Unita Basin Update

[MarvB]

Just an FYI for those who might be interested:

'Wilderness Quality' Considered in Draft Uinta Basin RMP

"Wilderness quality" lands in the Uinta Mountains and basin area could coexist with oil and natural gas production and outdoor enthusiasts with only a few concessions, according to a report by the Bureau of Land Management field office in Vernal, UT.

BLM earlier this month issued a supplemental report to its 2005 Draft Vernal Resource Management Plan/Environmental Impact Statement. The RMP, when adopted, would determine land use plans for the next 10-15 years for the 1.7 million acres of public land and 1.9 million acres of subsurface mineral estate lands around the Book Cliffs, Uinta Mountains and the Uinta Basin.

In its supplemental review, BLM evaluated 34 "non-Wilderness Study Area" lands near the White River, Lower Green River and Dinosaur National Monument on the Utah-Colorado border. Of the areas surveyed, the study determined that 25 areas encompassing 277,600 acres had the scenic beauty, cultural resources, wildlife and recreational opportunities "associated" with "wilderness characteristics."

Because of its study, BLM has added a fifth alternative (Alternative E) to the proposed DRMP/EIS. "This alternative emphasizes managing those lands to preserve and protect their wilderness characteristics," BLM stated.

Under the original 2005 DRMP/EIS, BLM's preferred alternative would open 983,000 acres to oil and gas leasing, and it would allow about 6,300 wells to be drilled. Under Alternative E, which takes into account the WSA lands, about 6,117 wells would be allowed to be drilled.

 

[ELKCHSR]

This will be an interesting argument on how nature and mans needs could possibly coexist