BLM to take comments on oil shale, tar sands

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The U.S. Bureau of Land Management will conduct meetings in Utah, Wyoming and Colorado next month to address its draft proposal for leasing oil-shale and tar-sand deposits in the three states.

The agency announced this month that it proposes reducing the acreage previously made available for lease by the Bush administration from 1.9 million acres to 431,000 acres of shale — and from 462,000 acres to 91,000 acres of tar sands. Utah officials, both in Salt Lake City and in Washington, berated the Obama administration for closing off potential energy sources.

A majority of the shale-leasing grounds and all of the tar sands in the new plan are within Utah.

BLM officials will answer questions and take public comments in meetings from 7 to 9:30 p.m. March 12 at the BLM Colorado River Valley Office in Silt, Colo.; March 13 at the Westin Plaza Hotel in Vernal; March 14 at the Grand America Hotel in Salt Lake City; and March 15 at the BLM Rock Springs Field Office in Rock Springs, Wyo.