Group sues over refuge drilling

Posted by egable on July 11th, 2008 filed in Energy development, Wildlife refuges

Citizens for San Luis Valley Water Protection Coalition sued the Fish and Wildlife Service yesterday over the agency’s failure to release public records related to drilling in the Baca National Wildlife Refuge.The group is trying to determine whether a Canadian company that wants to drill in the refuge had inappropriate influence over a study of the project’s impacts.
Records of emails between Lexam Explorations Inc., a Canadian “wildcatter,” and an Interior Department lawyer indicate that the company was repeatedly invited to review and comment on internal drafts of an environmental assessment that was being prepared to evaluate the impact of drilling on the San Luis Valley refuge. Other documents suggest the Fish and Wildlife Service relied on the oil and gas company to compile data on wildlife.

The government has refused to release the edited drafts and other documents referred to in the e-mails.
The Freedom of Information suit, filed on behalf of the coalition by the Energy Minerals Law Center, claims the Fish and Wildlife Service has unlawfully shielded agency records from review and has neglected to conduct a thorough records search. It also claims the Interior Department Solicitor’s office failed to rule on the group’s appeal of the agency’s refusal to release additional documents by the statutory deadline. The solicitor has not given any date by which it expects to rule on the appeal.

Under the Freedom of Information Act, the government may withhold certain internal documents from disclosure so long as officials haven’t shared those documents with a third party. However, the coalition says the government’s e-mails show a coordinated effort between the government attorney and Lexam’s attorney to control the scope and content of the study by allowing Lexam to edit and comment on internal drafts. Changes were made despite concerns raised by the contractor preparing the analysis and the wildlife refuge manager.

The Environmental Protection Agency criticized the draft environmental assessment, prepared by consultants for the  Fish and Wildlife Service but paid for by Lexam, as being inadequate. The EPA, National Park Service, Colorado Division of Wildlife, local government officials and thousands of citizens submitted letters calling upon the Fish and Wildlife Service to conduct a more thorough analysis of impacts to water and air quality, wildlife, groundwater and effects to the community and its economy.

The 92,500-acre Baca National Wildlife Refuge is next door to the Great Sand Dunes National Park, both of which are set against the stunning backdrop of the Sangre de Cristo Range. The refuge protects a regionally important aquifer and the largest concentration of wetlands in the Southwest. The federal government purchased the refuge for $33 million in 2000 to protect its “unique hydrological, biological, educational and recreational values.” Although normally included in refuge protection, the mineral interests were not secured in the purchase agreement.

Because the refuge is so new, refuge managers have not had time to develop a management plan. As a result, the public is not yet allowed on the refuge. Very few surveys have been conducted to determine what and how refuge resources may be impacted by Lexam’s proposal to drill two 14,000-foot-deep exploratory wells. If the company finds oil or gas, environmental groups are worried it could spur speculative development throughout the San Luis Valley.