gator "greg"
Registered User
- Location
- The worste environment imaginable!
i got this in an email... thought i'd share it with ya'lls.... 
*****UPDATES*****
(1)COMMENTS NEEDED ON THE PRICE RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PLAN
Take back the wilderness, recapture the quiet--the Bureau of Land
Management (BLM) is currently determining the fate of over 10
million acres of public land in Utah, 5 million of which
qualifies as wilderness. Take action and ask the BLM to protect
our wild public lands from the oil and gas and off-road vehicle
industries!
On Friday, July 16th, the BLM released their revised Resource
Management Plan for the Price Field Office--the document that
will determine where oil and gas drilling can take place, what
designated trails off-road vehicles will have to stick to, and
what places will be protected for their wilderness values. As it
stands, the Price plan does overwhelmingly little to protect
citizen proposed wilderness outside of Wilderness Study Areas
from oil and gas leasing and drilling--BLM is giving away the
store to the oil and gas industry.
In their preferred alternative, the BLM leaves 98% of unprotected
wilderness open to oil and gas drilling. Of more than 1.5
million acres proposed for wilderness preservation in America's
Redrock Wilderness Act (90% of which the BLM has previously
agreed has wilderness characteristics), nearly 1 million acres
will be open to oil, gas and mineral development. BLM sacrificed
all this wilderness to the oil and gas industry for speculative
exploration, when, according to the United States Geological
Survey and Dept. of Energy, Utah supplies less than 1% of the
country's oil and less than 2% of the country's natural gas
supply. Drilling for oil under proposed wilderness lands would
provide 4 days worth of oil and less than 4 weeks worth of
natural gas. Drilling for oil and gas under proposed wilderness
lands would not keep your family warm this winter. See
http://www.redrockheritage.org/oilandgas1/ for more information
and sources of data.
The BLM is doing a much better job with off-road vehicles. Due
in large part to the flood of letters, State BLM Director Sally
Wisely received from all of you, the BLM has committed to
designating systems of trails for motorized recreation. They
will only leave a select few areas open to cross-country travel.
However, though the BLM has committed to designating trails they
are leaving open illegal, user-created routes that are
detrimental to protecting Utah wilderness. The plan leaves open
routes in Wilderness Study Areas, like Devil's Racetrack in Sids
Mountain WSA in the San Rafael Swell, as well as the notorious
Five Miles of Hell, and Behind the Reef Road.
We need to take back the wilderness, recapture the quiet! Write
the BLM today and ask them to protect America's Redrock
Wilderness from the oil and gas and off-road vehicle industries!
Visit http://www.suwa.org/page.php?page_name=Camp_RMP_Home today
to read more about the Price RMP, and send your letter to have
your voice heard. Thank you!
For more information on how you can get more involved in
protecting wild Utah through the RMP process, contact Margi
Hoffmann at (801) 486-7639 ext. 20 or margi@suwa.org.
(2)CONGRESS CALLS ON SECRETARY NORTON TO CANCEL OIL & GAS LEASES
IN PROPOSED WILDERNESS
A coalition of 82 Members of Congress, led by Representative
Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) and Rep. Diana DeGette (D-CO), wrote to
Interior Secretary Gale Norton urging the Administration not to
issue oil and gas leases on Utah and Colorado lands proposed for
wilderness protection in America's Redrock Wilderness Act
(H.R.1796) and the Colorado Wilderness Act (H.R.2305). The
letter, dated August 9th, was issued shortly before the Bureau of
Land Management (BLM) initiated another round of anti-wilderness
oil and gas leases that threaten several segments of proposed
wilderness in Colorado (Delores River Canyons, Maverick Canyon,
and Sagebrush Pillows Citizen's Wilderness Proposal). The call
to protect these wild lands also comes at a critical time for
Utah wilderness as SUWA filed a protest to prevent wilderness
quality lands from being leased during the September 8th oil and
gas sale planned by the BLM.
Representative Hinchey, sponsor of the America's Redrock
Wilderness Act, and Representative DeGette, sponsor of the
Colorado Wilderness Act, teamed together on the letter to point
out the escalating threats to wild lands in the Colorado Plateau
as a result of unsound oil and gas leasing policies pushed by the
BLM. The letter from the 82 Members of Congress describe that,
"over the past year, the BLM has carried out an aggressive
program of oil and gas leasing that has opened up tens of
thousands of acres of stunning wilderness quality lands in
Colorado and Utah to potential energy development."
Instead of adopting a sensible and scientific approach to
evaluating the impacts of oil and gas leasing, the BLM has
refused or overlooked significant and well established
information about sensitive lands proposed for wilderness. In an
effort to allow leasing to go forward, the BLM has failed to
recognize citizen proposed wilderness, the agency's own findings
for wilderness suitability, and timely new information presented
to the agency.
Currently, the Administration is reviewing public challenges to
oil and gas leasing in 58,321 acres of proposed Utah wilderness
and 21,000 acres of proposed Colorado wilderness. The 82 Members
of Congress indicated that it is not too late for the
Administration to reverse their policy of harmful leases and
restore a more sound approach to energy development. At their
urging, the letter calls for the Secretary to use her authority
to direct the BLM not to issue leases which have been challenged
by the public and that contain land proposed for wilderness
designation.
