Salazar Talks Solar and Mining Projects Near
the Grand Canyon

On sustaining the solar tax credits, the Interior Secretary said “incentivizing these new entrants into the energy market is important. We give tax breaks to the oil and gas companies all across the country … There is every reason to provide incentives to the solar-energy world because of their importance.”

Interior Wins
Legal Battle

The District Court decision in Wyoming affirming the Interior Department’s ability to weigh environmental impacts when issuing oil and gas leases on public lands – as long as it does so in a timely fashion. Still, Republicans are pushing hard to speed up both the leasing and the permitting process, and U.S. Rep. Doug Lamborn, R-Colo., recently blasted the Obama administration for impeding domestic oil and gas production.

But Robin Cooley (pictured above), the Earthjustice attorney for the groups that intervened in the Utah and Wyoming case, said the decision is actually a win-win for both the industry and the environmental community.

Lively Exchange at BLM Oil Shale Meeting in Rifle

The meeting was part of the agency’s attempt to take a fresh look at an oil shale plan released in the closing days of the Bush Administration. More meetings on the controversial topic are scheduled for Denver today and in Cheyenne Thursday.

This Week’s Oil and Gas Developments

BLM to Revisit Oil Shale …
Companies Get Big Fines for Stormwater Runoff…
Elbert County Heats Up With Oil and Gas Fever …
Fracking Chemical Registry Not Enough Say Critics …
Texas Company Told to Cease and Desist in Colorado…
Local Governments Oppose COGCC Board Remake…

Salazar Report Refutes GOP Claim Administration is Blocking Oil and Gas Drilling

Overall, 45 percent of all onshore leases and 57 percent of all leased acres are idle. “The simple truth is approval rates for drilling permits are up, and industry lays idle hands on over 21 million acres of public lands,” said Matt Garrington of the Checks & Balances Project in Denver.

Colorado Public Lands Identified for Potential Solar Energy Development

The detailed study, known as the Draft Solar Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement, was compiled over the past two years as part of the Obama Administration’s efforts to create a framework for developing renewable energy in ‘the right way and in the right places.’