Leasing atop Roan facing court battle

By Todd Hartman, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published June 17, 2008 at 12:05 a.m.
Updated June 17, 2008 at 11:10 a.m.

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Environmentalists said Monday they plan to sue the federal government to halt leasing of public land on the Roan Plateau for natural gas drilling.

The move could upend plans by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management to hold a lease sale of 55,186 acres of public land atop the Roan on Aug. 14, an auction expected to draw significant interest from energy companies.

The action is the latest in a long series of moves and countermoves by those anxious to open up the towering landscape near Rifle for its enormous energy stores and those who want to preserve most of the plateau for its scenic grandeur and rich wildlife.

"For eight years, tens of thousands of citizens, local governments, sportsmen, recreationists and conservation groups have tried to make sure that the Roan's critical wildlife areas, clean water and backcountry are properly managed and protected," said Elise Jones with the Colorado Environmental Coalition, in a statement.

"With the Bush administration's recent decision to lease all the remaining public lands in and around the Roan, they've left Colorado citizens no other option but to ask for our day in court."

Should environmentalists succeed in persuading a judge to put off any leasing, the lawsuit could push the debate into a new presidential administration, throwing fresh doubt on the Roan's future.

BLM rejects Ritter plan

The promised lawsuit follows efforts by the administration of Gov. Bill Ritter to persuade the BLM to take an alternate course on the Roan, one that would set aside more land — 36,000 acres instead of 21,000 — for environmental protection.

Ritter also called for the BLM to phase the leasing in chunks, instead of leasing out all 55,186 acres at once, in hopes of driving up industry bids for the leases as the gas becomes more valuable in the future.

But the BLM rejected Ritter's proposal in March, and said it would stick to its own plan that it argues will fairly balance environmental protections with energy drilling.

It can better do that, the agency argues, by leasing the entire site at once and developing a drilling plan with a single operator drilling on behalf of all leaseholders.

At the same time, efforts by congressional Democrats — Rep. Mark Udall, Rep. John Salazar and Sen. Ken Salazar — to pass legislation that would favor the Ritter approach over BLM's are ongoing.

Industry decries delay

Those following the debate shouldn't be surprised environmental groups plan to sue to stop leasing, said BLM spokesman Steven Hall. He defended the agency's approach on the Roan and noted that BLM is acting on a congressional mandate from 1997 that the site be leased for energy development "as soon as practicable."

"We feel like this has been a thoughtful process, a collaborative process," Hall said.

"We feel like we came up with a good plan."

An industry official cautioned against further setbacks on the Roan.

"Further attempts to delay the leasing of these lands will deny Americans' access to energy we need every day," Marc Smith of the Denver-based Independent Petroleum Association of Mountain States said in a written statement.

hartmant@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-5048

• June 17, 2008

  11:40 a.m.

  Suggest removal

  bookwerm writes:

  Neither right nor left wing, the "wisest" decision will maximize LOCAL and STATE economic benefit. That means looking at the sum of $$ made from Tourism and other NON consumptive pursuits and balancing that against SHORT TERM profit from development. Tourism, etc. is sustainable, like farming a crop.. make money every year. You lose that, you lose not just one years money, but many. Like selling a farm, where you can make big money ONCE, this development, as outlined, is HUGE and not to our local or state benefit as outlined. A more moderate approach will produce more $$ in total.. less right away from Gas, but maintaining existing base.

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