BLM moves to sync oil and gas management with state big-game protections
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(Colorado News Connection) The federal Bureau of Land Management has published a new plan for managing public lands which will put oil and gas management in sync with Colorado's big-game conservation policies.
Suzanne O'Neill, executive director of the Colorado Wildlife Federation, said the proposed final plan, which will impact BLM-managed lands in all 64 Colorado counties, is an important move to protect Colorado's iconic wildlife.
"It will help safeguard mule deer, elk, pronghorn and bighorn sheep habitats," O'Neill outlined. "These populations inhabit almost three quarters of the 8.3 million surface acres that the BLM manages."
Courtesy USFWS/Ryan Moehring.
The plan would amend management plans for 12 BLM field offices in Colorado by limiting active oil and gas sites to one per square mile in big-game high priority habitat. It also requires operators to minimize and offset direct, indirect and cumulative adverse impacts on wildlife. The BLM's proposed final Western Solar Plan revision is expected to be published this summer.
John Howard, former chairman of the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission during the Hickenlooper administration, believes the plan will give energy developers more certainty and should also cut the red tape found when dealing with multiple regulatory environments, which are not always on the same page.
"I think most of them are going to react very positively to having something that aligns so well between the federal government, the state government and local government," Howard projected.
The BLM is charged with managing lands owned by all Americans for multiple uses, including hunting, fishing, camping, rafting and hiking. O'Neill pointed to a 2020 report showing work is also needed to ensure trails and other recreation areas do not harm wildlife.
"They need to be appropriately sited, so they don't disturb wildlife that are birthing in the spring, or trying to migrate," O'Neill urged. "They need to be located in the right places."
Support for this reporting was provided by The Pew Charitable Trusts.
