Increase in Oil, Gas Drilling Projected
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'O')il and gas drilling on federal lands across the Rocky Mountain West could increase by more than 160 percent over the next two decades due in part to pro-industry regulations enacted by the Bush administration, according to a report by an environmental group.
The Washington, D.C.-based Wilderness Society analyzed drilling plans and said oil and gas exploration was poised to push into some of the West's most environmentally sensitive areas. That includes plans to drill in Colorado's Roan Plateau, the Upper Green River Basin in Wyoming and Montana's portion of the Powder River Basin.
More than 126,000 new oil and gas wells have been approved or are under review for federal lands in Wyoming, Colorado, Montana, Utah and New Mexico, according to the Wilderness Society report. Wyoming would see the most activity: 58,000 new wells.






