Category: News (Older posts)

BLM held public scoping meetings on May 3 and May 4 in Rifle and in Denver, respectively,  in its “process to take a fresh look” at commercial oil shale plans that were announced in 2008.

CWF made public comment —

Background: Secretary Salazar had announced the "fresh look" earlier
this year at to the 2008 regulations.  Under the 2008 regs, 2 million
acres of western federal public lands would be open (eligible) for
commercial oil shale leasing.  BLM has published a Notice of Intent to
Prepare a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) governing oil
shale resources on BLM  lands in the Piceance Basin (and in Utah and
Wyoming).

In January 2007 BLM issued 5 RD&D (Research, Demonstration & Development)
oil shale leases to 3 companies within the Piceance Basin
including Shell.  These lessees were granted the ability to expand their
respective 160-acre leases to 5,120-acre commercial development leases
after conversion from the RD&D status.  A 2nd round of RD&D lease
applications was solicited by Department of Interior on November 3, 2009.
After submitting proposals, two companies were nominated - Natural Soda
and ExxonMobil -- to conduct RD&D on 160-acre leases (which could be
expanded to 640 acres upon meeting criteria set by Secretary Salazar).
At this time, these nominations are going through the BLM legal process.

The obvious question is why move forward at all with any commercial
leasing before results of round 1 RD&D and round 2, assuming it goes forward,
are forthcoming and demonstrate technical feasibility for commercial
scale oil shale production, water use projections, etc.    Our CWF position
has been exactly that: it is premature to conduct any commercial development leasing.

Water estimates continue to appear to be 3 barrels of water for each
barrel of production. Companies consistently have stated that determining
commercial feasibility is at least 20 years off.  As you know, this also is
very important wildlife habitat in the Piceance that has been leased
extensively already for gas development. (CWF mapped mule deer severe winter
range, elk winter concentration and severe winter range areas, and greater
sage grouse ridge areas for our report on NW Colorado published in January 2010.)
The number of future  wellpads projected by gas companies in the Piceance Basin
is alarming, exacerbating access issues, lack of quality experience in an
industrialized zone, as well as destruction of habitat.

Some companies have extensive private holdings in the Piceance.  They
claim that although within the oil shale formation, the private lands they
own are in the thinner less promising areas.

The US House of Representatives Natural Resources Committee majority intends
to push for commercial leasing.  Apparently, they do not view RD&D findings as a prerequisite.

CWF was surprised to see that although SB 11-208 has not reached the House yet, the job announcement for the position of Director of Parks and Wildlife not only is posted, but the application period closes on Monday, April 18.   Does this seem to anyone as though the cart is being put before the horse?   The rationale is that senior service executives must reapply for their positions, as required by the Governor.   BUT they could have posted BOTH positions – DOW director and State Parks director — – with a caveat that ONE agency might result if  SB11-208 is passed, and therefore, the candidate pools might become merged in the selection process.

CWF was surprised to see that although SB 11-208 has not reached the House yet, the job announcement for the position of Director of Parks and Wildlife not only is posted, but the application period closes on Monday, April 18.   Does this seem to anyone as though the cart is being put before the horse?   The rationale is that senior service executives must reapply for their positions, as required by the Governor.   BUT they could have posted BOTH positions – DOW director and State Parks director — – with a caveat that ONE agency might result if  SB11-208 is passed, and therefore, the candidate pools might become merged in the selection process.

The Congressional compromise budget proposed late Friday, April 8 to fund the federal government for the rest of this fiscal year (ending September 30, 2011) would not fund the wild lands policy that had been announced by Department of the Interior Secretary Ken Salazar in December 2010. In Colorado, the BLM manages 8.3 million acres of federal public lands.  Of this land, approximately 4.6 million acres are leased for oil and gas exploration and development (as of FY 2010). BLM conducts auctions quarterly for oil and gas leasing.

