From The Glenwood Springs Post Independent: "The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources hearing about oil shale development in Colorado, Utah and Wyoming comes after both Sen. Ken Salazar, D-Colo., and Sen. Wayne Allard, R-Colo., have supported different legislative bills for possibly tapping the resource. 'Today, with oil above $120 a barrel and gas over $4 a gallon, some people - including some of my colleagues - are once again looking to oil shale as the cure-all for our energy woes,' said Salazar, who chaired the committee hearing Thursday. 'However, it is not clear why commercial leasing of federal lands is even necessary, since industry is not developing 200,000 acres of oil shale rich lands that they already own.'"
More from the article:
Testifying before the committee, Gov. Bill Ritter warned against establishing a commercial oil shale leasing program and finalizing regulations for it before research into the extraction of the resource is complete. He also cited concerns about the possible development of oil shale could have on the state's water resources and its environment. "Establishing a leasing program prior to understanding what technologies are viable and the implications of these technologies would be a dangerous course, with enormous risk of unintended consequences," Ritter said. "Such a course of action would not be in the best interest of the nation and certainly not in the interest of Colorado." But Allard, citing the vast concentration of oil shale in Colorado, said during the hearing that it may take years for companies to establish viable technologies to extract the resource, but that commercial regulations for possible oil shale leasing was needed so companies can make "sound business decisions...(Businesses) cannot operate in an uncertain regulatory environment," Allard said.
More coverage from The Denver Post. From the article:
The Bush administration should not take steps toward mining oil shale until effects on water, animals and the climate are known, Gov. Bill Ritter told a Senate panel Thursday. "We must be thoughtful and responsible about our approach," the Democratic governor told the Senate Energy Committee. "I have serious concerns about the pace of federal efforts." Oil shale could be key to expanding the nation's domestic energy supplies, Republicans argue. Two oil company executives at the hearing also urged Congress to take new steps toward oil-shale extraction. About 80 percent of shale supplies are believed to be in Colorado, mainly on the Western Slope. Additional deposits are in Utah and Wyoming. The fight over how to handle oil-shale development pits Republicans and oil companies against Democrats, conservationists, and some sporting and hunting groups.
As Ritter testified, Sen. Wayne Allard, R-Colo., worked to revoke limitations on shale leasing enacted last year. The amendment passed in December bans the administration from issuing oil-shale regulations or leases through the end of this fiscal year.
Allard's amendment to revoke the current moratorium failed 15-14 after Sen. Ken Salazar, D-Colo., persuaded Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., to vote against it. Ritter and Salazar said they do not oppose shale extraction, but they argue that even as the administration pushes to issue oil-shale regulations, it cannot say how much energy or water will be used to mine it. At the hearing, Allard and Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, said that companies will not invest in oil-shale development unless they know the government's terms for extracting it. Salazar, during questioning of witnesses, asked an administration representative what was the earliest that oil shale could be removed. "2015 and beyond," said C. Stephen Allred, Interior Department assistant secretary for land and minerals management.
More coverage from The Rocky Mountain News. They write:
A U.S. Senate panel upheld a more cautious approach toward oil shale development in Colorado on Thursday when it narrowly rejected Sen. Wayne Allard's attempt to lift a moratorium on enacting new rules for commercial leases. A heated battle over Colorado energy and environmental issues took center stage on Capitol Hill all afternoon. And now the fight could be destined for the floor of the U.S. Senate. At a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing chaired by Sen. Ken Salazar, Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter testified about the need for a cautious approach toward oil shale. He cited unresolved questions about how much water, energy and habitat destruction it could take to extract the estimated 500 billion barrels of oil that are believed to be underground in Colorado.
"Certainly, Colorado is ready and able to help this country meet its future energy needs," Ritter said. "At the same time, we need to be thoughtful and responsible about our approach, especially in light of the magnitude of such development and the potential for significant impacts." Ritter expressed concerns about the pace of energy development in the state and spoke in support of a moratorium Congress approved last year to prevent the Department of Interior from enacting new rules for commercial oil shale leases until at least Oct. 1...
While the energy committee hearing continued in a third-floor Senate committee room, Allard took his case two floors downstairs, and he asked the Senate Appropriations Committee to consider an amendment lifting the moratorium as part of an emergency supplemental appropriations bill being considered. The amendment failed on a 14-15 vote, but not before an emotion-packed debate that included Republican accusations that environmentalist concerns were preventing the country from reaching energy independence.
Tapping oil shale reserves has proven to be a tough proposition, both technologically and politically, for several decades now. Although Colorado's reserves are estimated to be roughly twice the size of Saudi Arabia's, it could take much of the next decade before significant supplies could be extracted out of the rock. Still, "If we're really serious about reducing pain at the pump, this is a vote that would make a difference in people's lives," Allard told the committee. Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., said he was outraged that a House of Representatives panel imposed the moratorium on new oil shale rules late last year, scuttling a process established by other, hard-fought legislation. Rep. Mark Udall, D-Eldorado Springs, who was one of the leading backers of the moratorium, issued a statement Thursday saying he believes it "was and remains well-founded." Thursday's vote was split on party lines, with Democrats citing calls from Ritter and Salazar to keep the moratorium in place. One of the key swing votes, Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., said she also opposes the moratorium on the new oil shale rules. However, she voted against Allard's amendment lifting the moratorium on urging from her friend, Sen. Salazar. Even so, she signaled that's not the end of the issue and that she would push to reverse the moratorium when the appropriations bill reaches the Senate floor.
Here's a report from The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel. Some excerpts:
On Tuesday, [U.S. Senator Ken] Salazar said he will introduce a bill that would push back the timeline for the Interior Department to issue final leasing regulations and begin commercial leasing for oil shale development. He and [Governor] Ritter say those actions should wait until research into potential technologies can be finished. Otherwise, they say, it's impossible to analyze the possible effects. Salazar asked Ritter on Thursday what kinds of demands oil shale development would create on the Colorado River watershed. "This is one of the real concerns, Senator, is that we don't know," Ritter said.
However, Interior Department Assistant Secretary Stephen Allred and Terry O'Connor, with Shell Exploration and Production, said energy companies need commercial rules to provide some certainty as they decide whether to commit money to oil shale development. "We right now don't have any really definitive guidelines," O'Connor said...
Salazar's bill would provide a year for completion of an environmental impact statement on oil shale development, and an additional 90-day comment period for governors of affected states. It would provide another year for development of a commercial leasing program after completion of the environmental study. One concern for Ritter is how much electricity oil shale projects would require and where it would come from. He also worries about how much oil shale development could add to the state's greenhouse gas emissions at a time when it is trying to reduce them. "This is right now a technology that could take us in the opposite direction," Ritter said. Pointing to the amount of oil and gas development occurring in Colorado, Ritter said the state already is doing its part to produce energy on behalf of the nation. "We're doing a host of other very aggressive things around renewable resources as well," he said.
Asked by Salazar if he would be OK with the government issuing more limited research and development rules rather than commercial leasing ones, O'Connor said that would help. He said the lack of regulations would hamper Shell's ability to exercise its right to proceed with its research and development leases. "We're heading toward a legal train wreck," he said.
More Coyote Gulch coverage here and here.
"2008 pres"
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