To date the Administration has not responded to the letter nor
has any decision been made about the fate the wilderness quality
lands under lease. We will be sure to update you as developments
unfold.
To see a copy of the letter and to see who signed it, go to
http://www.suwa.org/page.php?page_id=136 It is always a good idea
to thank your representative for doing something right. So a
quick email or phonecall to your representative for signing the
letter is appreciated. To call your representative, dial the
Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121 or go to www.congress.org to
find their email.
(3)GROUPS, REPRESENTATIVE HINCHEY PROTEST NEXT ROUND OF LEASING
IN AMERICA'S REDROCK WILDERNESS
SUWA, along with other conservation organizations and Congressman
Maurice Hinchey, will file a Protest with the Utah BLM on Monday,
August 23rd, requesting that BLM withdraw the 28 lease parcels
that are included in the upcoming September oil and gas lease
sale that are located within America's Redrock Wilderness Act.
The September oil and gas lease sale is huge; it includes
approximately 220 lease parcels, covering nearly 360,000 acres.
Twenty-eight of these parcels are located in areas proposed for
wilderness. Even more incredible is the fact that 20 of these
lease parcels are located in areas that the BLM itself, has
determined to have wilderness character.
The area hardest hit by this lease sale is the upper Desolation
Canyon area. This is a place that the agency describes as "a
place where the visitor has freedom to experience true isolation
from the sights and sounds of civilization. It is a place where
only the forces of nature continue to shape the colorful, rugged
landscape, where resident wild horses, big horn sheep, elk, bear,
and mountain lion roam free. The very name Desolation conjures
feelings of isolation about this remote region that is truly
wild." The proposed lease areas near Desolation Canyon surround
the Green River on both sides near Sand Wash, a popular area for
boaters.
Other areas that are targeted for lease sales are the White
River, Bull Canyon by Dinosaur National Monument, Floy and Coal
Canyons on the southern face of the Bookcliffs, and Snake Valley,
Wild Horse Pass, Lion Peak and Rockwell in Utah's West Desert.
There are other, more suitable areas in Utah to speculate for oil
and gas than on lands proposed for wilderness. Of the 220 leases
to be sold, we are asking BLM to withdraw only a small number.
We are requesting that BLM take a hard look at the impacts oil
and gas development could have on potential wilderness BEFORE
they sell the leases that convey a right to develop the public
lands. Once the leases are sold, it's too late.
*****UPDATES*****
(1)COMMENTS NEEDED ON THE PRICE RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PLAN
Take back the wilderness, recapture the quiet--the Bureau of Land
Management (BLM) is currently determining the fate of over 10
million acres of public land in Utah, 5 million of which
qualifies as wilderness. Take action and ask the BLM to protect
our wild public lands from the oil and gas and off-road vehicle
industries!
On Friday, July 16th, the BLM released their revised Resource
Management Plan for the Price Field Office--the document that
will determine where oil and gas drilling can take place, what
designated trails off-road vehicles will have to stick to, and
what places will be protected for their wilderness values. As it
stands, the Price plan does overwhelmingly little to protect
citizen proposed wilderness outside of Wilderness Study Areas
from oil and gas leasing and drilling--BLM is giving away the
store to the oil and gas industry.
In their preferred alternative, the BLM leaves 98% of unprotected
wilderness open to oil and gas drilling. Of more than 1.5
million acres proposed for wilderness preservation in America's
Redrock Wilderness Act (90% of which the BLM has previously
agreed has wilderness characteristics), nearly 1 million acres
will be open to oil, gas and mineral development. BLM sacrificed
all this wilderness to the oil and gas industry for speculative
exploration, when, according to the United States Geological
Survey and Dept. of Energy, Utah supplies less than 1% of the
country's oil and less than 2% of the country's natural gas
supply. Drilling for oil under proposed wilderness lands would
provide 4 days worth of oil and less than 4 weeks worth of
natural gas. Drilling for oil and gas under proposed wilderness
lands would not keep your family warm this winter. See
http://www.redrockheritage.org/oilandgas1/ for more information
and sources of data.
The BLM is doing a much better job with off-road vehicles. Due
in large part to the flood of letters, State BLM Director Sally
Wisely received from all of you, the BLM has committed to
designating systems of trails for motorized recreation. They
will only leave a select few areas open to cross-country travel.
However, though the BLM has committed to designating trails they
are leaving open illegal, user-created routes that are
detrimental to protecting Utah wilderness. The plan leaves open
routes in Wilderness Study Areas, like Devil's Racetrack in Sids
Mountain WSA in the San Rafael Swell, as well as the notorious
Five Miles of Hell, and Behind the Reef Road.
We need to take back the wilderness, recapture the quiet! Write
the BLM today and ask them to protect America's Redrock
Wilderness from the oil and gas and off-road vehicle industries!