In CWF’s view, a balance among multiple uses of BLM lands is essential. Outdoor recreation is big business in Colorado amounting to $10 billion annually. Of that amount more than $3 billion is attributable to wildlife related recreation: wildlife viewing, hunting and fishing. Wildlife habitat is becoming increasingly fragmented and maintaining wild land characteristics as a criterion in balance with the many other multiple uses is very important for wildlife and outdoor recreation.

Background: On February 25, 2011 the BLM announced guidance to its field managers for managing its federal public lands that have wild lands characteristics, as part of its multiple use mission. DOI Secretary Ken Salazar’s Secretarial Order of December 23 and this guidance recognize that wildlife related and other outdoor recreation are an important dimension of the BLM’s mission of multiple uses.

The press release stated:The guidance will ensure public lands with wilderness characteristics are inventoried, described, and managed in accordance with Secretarial Order 3310 issued by Interior Secretary Ken Salazar in December. Since 2003, when its wilderness inventory handbook was revoked as a result of a controversial out-of-court settlement between then-Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton, the State of Utah, and other parties, BLM has lacked comprehensive, long-term guidance on how to identify and manage lands with wilderness characteristics. “The Wild Lands policy describes the open process for taking a good look at these lands and hearing from the public, States, local officials, and Tribes on how they should be used to meet our multiple-use mission responsibilities,” said BLM Director Bob Abbey. “This is a common sense approach that also makes sound economic sense. Last year, hunting, fishing, and other recreational uses of BLM lands generated $7.4 billion for local economies throughout the West.  Secretarial Order 3310 directs the BLM to consider, as part of its existing land-use planning process – which includes substantial public input – whether to designate appropriate areas with wilderness characteristics under its jurisdiction as ‘Wild Lands’ and to manage them to protect their wilderness values.  The Secretarial Order restores balance to the management of the Nation’s public lands and provides national guidance to the BLM on how to meet its obligations to identify and consider lands with wilderness characteristics. The Order requires the BLM to consider all of the resources on public lands – including wilderness characteristics – in its land-use planning process.  Lands with wilderness characteristics provide outstanding recreational opportunities, as well as cultural, scientific, historical, and ecological resources.  It’s important to know that this Order doesn’t change the management of a single acre of public land, but simply broadens the management tools available through the public land-use planning process,” Abbey said.

Update: April 12: Colorado Senate Bill 11-208 did not pass 2nd reading.  Instead, it has been delayed until next Monday, the 18th.  Senate President Brandon Shaffer requested lay over of the bill due to discussion about whether the bill could allow oil and gas drilling in state parks.

Note: Weeks before the March 8 announcement of proposed merger of the two divisions,  there was talk of possibly offering for lease an area of  St. Vrain State Park for drilling to raise revenue for state parks.    As to State Wildlife Areas, there has been drilling in Garfield SWA.  In the James Mark Jones SWA, exploratory wells are being drilled by El Paso Gas.  The James Mark Jones SWA is located in South Park.  The mineral estate is owned by the State Land Board, which has leased the surface.

March 31: Senate Bill 11-208 passed out of Senate Agricultural, Natural Resources & Energy Committee on a 7-0 vote this afternoon.  It now proceeds to the Senate Floor and then to the House Agricultural Committee.  CWF’s Board Chair testified in opposition to the bill, stating that the process clearly has the cart before the horse.  The transcript of his testimony appears under Our Stand [bottom left of this home page].

March 30:  Senate Bill 11-08 was introduced this morning to combine the Colorado Division of Wildlife and the Division of Parks and Outdoor Recreation.  The Bill also will combine the Wildlife Commission and the Parks Board, effective July 1, 2011.

We have listed the names of the Senate Sponsorship and of the House Sponsorship under Our Stand – bottom left of this home page.  Is your senator and/or representative a sponsor of this Bill??

CWF ‘s Board Chair John Smeltzer will testify against the bill at tomorrow afternoon’s hearing before Senate Agricultural, Natural Resources and Energy Committee, and express our serious concerns about this rushed bill.  The hearing is set for 2:00 tomorrow, Thursday, March 31 on the 3rd floor of the Capitol.

