"This absurd new bill won't do anything for the people who need help right now. It would only ensure more damage to our public lands and that local citizens and governments couldn't do a thing about it," said Dave Alberswerth of The Wilderness Society. "At a time when natural disasters are showing us how important it is to be more careful where we put drill rigs and pipelines, it seems beyond crass that the oil and gas industry and its backers are trying to take advantage in a way that will increase their profits."

Proponents of offshore and Arctic Refuge drilling point to high prices at the pump as a reason to remove current protections against drilling. But a new report from the Department of Energy predicts that the impact on gas prices of drilling the Arctic Refuge would only amount to about one penny per gallon twenty years from now, when drilling would be at or near peak production. The Arctic Refuge drilling provisions contained in this legislation and in the Resources Committee's pending reconciliation language also include sweeping exemptions from environmental laws and regulations.

The bill also would prohibit any administrative or judicial review of BLM leasing decisions, despite the fact that the production of gas from on-shore sources is at an all-time high and heading toward another record year. The bill would make all BLM leasing decisions final, prohibiting lawsuits and protests, even where leases are offered in proposed wilderness areas, critical wildlife migration corridors, and recreational sites. The current appeal provisions serve as important "checks and balances" - especially in this time of BLM processing record nominations by industry and issuing record numbers. For example, landowners, outfitters, and even the Governor of Wyoming have all used the appeal provisions during the last few years to stop damaging lease proposals from the BLM. The bill would also legalize the use of industry-paid consultants to help the BLM issue drilling permits.

In addition, the bill would require the Interior and Agriculture secretaries to waive "any limitations on the timing of construction, drilling, or other operations related to any oil and gas lease or any pipeline right of way…" administered by either secretary, in the event there is a "significant disruption to the supply of oil and gas to the United States either from domestic or foreign sources…" For example, state wildlife agencies would not be able to go to court to oppose the suspension of seasonal stipulations to protect wildlife, such as elk, antelope, and sage grouse.

"This bill would totally remove a state's ability to protect its own wildlife populations from large-scale drilling operations, even during breeding or migratory seasons," said Alberswerth. "This provision would reduce BLM's incentive to use directional drilling to reduce their drilling footprint, which the agency is currently proposing in some areas in exchange for stipulation removal."

The bill would also greatly expand the list of activities that would be excluded from review under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), including the disposal of water from coalbed methane projects and all terms and conditions related to exploration from oil and gas or geothermal projects. (NEPA requires federal agencies to study and disclose the environmental effects of major projects on the surrounding community and include the public in the decision-making process for federally funded projects.) In addition, the bill would allow issuance of oil and gas leases in any place where there has been a land-use plan since 1969, even if the plan has not been updated since then.

"The oil and gas industry and its backers are using the recent hurricane disasters to advance a narrow agenda that could greatly enrich themselves while permanently damaging our land and wildlife," said Alberswerth. "This is a time to move toward thoughtful, forward-thinking solutions, rather than an even more exaggerated version of the bungled energy policy that has hurt everyone except the companies that are reaping billions of dollars in windfall profits."

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