Another Threat to the Wild - Bush administration energy policy affecting the environment

National Wildlife, Oct-Nov, 2002

President Bush's energy policy is starting to take hold of public lands in the West, resulting in a process of energy extraction that, if left unchecked, will change the face of wild landscapes in the Rocky Mountain states for decades to come.

Many Americans feared that the energy industry background of many in this administration, starting with the president, would lead to blind support for fossil fuel producers. It's true that half of the administration's top 100 appointees were either affiliated with or had economic ties to the energy industry. But it's policies, not the past, that count. Unfortunately, those policies confirm that the worst fears were justified.

The administration's promotion of oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, $28 billion in subsidies to the fossil fuel industry and rollbacks of environmental safeguards have sparked heated debate in Congress. Yet some of its most environmentally damaging policies don't require congressional approval. They can be achieved by Executive Order and agency directive.

The White House has already ordered that recommendations for such things as winter range improvements for wildlife on public lands be screened for "any adverse effects on energy supply, distribution or use." Another Executive Order tells federal agencies to "expedite their review of permits" for energy projects, or to "take other actions as necessary to accelerate the completion of such projects."

One way federal authorities are complying with these directives is by approving industry requests to waive provisions of drilling leases that are designed to protect wildlife and the environment. A Wyoming Bureau of Land Management (BLM) field office did such a good job of accommodating the oil and gas industry that it got an Award of Excellence earlier this year for approving a record number of drilling permits.

Dozens of proposals to drill on public lands in Wyoming, Montana, Colorado, Utah and New Mexico are getting administration attention. A White House task force is screening 55 energy projects with an eye to speeding things up.

The BLM's enthusiasm for one particularly intrusive type of drilling is already beginning to chew up outstanding wildlife habitat in Wyoming's Red Desert. In the midst of crucial winter range for antelope, elk and deer, the BLM is contemplating approval of almost 4,000 coalbed methane wells, which will turn this vast wildlife haven into a spider's web of rigs, roads, reservoirs and pipelines, stirred up by constant truck traffic and barraged by roaring compressors, pumps and generators.

Not willing to await an environmental evaluation of the full development, the agency is nibbling away at this crucial wildlife habitat by allowing piecemeal drilling. The agency's clear intention is to turn an area of over 300,000 acres into a sacrifice zone of industrialization.

In effect, the White House is turning on its head the time-honored, bipartisan tradition of managing our public lands for multiple uses, including recreation and wildlife habitat. It is establishing energy extraction as its top priority, threatening the long-term health of public lands for short-term industry gains.

So long as the administration pursues a one-sided energy policy it will be out of sync with the American public, which has consistently shown support for a balanced approach embracing conservation, renewables and alternative fuels. It will be confirming the nation's worst fears about its lack of commitment to environmental stewardship. And it will be reaffirming the urgent need for NWF and members like you to stand together to defend our nation's wildlife and wild places.

Mark Van Putten

President & Chief Executive Officer

National Wildlife Federation