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Interior Department officials are realizing too late that increased coalbed methane production in the Powder River Basin is killing off the sage grouse population, Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer (D) told the House Natural Resources Committee today.
Schweitzer and Gov. Dave Freudenthal (D) of Wyoming, met with Interior and Bureau of Land Management officials this week to discuss the problem, but he was not satisfied with their response.
"They have been leasing acres all over the Powder River Basin for coalbed methane because they're in a quest for this gas that we have," Schweitzer said. "We sat down at this meeting and BLM said, 'Look, you gotta help us. The sage grouse are disappearing, and you know what we think the problem is? We think it's all that coalbed methane drilling we have. Can you help us?"
But only BLM has power to issue the coalbed methane leases, Schweitzer said. "You didn't even ask our opinion before you leased the land where the sage grouse live," he said. "You didn't ask our opinion before you gave out permits to drill."
Part of the problem for the sage grouse are ponds used to evaporate the salty water that is a byproduct of extracting coalbed methane. The ponds have attracted large mosquito populations that is spreading the West Nile virus, deadly to the sage grouse.
"They're saying to us the numbers of the sage grouse are decreasing at such a rapid rate that they're not even sure if we stop right now if they can protect the species," Schweitzer told reporters. "They pushed the panic button to us, not the other way around. They're the one that permitted the rapid expansion of coalbed methane."
Montana officials are only now realizing the extent of BLM's actions regarding coalbed methane, and split-estate leases means landowners cannot stop companies from drilling, said former Rep. Pat Williams (D-Mont.).
"Nobody can stop them," Williams said. "Once BLM leases the minerals, the drilling companies can come in and cut the bolts on your gates. The only thing that can stop them is availability of drilling rigs."
Interior promotes habitat restoration
As energy development increases in the West, Interior and BLM officials have expressed concern that endangered species listings, such as one environmentalists are seeking for the sage grouse, could bring production to a halt in some areas. President Bush's fiscal 2008 budget request includes the $22 million "Healthy Lands Initiative," a plan to funnel money to areas in the Rocky Mountains that would restore up to 500,000 acres.
The program will help Interior "stay ahead of the curve," Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne said earlier this month. "We do not want to get to the point where a species may be threatened and have to be considered as endangered."
As part of the Healthy Lands Initiative, the administration hopes to attract an additional $10 million from state, local and tribal governments, as well as from conservation groups and the energy industry.
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