Agency dismisses protests of Roan drilling; leases issued The Interior Department on Monday dismissed nearly 15,000 protests submitted by groups and individuals against drilling on the Roan Plateau and the same day issued oil and gas leases on the western Colorado landmark to energy companies. The leases covering nearly 55,000 acres had been auctioned off by the Bureau of Land Management, an arm of the Interior Department, on Aug. 14. But the leases couldn't be issued to the winning companies until the protests had been resolved, the agency said. By dismissing the protests, the BLM also has cleared the way for Colorado to pocket $56 million, or 49 percent of the $113.5 million raised from the lease sale - an onshore record in BLM's history....