The Bureau of Land Management opened a 30-day public comment period for plans to include 113 oil and gas parcels totaling 126,445 acres in Colorado in a December lease sale on Aug. 12.
The comment period closes Sept. 11 and gives the public an opportunity to weigh in before BLM finalizes the parcels for auction, according to the agency. The Colorado lease sale is part of the administration’s broader energy dominance push to expand oil and gas production on federal lands.
Parcels in Colorado lease sales are typically located in the Piceance Basin and other production areas in western Colorado. The region contains significant natural gas reserves and has been a focus of energy development and conservation debate for decades.
For communities in western Colorado, expanded oil and gas leasing brings potential economic benefits through royalties, employment and tax revenue, as well as concerns about air quality, water resources and impacts on public lands used for recreation and wildlife habitat.
Conservation groups have consistently challenged federal oil and gas lease sales in the West, arguing that expanded fossil fuel production is incompatible with climate goals. Industry groups counter that domestic production strengthens energy security and supports local economies.
Royalty rates and specific parcel locations were not detailed in the BLM release. Under current law, the minimum royalty rate for new federal oil and gas leases is 16.67%, a rate that was raised by the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022.
The December sale would be among the largest Colorado-specific federal lease offerings in recent years, measured by total acreage.