Forest Service Lifts Environmental Assessments for Oil Roads, Pipelines

The U.S. Forest Service is proposing to change the environmental review process for oil and gas exploration and development projects under federal lease in national forests and grasslands.

The proposal would allow local forest and grassland units to use a categorical exclusion when approving surface uses, such as road access, drill pad construction and pipeline installation, for oil and gas exploration and development under federal lease.
The Service says the proposal would “reduce unnecessary red tape and delay while keeping environmental protection for national forests and grasslands.”

“Our forest managers have reviewed similar oil and gas projects over the last five years and have learned that projects of this scale do not carry significant environmental effects to human health or the environment,” said Forest Service Chief Dale Bosworth. “This proposal is a result of that review as well as the agency’s commitment to energy conservation in our national forest and grasslands.”

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