An area in the Rocky Mountains identified by the Bush Administration as an important source of natural gas would actually supply the nation with less than one week's worth of this fuel and only 20 minutes of oil, according to a study released this month using federal government data. [1]
Now under study by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) for possible new drilling, the Rocky Mountain Front could nonetheless prove profitable for those who hold the leases to extract oil and gas from these federally owned lands, Peter Aengst, a regional associate for The Wilderness Society, told BushGreenwatch. But the destruction it would cause to the area would be devastating.
The Wilderness Society used data from the U.S. Geological Survey to analyze the amount of economically recoverable natural gas and oil in this pristine area of Montana -- a more-than-100-mile stretch from Glacier National Park to the area near Helena. The Front is home to one of the largest populations of grizzly bears south of Canada, as well as bighorn sheep, elk, mule deer and trout.
A small portion of this region, known as the Blackleaf area, lies at the center of the dispute because it is the subject of a new round of natural gas drilling proposals. The Wilderness Society study found drilling in this area would provide the nation with less than one day’s worth of natural gas and 14 minutes' worth of oil. [2]
"Many Montanans, particularly those who live near the proposed drill sites, do not want any drilling or other development in the Front," wrote Montana Sen. Max Baucus, in a May 17 letter to BLM State Director Martin Ott. "In their opinion, and in mine, the amount of recoverable gas and oil in the Front is not nearly enough to justify damaging the higher recreational, wildlife and scenic values" associated with this area. [3]
Sen. Baucus proposed instead that the BLM consider "analyzing the possibility of offering current leaseholders in the Blackleaf the option of trading out or selling their leases, for fair compensation."
Ott told the Associated Press in Montana that the senator’s request was "probably an idea we would want to explore" but that it would ultimately be up to the leaseholder, Star Tech Energy Corp. of Calgary, Alberta. Although a moratorium on federal oil and gas leases was issued for the Front in 1997, StarTech has proposed drilling under leases it holds that predate the moratorium. [4]
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TAKE ACTION
Public comment on the Environmental Impact Statement for drilling in the Blackleaf area remains open until June 1. To comment: MT_blackleaf_eis@blm.gov.
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SOURCES:
[1] "A GIS Analysis of Economically Recoverable Gas and Oil in the Rocky Mountain Front of Montana," The Wilderness Society.
[2] Ibid.
[3] Letter from Sen. Max Baucus to Martin Ott, May 17, 2004.
[4] "Baucus proposes lease swap as alternative to Front drilling," Associated Press, May 17, 2004.
