BLM Requests Nominations and Comments for NPR-A Oil and Gas Lease Sale Scheduled for November 2014
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ANCHORAGE, AK—As part of the Obama Administration’s all-of-the-above energy strategy to continue to expand safe and responsible domestic energy production, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is calling for nominations and comments on available tracts to be considered for its scheduled November 2014 oil and gas lease sale in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska (NPR-A). This will be the fourth sale since the President directed the Department of the Interior to conduct annual oil and gas lease sales in the NPR-A.
There are 873 tracts on about 9.8 million acres that will be available for nomination and comment under this lease sale, which is consistent with the Record of Decision for the NPR-A wide Integrated Activity Plan signed in February 2013. Currently, there are 207 authorized oil and gas leases encompassing 1,755,863 acres in the NPR-A.
The Call for Nominations and Comments, published in today’s Federal Register, announces a 45-day period in which interested parties may nominate or comment on available tracts. The notice is the first step in the process leading up to the next oil and gas lease sale, which is tentatively scheduled for November 2014. BLM-Alaska must receive all nominations and comments on these tracts for consideration on or before July 18, 2014.
“This call for nominations and comments gives industry, conservation groups and other stakeholders the opportunity to provide input into which tracts should be included in or excluded from the sale,” said Bud Cribley, the BLM’s Alaska State Director. “It is possible to develop oil and gas resources while protecting important surface resources and subsistence opportunities. The energy resources of the NPR-A have the potential to enhance domestic energy production and decrease dependency on foreign oil sources.”
To select which tracts will be available for the oil and gas lease sale, the BLM-Alaska State Director will consider the results from the Call for Nominations and Comments, existing natural resource and environmental data, the location of existing leases, multiple use conflicts, resource potential, industry interest, and other available information. This determination will be made consistent with the allocations and stipulations identified by the Integrated Activity Plan of 2013.
The Notice of Sale will be published in the Federal Register at least 30 days prior to the sale.
A map showing available areas is available on the BLM website: http://www.blm.gov/ak.
The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land located primarily in 12 western states, including Alaska, on behalf of the American people. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. Our mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of America’s public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.