Governor: More data needed before Wyo. Range drilling

The U.S. Forest Service needs to have more data about current conditions if it intends to gauge how a controversial proposal to drill for gas in the Wyoming Range would affect streams, air quality and wildlife habitat over time, Gov. Matt Mead said in his first detailed, public comments on the project. Mead didn't take a firm stance on the project either way, saying in his letter to the Bridger-Teton National Forest supervisor that the plan to drill in the forest "requires the right balancing of interests." "We are all interested in finding the right balance," Mead wrote in the letter dated Friday. "This is not a winner-take-all situation." The Forest Service took comments through Friday on the proposal by Houston-based Plains Exploration and Production Co. to drill 137 gas wells from 17 pads a few miles south of Bondurant. The Forest Service released a draft plan for the Eagle Prospect-Noble Basin project in December, opening a 90-day public comment period on the drilling. The Forest Service got a mountain of feedback: About 40,000 comments...more