A new analysis by the Wilderness Society shows that Colorado’s oil and gas industry owns access to more federal lands in Colorado than nearly any other state in the Rockies.
Their study finds that 11.8 million acres, (an area the size of Maryland and Connecticut combined) has been opened for oil and gas leasing. This represents a staggering 93% of federally controlled mineral holdings in Colorado.
In fiscal year 2012, protests in Colorado were significantly higher in Colorado than elsewhere in the Rockies and 66 percent higher than the national average of 18 percent.
Helen Hankins, Director of the Colorado Bureau of Land Management – which manages the state’s public lands – has come under fire for failing to implement the leasing reforms aimed at reducing protests. The Department of Interior reforms were put into place to solve conflicts between natural resources such as water, wildlife and oil and gas development.
Read more about the Wilderness Society findings.
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