Late Thursday afternoon, March 24, the draft bill emerged that would combine Colorado’s Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlife and Division of Parks and Outdoor Recreation into a new division.  The Governor announced his plan on March 8 to combine the two divisions.  The stated purposes are to ” streamline state government, improve service to customers and preserve critical programs,” according to the Governor’s office news release on March 8.

Wildlife and Parks had been combined during the 1960’s and early 1970’s.  It is very complicated to structure finances to prevent a “diversion” of game cash funds, which comprise a substantial portion of the DOW budget.    License fees paid by hunters and anglers into the Division of Wildlife are matched on a 75% basis by the US Fish and Wildlife Service from excise taxes paid on hunting and fishing equipment.  If game cash funds are diverted from wildlife expenditures, the match is lost until the game cash funds are repaid.    In addition, the Parks Division does not have sufficient funds for its operations.   It appears that funds within the Division of Wildlife budget would need to be used to help non-wildlife aspects of state parks.  Other difficult financial and structural issues include composition of the new commission from the current Wildlife Commission and Parks Board.

See CWF’s updates under Our Stand – last updated March 25, as new developments occur.

CWF is working on comments re the draft bill and will post on on before Sunday March 27 under Our Stand.

CWF’s Statement: — March 10, 2011:

• The ability of wildlife professionals to provide effective management in a rapidly growing state must not be compromised in the budgeting process.
• The increasingly complex task of enforcing the state’s wildlife laws must not be weakened and the primary role the Division of Wildlife’s Level One law enforcement officers must remain a primary agency function.
• The Division of Wildlife’s œenterprise status recognizes that the Division relies on hunters and anglers from throughout the nation to pay for wildlife management without receiving state tax money, and must be preserved.
• The approximately $18-20 million the state receives each year in federal excise taxes collected on the sale of hunting and fishing equipment in Colorado must not be jeopardized through the œdiversion of wildlife cash or conversion of wildlife property to non-wildlife use. Sportsmen require guarantees that game cash dollars will not be used to fund operations of state parks beyond wildlife expenditures currently made by the Division of Wildlife.
• The Wildlife Commission’s current statutory authority to develop policy and to adopt wildlife regulations must remain intact.

Update: April 12: Colorado Senate Bill 11-208 did not pass 2nd reading.  Instead, it has been delayed until next Monday, the 18th.  Senate President Brandon Shaffer requested lay over of the bill due to discussion about whether the bill could allow oil and gas drilling in state parks.

Note: Weeks before the March 8 announcement of proposed merger of the two divisions,  there was talk of possibly offering for lease an area of  St. Vrain State Park for drilling to raise revenue for state parks.    As to State Wildlife Areas, there has been drilling in Garfield SWA.  In the James Mark Jones SWA, exploratory wells are being drilled by El Paso Gas.  The James Mark Jones SWA is located in South Park.  The mineral estate is owned by the State Land Board, which has leased the surface.

March 31: Senate Bill 11-208 passed out of Senate Agricultural, Natural Resources & Energy Committee on a 7-0 vote this afternoon.  It now proceeds to the Senate Floor and then to the House Agricultural Committee.  CWF’s Board Chair testified in opposition to the bill, stating that the process clearly has the cart before the horse.  The transcript of his testimony appears under Our Stand [bottom left of this home page].

March 30:  Senate Bill 11-08 was introduced this morning to combine the Colorado Division of Wildlife and the Division of Parks and Outdoor Recreation.  The Bill also will combine the Wildlife Commission and the Parks Board, effective July 1, 2011.

We have listed the names of the Senate Sponsorship and of the House Sponsorship under Our Stand – bottom left of this home page.  Is your senator and/or representative a sponsor of this Bill??

CWF ‘s Board Chair John Smeltzer will testify against the bill at tomorrow afternoon’s hearing before Senate Agricultural, Natural Resources and Energy Committee, and express our serious concerns about this rushed bill.  The hearing is set for 2:00 tomorrow, Thursday, March 31 on the 3rd floor of the Capitol.