Visit http://www.suwa.org/page.php?page_name=Camp_RMP_Home today
to read more about the Price RMP, and send your letter to have
your voice heard. Thank you!
For more information on how you can get more involved in
protecting wild Utah through the RMP process, contact Margi
Hoffmann at (801) 486-7639 ext. 20 or margi@suwa.org.
(2)CONGRESS CALLS ON SECRETARY NORTON TO CANCEL OIL & GAS LEASES
IN PROPOSED WILDERNESS
A coalition of 82 Members of Congress, led by Representative
Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) and Rep. Diana DeGette (D-CO), wrote to
Interior Secretary Gale Norton urging the Administration not to
issue oil and gas leases on Utah and Colorado lands proposed for
wilderness protection in America's Redrock Wilderness Act
(H.R.1796) and the Colorado Wilderness Act (H.R.2305). The
letter, dated August 9th, was issued shortly before the Bureau of
Land Management (BLM) initiated another round of anti-wilderness
oil and gas leases that threaten several segments of proposed
wilderness in Colorado (Delores River Canyons, Maverick Canyon,
and Sagebrush Pillows Citizen's Wilderness Proposal). The call
to protect these wild lands also comes at a critical time for
Utah wilderness as SUWA filed a protest to prevent wilderness
quality lands from being leased during the September 8th oil and
gas sale planned by the BLM.
Representative Hinchey, sponsor of the America's Redrock
Wilderness Act, and Representative DeGette, sponsor of the
Colorado Wilderness Act, teamed together on the letter to point
out the escalating threats to wild lands in the Colorado Plateau
as a result of unsound oil and gas leasing policies pushed by the
BLM. The letter from the 82 Members of Congress describe that,
"over the past year, the BLM has carried out an aggressive
program of oil and gas leasing that has opened up tens of
thousands of acres of stunning wilderness quality lands in
Colorado and Utah to potential energy development."
Instead of adopting a sensible and scientific approach to
evaluating the impacts of oil and gas leasing, the BLM has
refused or overlooked significant and well established
information about sensitive lands proposed for wilderness. In an
effort to allow leasing to go forward, the BLM has failed to
recognize citizen proposed wilderness, the agency's own findings
for wilderness suitability, and timely new information presented
to the agency.
Currently, the Administration is reviewing public challenges to
oil and gas leasing in 58,321 acres of proposed Utah wilderness
and 21,000 acres of proposed Colorado wilderness. The 82 Members
of Congress indicated that it is not too late for the
Administration to reverse their policy of harmful leases and
restore a more sound approach to energy development. At their
urging, the letter calls for the Secretary to use her authority
to direct the BLM not to issue leases which have been challenged
by the public and that contain land proposed for wilderness
designation.
To date the Administration has not responded to the letter nor
has any decision been made about the fate the wilderness quality
lands under lease. We will be sure to update you as developments
unfold.
To see a copy of the letter and to see who signed it, go to
http://www.suwa.org/page.php?page_id=136 It is always a good idea
to thank your representative for doing something right. So a
quick email or phonecall to your representative for signing the
letter is appreciated. To call your representative, dial the
Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121 or go to www.congress.org to
find their email.
(3)GROUPS, REPRESENTATIVE HINCHEY PROTEST NEXT ROUND OF LEASING
IN AMERICA'S REDROCK WILDERNESS
SUWA, along with other conservation organizations and Congressman
Maurice Hinchey, will file a Protest with the Utah BLM on Monday,
August 23rd, requesting that BLM withdraw the 28 lease parcels
that are included in the upcoming September oil and gas lease
sale that are located within America's Redrock Wilderness Act.
The September oil and gas lease sale is huge; it includes
approximately 220 lease parcels, covering nearly 360,000 acres.
Twenty-eight of these parcels are located in areas proposed for
wilderness. Even more incredible is the fact that 20 of these
lease parcels are located in areas that the BLM itself, has
determined to have wilderness character.
The area hardest hit by this lease sale is the upper Desolation
Canyon area. This is a place that the agency describes as "a
place where the visitor has freedom to experience true isolation
from the sights and sounds of civilization. It is a place where
only the forces of nature continue to shape the colorful, rugged
landscape, where resident wild horses, big horn sheep, elk, bear,
and mountain lion roam free. The very name Desolation conjures
feelings of isolation about this remote region that is truly
wild." The proposed lease areas near Desolation Canyon surround
the Green River on both sides near Sand Wash, a popular area for
boaters.
Other areas that are targeted for lease sales are the White
River, Bull Canyon by Dinosaur National Monument, Floy and Coal
Canyons on the southern face of the Bookcliffs, and Snake Valley,
Wild Horse Pass, Lion Peak and Rockwell in Utah's West Desert.
There are other, more suitable areas in Utah to speculate for oil
and gas than on lands proposed for wilderness. Of the 220 leases
to be sold, we are asking BLM to withdraw only a small number.
We are requesting that BLM take a hard look at the impacts oil
and gas development could have on potential wilderness BEFORE
they sell the leases that convey a right to develop the public
lands. Once the leases are sold, it's too late.
