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The BLM in Colorado has announced changes to resource management plans around the state to better manage big game habitat and migration in conjunction with oil and gas development on public lands.
The proposed plan would use recommendations from the state, including Colorado Parks and Wildlife and the Energy and Carbon Management Commission to conserve wildlife habitat, and to preserve the connection between habitat areas to protect migratory patterns.
The Roaring Fork and Colorado River valleys, as well as Eagle County, are home to high priority habitat (HPH) for elk, mule deer, and bighorn sheep. The agency also includes pronghorn in the plan.
Under the new rules, oil and gas developers would have to analyze alternative locations for drilling in those areas, as well as create plans to minimize disturbance to wildlife. That includes both direct and indirect impacts, as well as the cumulative effects of oil and gas activities on the big game populations in the area. The BLM would also cap development at one oil and gas facility per square mile of HPH.
Officials estimate that with the new rules in place, total greenhouse gas emissions from new federal production, transportation, processing, and downstream combustion would be reduced by 11.2% in 2030. They also say air pollution in Colorado will also decrease, including nitrogen oxides, volatile organic components (VOCs), sulfur oxides, and large particulate matter.
Another version of the plan would have avoided new authorizations of oil and gas development in HPH altogether.
The BLM began the process of drafting the plan back in July of 2022, and released a draft environmental impact statement in November 2023. The public has until August 19th to file a protest on the BLM’s website. There, you can also read the full proposal.