Late Thursday afternoon, March 24, the draft bill emerged that would combine Colorado’s Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlife and Division of Parks and Outdoor Recreation into a new division.  The Governor announced his plan on March 8 to combine the two divisions.  The stated purposes are to ” streamline state government, improve service to customers and preserve critical programs,” according to the Governor’s office news release on March 8.

Wildlife and Parks had been combined during the 1960’s and early 1970’s.  It is very complicated to structure finances to prevent a “diversion” of game cash funds, which comprise a substantial portion of the DOW budget.    License fees paid by hunters and anglers into the Division of Wildlife are matched on a 75% basis by the US Fish and Wildlife Service from excise taxes paid on hunting and fishing equipment.  If game cash funds are diverted from wildlife expenditures, the match is lost until the game cash funds are repaid.    In addition, the Parks Division does not have sufficient funds for its operations.   It appears that funds within the Division of Wildlife budget would need to be used to help non-wildlife aspects of state parks.  Other difficult financial and structural issues include composition of the new commission from the current Wildlife Commission and Parks Board.

See CWF’s updates under Our Stand – last updated March 25, as new developments occur.

CWF is working on comments re the draft bill and will post on on before Sunday March 27 under Our Stand.

CWF’s Statement: — March 10, 2011:

• The ability of wildlife professionals to provide effective management in a rapidly growing state must not be compromised in the budgeting process.
• The increasingly complex task of enforcing the state’s wildlife laws must not be weakened and the primary role the Division of Wildlife’s Level One law enforcement officers must remain a primary agency function.
• The Division of Wildlife’s œenterprise status recognizes that the Division relies on hunters and anglers from throughout the nation to pay for wildlife management without receiving state tax money, and must be preserved.
• The approximately $18-20 million the state receives each year in federal excise taxes collected on the sale of hunting and fishing equipment in Colorado must not be jeopardized through the œdiversion of wildlife cash or conversion of wildlife property to non-wildlife use. Sportsmen require guarantees that game cash dollars will not be used to fund operations of state parks beyond wildlife expenditures currently made by the Division of Wildlife.
• The Wildlife Commission’s current statutory authority to develop policy and to adopt wildlife regulations must remain intact.

The Congressional compromise budget proposed late Friday, April 8 to fund the federal government for the rest of this fiscal year (ending September 30, 2011) would not fund the wild lands policy that had been announced by Department of the Interior Secretary Ken Salazar in December 2010. In Colorado, the BLM manages 8.3 million acres of federal public lands.  Of this land, approximately 4.6 million acres are leased for oil and gas exploration and development (as of FY 2010). BLM conducts auctions quarterly for oil and gas leasing.

In CWF’s view, a balance among multiple uses of BLM lands is essential. Outdoor recreation is big business in Colorado amounting to $10 billion annually. Of that amount more than $3 billion is attributable to wildlife related recreation: wildlife viewing, hunting and fishing. Wildlife habitat is becoming increasingly fragmented and maintaining wild land characteristics as a criterion in balance with the many other multiple uses is very important for wildlife and outdoor recreation.

Background: On February 25, 2011 the BLM announced guidance to its field managers for managing its federal public lands that have wild lands characteristics, as part of its multiple use mission. DOI Secretary Ken Salazar’s Secretarial Order of December 23 and this guidance recognize that wildlife related and other outdoor recreation are an important dimension of the BLM’s mission of multiple uses.

