Interior adopts new rules for onshore drilling

Federal land agencies Monday finalized reforms for oil and gas drilling, reforms triggered by development proposals in Utah near sensitive lands close to national parks and archeological treasures. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and U.S. Bureau of Land Management Director Bob Abbey said the changes were needed to restore balance to onshore drilling. "The BLM reforms we are finalizing today establish a more orderly, open, and environmentally sound process for developing oil and gas resources on public lands," said Salazar, who proposed the reforms in January. But critics attacked the changes as bureaucracy that will stifle energy development and new jobs. U.S. Rep. Rob Bishop said Salazar had "once again chosen his anti-energy allies over the interests of the people and nation." "Not only will these new regulations add multiple layers of redundant red tape and significantly reduce America's ability to reduce our dependency on foreign oil, they will also hinder job creation in communities and regions already experiencing severe job loss," said Bishop, a Utah Republican and chairman of the congressional Western Caucus. U.S. Sen. Bob Bennett, R-Utah, called the reforms "exactly the wrong thing to do and exactly the wrong time."...more