Congressman Polis Statement on Department of Interior Oil Shale Announcement

Statement

Congressman Jared Polis (D-CO) released the following statement praising Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) officials' proposal to re-open the planning and rule-making process related to oil shale.

"The Department of Interior has taken a well reasoned approach to the future of Oil Shale on public lands with their announcement to take a closer look at how this form of energy could affect our precious and dwindling western water supplies," said Polis. "The Department has struck a positive balance between researching future potential and ensuring that long term water needs and water impacts will be taken into account before companies invest dollars or the public invests it's natural resources."

On Tuesday, the Department of the Interior decided to revisit a troubled ruling that was rushed through by the Bush Administration in 2008. The old rule did an inadequate job of taking into account the effects that commercial oil shale development and refining would have on Western water sources. The decision to revisit these rules will ensure that future development is based on all pertinent information, and does not affect research leasing on public lands, further ensuring that any future decisions are grounded in the best available knowledge.

"We undoubtedly need a monumental change in what kinds of energy fuel our economy," said Polis. "We can't afford to stay addicted to foreign oil, but we also can't afford to just replace one troubled form of energy with another. The Secretary's decision to revisit the issue, and make sure our public lands and water aren't jeopardized by hasty decision making is absolutely the right move."

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