Dept. of Interior Announces Onshore Oil and Gas Lease Reforms

WASHINGTON (January 6, 2010) – In response to Department of Interior Secretary Ken Salazar’s announcement today on reforms to the Bureau of Land Management’s onshore oil and gas leasing program, the following is a statement from Amy Mall, a senior policy analyst in the Boulder, Colorado office of the Natural Resources Defense Council:

“The Obama administration is working to restore balance to the process and protect clean water, clean air and America's wildlife. It’s no wonder that industry is whining. For eight long years, the oil and gas industry practically wrote the rules. Communities, wildlife habitat, and some of America's wildest lands were devastated during that time.  Today’s actions are the right thing to do and important first steps as we move toward a clean energy future and away from dirty fuels.  We will be watching closely over the implementation and the specifics.”