CASPER, Wyo. - Today the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) released the draft environmental impact statement for the Converse County oil and gas project. Five energy companies submitted the proposal to the BLM to drill approximately 5,000 oil and natural gas wells on 1.5 million acres over 10 years. The project has the potential to contribute about 94 million barrels of oil and 5.8 trillion cubic feet of natural gas to America’s independent energy reserves. Over 8,000 jobs could be created with approximately $18-$28 billion in revenues and economic activity.
The release of the draft environmental impact statement begins a 45-day public comment period that closes on March 12, 2018. Public comments are valuable in this process and assist the BLM in developing a well-informed analysis of the project.
Three public meetings are scheduled during this comment period for:
* Tuesday, Feb. 20, 2018 in Douglas, Wyoming at the Eastern Wyoming College, located at 800 S. Wind River Drive.
* Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2018 in Casper, Wyoming at the Ramkota Hotel, located at 800 N. Poplar Street.
* Thursday, Feb. 22, 2018 in Glenrock, Wyoming at the Glenrock Meeting Hall, located at 518 S. 4th Street.
All meetings will be held from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
The public can access the project documents and comment online by visiting the project ePlanning page. Written comments are also accepted by email to blm_wy_casper_wymail@blm.gov or mail to the following address:
Bureau of Land Management, Casper Field Office Attn: Mike Robinson, Project Manager
2987 Prospector Drive Casper, WY 82604
Anadarko Petroleum Company, Chesapeake Energy Corporation, Devon Energy, EOG Resources, Inc. and SM Energy submitted the project proposal to BLM, beginning the environmental review process. The BLM is the lead agency preparing the draft environmental impact statement. The U.S. Forest Service, Converse County, State of Wyoming and several other local and Federal partners are participating as cooperating agencies.
The BLM will announce future meetings and any other public involvement activities at least 15 days in advance through public notices, media releases, mailings, and/or at the BLM project ePlanning page and website.
If you choose to submit a comment, please be advised that your entire comment-including any personal identifying information (i.e., address, phone number, or email address)-may be publicly available. While you may request in your comment that BLM withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so. All submissions from organizations or businesses, and from individuals identifying themselves as representatives or officials of organizations or businesses, are made available for public inspection in their entirety.
For more information, contact Mike Robinson at 307-261-7520.
Source: U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management
