News: Former FWS director warns of oil and gas drilling threat

	Former FWS director warns of oil and gas drilling threat BY DAN BERMAN, LAND LETTER, 03/29/07 Action should be taken to reform the pace and manner of mining and energy drilling on public lands in the intermountain West, according to a former Fish and Wildlife Service director Steve Williams, who appeared before the House Natural Resources Committee on Tuesday. Williams said the increase in energy development on Bureau of Land Management lands is a problem. "More troubling than the pace of development is the manner in which it is conducted," he added. Funding for fish and wildlife programs did not increase proportionally with the increase in leasing, Williams said. State agencies are also in trouble because they have to spend money to mitigate the damage caused by activities on federal lands. Hunters and anglers are growing increasingly dissatisfied with the pace of energy development on Western public lands, leading to Tuesday's hearing. "This administration has placed energy development above all other uses of public lands," said Parks Subcommittee Chairman Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.). Resources Committee Chairman Nick Rahall (D-W.Va.) concurred with that assessment and said this week that the Bush administration and Interior Department are elevating oil and gas drilling and mining above hunting, fishing and recreation. "In recent years, sportsmen have grown increasingly concerned that rapidly expanding oil and gas development on federal lands is interfering with their ability to enjoy hunting and fishing," Rahall told Land Letter prior to Tuesday's hearing. He called the committee "a forum for the folks who want to ensure that public lands continue to provide hunting and fishing opportunities for future generations." Rahall has attempted to change the culture of the committee, with hearings featuring witnesses who would discuss the changing landscapes in Western states and the diversification of economies to limit exposure to traditional boom-and-bust cycles related to dependence on natural gas or timber from federal lands. The Bureau of Land Management has turned away from its multiple-use mission, said Rollin Sparrowe of the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership. "Funding and staffing have been shifted away from the multiple-use mandate we expect from the agency," said Sparrowe, arguing this reduces the opportunity for high-quality hunting and fishing in the West. Members of the plumbing and roofing unions echoed those concerns. Earlier this year, TRCP teamed with 20 labor unions to lobby for increased federal funding for protecting habitat while guaranteeing access for hunters and recreational fishers. The alliance recently commissioned a poll that found 70 percent of union members hunt or fish, and 72 percent are concerned about the loss of good hunting and fishing grounds. But full committee ranking member Don Young (R-Alaska) said those members should be concerned about economic fallout from limiting energy development. "If this is a stalking horse to stop energy development, you union people, I hope you know what this would mean for your jobs," Young said. And Rep. Steve Pearce (R-N.M.) noted that less than 5 percent of all BLM lands are used for oil and gas production, with less than 1 percent having an oil and gas footprint. "The other 95 percent is free and clear from even the possibility of sharing use with oil and gas production," Pearce said. House Democrats do not have a legislative solution in mind just yet, but the issue of energy development, urban growth and recreation will remain a priority, said Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.). "As the West is filling up with people ... we have to find a way to make these competitive uses compatible," Miller said.