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Thursday, November 13, 2014
Drilling Project Proposed in Red Desert's Adobe Town Potential Wilderness Draws Controversy
Pipeline construction would destroy the wilderness character of much of the area
Contact: Erik Molvar (307) 399-7910
Additional Contact;
The Reverend Warren Murphy, Wyoming Association of Churches, (307) 272-9362
LARAMIE, Wyo. – The Bureau of Land Management has announced that it intends to reopen the planning process for a controversial drilling project in the spectacular Adobe Town area of Wyoming’s Red Desert, drawing criticism from conservationists. Under the project, dubbed the “Desolation Road Natural Gas Project,” 17 wells would be drilled on up to 5 wellpads along with new and rebuilt road and pipeline construction that would destroy the wilderness character of much of the area.
“If this project is approved, bulldozers and drilling rigs would invade an area where federal agencies have found wilderness qualities in their inventories, an area so sensitive and fragile that the BLM is studying it as a potential Area of Critical Environmental Concern,” said Erik Molvar of WildEarth Guardians. “Given the extreme environmental consequences of fossil fuel development, and the high public interest in protecting Adobe Town, there is no way federal agencies should even consider the extraction of public minerals here.”
Adobe Town is a geologic wonderland of pinnacles, arches, and palisades carved from ancient ash beds deposited during the eruptions at the Yellowstone caldera about 50 million years ago, then sculpted by eons of wind and water.
"It is very sad to see the BLM working to open the drilling process in an area that has won the acclaim of many people in the Rock Springs area for being one of the most unique landscapes in America," said the Rev. Warren Murphy, Environmental Projects' Coordinator of the Wyoming Association of Churches. "Many in the faith community see this part of the Red Desert as a sacred place that should be protected in its wilderness state for future generations."
“Adobe Town has been featured in The Wilderness Society’s ‘Too Wild to Drill’ list of crown jewel western landscapes both times when the report was published over the past decade, and the Bureau of Land Management has never succeeded in giving this wilderness treasure the protection it deserves,” added Molvar. “This is a landscape that rivals our national parks in scenic beauty.”
An earlier attempt to pursue drilling in this part of Adobe Town was abandoned in 2011 amid public opposition and a legal challenge filed by conservation groups; a single exploration well drilled in 2009 was immediately plugged and abandoned without producing any oil or gas. The Bureau of Land Management is accepting public comments on the new proposal through November 14th; visit http://www.blm.gov/wy/st/en/info/news_room/2014/october/10rsfo-desolation.html for more information.
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