http://action.sierraclub.org/site/MessageViewer?em_id=89303.0
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 4, 2009
Contact: Kristina Johnson
(415) 977-5619
Interior Department Halts Oil and Gas Leases Near Utah National Parks
Washington, D.C. – The Interior Department today announced that it would
cancel leases issued under the Bush administration that would have allowed
oil and gas drilling on more than 100,000 acres of Utah wilderness, much of
it surrounding iconic treasures like Arches National Park.
Since December, the Sierra Club and a coalition of environmental groups
have been working to protect areas near Arches and Canyonlands National
Parks, Dinosaur National Monument, and rock art-rich Nine Mile Canyon from
oil and gas drilling. In December, the coalition filed suit to stop the
leasing, and, in January, Judge Ricardo M. Urbina of the U.S. District
Court granted a temporary restraining order preventing the Bureau of Land
Management (BLM) from moving forward with these leases.
Today, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar announced that the agency would
cancel the leases.
Statement of Sierra Club Deputy Director Bruce Hamilton
"Today's announcement by Secretary Salazar signals a new era in the way our
natural resources are managed. The Obama administration clearly understands
that instead of allowing the oil industry to destroy places like Arches
National Park, we should be investing in the kind of clean energy solutions
that curb global warming and leave our natural treasures intact."
Kristina Johnson
Deputy Press Secretary
Sierra Club
Office: (415) 977-5619
Cell: (541) 914-9744
85 Second Street - 2nd Floor
San Francisco, CA 94105-3459
[log in to unmask]