Oil and Gas Lease Sales in Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico Pushed Back

The U.S. Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Land Management has revealed that an oil and gas lease sale in Wyoming scheduled for June 22-23 has been rescheduled for June 29-30.

Oil and gas lease sales in Colorado and New Mexico, scheduled for June 23, have also been pushed back to June 30, the Bureau of Land Management outlined. The dates for all sales were shifted to complete the analyses required under the National Environmental Policy Act and allow time for protest resolution, the Bureau of Land Management noted.

Back in April, the Bureau of Land Management Wyoming State Office issued a final environmental assessment and sale notice for a June 21-22 oil and gas lease sale. During the same month, the Bureau of Land Management Colorado State Office issued a final environmental assessment and sale notice for a June lease sale and the Bureau of Land Management New Mexico State Office issued two final environmental assessments and a sale notice for a June lease sale. 

Also during April, the Bureau of Land Management Nevada State Office issued a final environmental assessment and sale notice for a June 14 oil and gas lease sale, the Bureau of Land Management Montana/Dakotas State Office issued a final environmental assessment and sale notice for a June lease sale, and the Bureau of Land Management Utah State Office issued a final environmental assessment and sale notice for a competitive bid oil and gas lease sale on June 28.

All sale notices followed an injunction from the Western District of Louisiana and incorporated recommendations from the Department of the Interior’s Report on the Federal Oil and Gas Leasing Program, as well as other reports issued by the Governmental Accountability Office and Congressional Budget Office, the Bureau of Land Management highlighted.

On April 19, the Bureau of Land Management Eastern States Office outlined that it had selected a no action alternative relating to one parcel totaling approximately 80 acres of federal oil and gas leases. With its decision to select the no action alternative, no sale notice will be issued, and no lease sale will be held in the second quarter of 2022, the Bureau of Land Management revealed at the time.  

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