The press release stated:The guidance will ensure public lands with wilderness characteristics are inventoried, described, and managed in accordance with Secretarial Order 3310 issued by Interior Secretary Ken Salazar in December. Since 2003, when its wilderness inventory handbook was revoked as a result of a controversial out-of-court settlement between then-Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton, the State of Utah, and other parties, BLM has lacked comprehensive, long-term guidance on how to identify and manage lands with wilderness characteristics. “The Wild Lands policy describes the open process for taking a good look at these lands and hearing from the public, States, local officials, and Tribes on how they should be used to meet our multiple-use mission responsibilities,” said BLM Director Bob Abbey. “This is a common sense approach that also makes sound economic sense. Last year, hunting, fishing, and other recreational uses of BLM lands generated $7.4 billion for local economies throughout the West.  Secretarial Order 3310 directs the BLM to consider, as part of its existing land-use planning process – which includes substantial public input – whether to designate appropriate areas with wilderness characteristics under its jurisdiction as ‘Wild Lands’ and to manage them to protect their wilderness values.  The Secretarial Order restores balance to the management of the Nation’s public lands and provides national guidance to the BLM on how to meet its obligations to identify and consider lands with wilderness characteristics. The Order requires the BLM to consider all of the resources on public lands – including wilderness characteristics – in its land-use planning process.  Lands with wilderness characteristics provide outstanding recreational opportunities, as well as cultural, scientific, historical, and ecological resources.  It’s important to know that this Order doesn’t change the management of a single acre of public land, but simply broadens the management tools available through the public land-use planning process,” Abbey said.

CO Rep. Jon Becker (R- Fort Morgan) pulled his bill, Colorado HB11-1150 on February 21 at the House Agricultural, Livestock & Wildlife Committee hearing.  CWF has actively worked to oppose this bill.  CWF applauds Representative Becker and Department of Natural Resources Executive Director Mike King for their work to bring about this outcome.  (See also the Department of Natural Resources press release below, reprinted in full.)

What this bill would have done: This bill would have transfered $5 million in game cash funds from the Division of Wildlife (DOW) to the Colorado Water Conservation Board each year for the next 10 years.  In addition to the loss of $5 million,  which is derived from the sale of hunting and fishing licenses, the bill would have constituted a “diversion of funds” that will result in an additional loss of $21 million per year in matching federal funds.  These federal funds come from excise taxes on hunting and fishing equipment dedicated to support wildlife management activities, including hunting and angling. The loss of $21 million per year will continue indefinitely until the original funds diverted are repaid with interest.  HB 1150  effectively eliminates almost $26 million per year from the DOW  for 10 years, compromising its ability to manage wildlife and hunting and fishing recreation. The total loss would have been $260 million. The DOW derives the bulk of its funding from sportsmen and sportswomen and does not receive any tax revenue from the general public.

In a related action, the Colorado Department of Natural Resources issued a press release during the morning of February 17 stating:

“The Colorado Division of Wildlife is announcing a 5-year goal to prioritize investments in water projects that benefit wildlife and wildlife recreation.  The Division owns 104 dams and has an active program to maintain existing facilities for safety, storage, and release. CDOW has identified 17 dams and associated infrastructure in need of repairs and improvements, and is actively seeking storage agreeements, exchange of use agreements and other water projects with water providers and water users for this purpose.

CDOW Director Tom Remington said, ‘We have several critical water development needs, such as repairing the dam at Beaver Reservoir to allow us to store water again.  We also have some great opportunities, such as reaching a storage agreement with Rio Grande Reservoir operators to store Division of Wildlife water critical to our needs in the San Luis Valley.’

In cooperation with Representative Jon Becker (R-Fort Morgan), the CDOW is exploring other opportunities that will first and foremost benefit wildlife and wildlife recreation, but will also help other entities and individuals who depend on water resources in the state.  The Division intends to allocate at least $6 million for these types of projects over the next five years.

Rep. Becker said, ‘I am glad to see the CODW seeking additional opportunities for water development that will benefit both wildlife and sportsmen.  At the same time, the ancillary benefit to agricultural and other interests across the state is a win-win for all involved.’

‘In the face of budget issues that are creating challenges throughout state government, it is especially challenging to plan for increasing water demand while protecting natural resources over the long term,’ Department of Natural Resources Executive Director Mike King explained.  ‘There is a lot of overlap between healthy wildlife habitat and what sportsmen and agricultural communities need. We welcome the opportunity to combine these goals and find ways to make limited state funding go further.’ “