advisory Board. Timothy J. Harvey of Campton, New Hampshire, has been re-appointed for the position representing Humane Advocacy; Rick Danvir of Evanston, Wyoming, has been appointed for the category of Wildlife Management; and John Falen of Orovada, Nevada, has been appointed for the position representing Livestock Management. Each individual will serve a three-year term on the Advisory Board.

Secretary Salazar Finalizes Plan Promoting Responsible Oil Shale and Tar Sands Research, Demonstration and Development

Fri, 22 Mar 2013 09:25:30 -0600

BLM proposes revisions to commercial oil shale regulations to ensure fair return to taxpayer; will open 60-day public comment period

WASHINGTON – As part of President Obama’s strategy to continue to expand safe and responsible development of the nation’s energy resources, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today announced the Department’s final plan for encouraging research, development and demonstration (RD&D) of oil shale and tar sands resources on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) lands in Colorado, Utah and Wyoming.

The Record of Decision and plan amendments make nearly 700,000 acres in Colorado, Utah and Wyoming available for potential oil shale leasing and about 130,000 acres available for potential tar sands leasing in Utah. In November 2012, the BLM signed two additional leases for RD&D oil shale proposals to encourage industry to develop and test technologies aimed at developing oil shale resources on a commercial scale.

“This plan maintains a strong focus on research and development to promote new technologies that may eventually lead to safe and responsible commercial development of these domestic energy resources,” Secretary Salazar said. “It will help ensure that we acquire critically important information about these technologies and their potential effects on the landscape, especially our scarce water resources in the West.”

As part of the Obama Administration’s all-of-the-above energy strategy, domestic oil and gas production has grown each year the President has been in office, with domestic oil production currently higher than any time in two decades and natural gas production at its highest level ever. Renewable electricity generation from wind, solar, and geothermal sources has doubled and foreign oil imports now account for less than 40 percent of the oil consumed in America – the lowest level since 1988.

Under the Record of Decision, the BLM-managed lands will be available for RD&D leases of oil shale resources. Eligible companies could convert to a commercial lease after satisfying the conditions of the RD&D lease and meeting basic due diligence requirements and clean air and water requirements. The plan issued today will amend ten of the BLM’s land use plans.

“The BLM recognizes the importance of taking a balanced approach to exploring the potential of our oil shale resources,” said Neil Kornze, BLM’s Principal Deputy Director. “This is a smart approach that will not only support companies as they work to determine if development is commercially and technically viable, but also yield the necessary information upon which broader scale commercial leasing could be based.”

The BLM will also begin soliciting public comments on proposed revisions to the commercial oil shale regulations. The proposed revisions are designed to ensure a fair return to the American taxpayer, encourage responsible development of federal oil shale resources, and evaluate necessary safeguards to protect scarce water resources and important wildlife habitat. The BLM is accepting public comments for 60 days following publication in the Federal Register, which is expected next week.

The proposed rule identifies several options for amending the royalty rates for commercial oil shale production. The BLM will consider whether to retain some flexibility to adjust royalty rates when more information is available about costs of production, energy inputs, and impacts associated with various extraction technologies.

The results of ongoing research and development activities combined with administrative flexibility in setting royalty rates will allow BLM to determine whether future applications to lease should include specified resource-protection plans and whether other aspects of the regulations need to be clarified.

Oil shale is a fine-grained sedimentary rock containing kerogen and is distinct from “shale oil.” The largest known domestic oil shale deposits are in a 16,000-square mile area in the Green River formation in Colorado, Utah and Wyoming. Oil shale can be mined and heated to an extremely high temperature (retorting) in aboveground facilities, and the oil can then be separated from the resulting liquid. Oil shale also can be subjected to extreme heat and pressure while in underground formations (in situ retorting) andthe resulting liquid pumped to the surface. The final oil shale plan examines surface mining with surface retort, underground mining with surface retort, and in situ retorting technologies.

Tar sands are sedimentary rocks containing a heavy hydrocarbon compound called bitumen, which can be refined into oil. Unlike the oil sands deposits in Canada, oil is not currently produced from tar sands on a commercial scale in the United States. U.S. tar sands are hydrocarbon wet, whereas the Canadian oil sands are water wet, meaning that U.S. tar sands would require different processing techniques. The final oil shale plan evaluates the potential impacts of various extraction methods for tar sands, including surface mining with surface retort, surface mining with solvent extraction, in situ steam injection, and in situ combustion technologies.

Click here for the Record of Decision

Click here for the proposed revisions to oil shale regulations.