Ken Salazar's New Deal
Excerpts:
Interior Secretary Ken Salazar’s first major decision — to cancel oil and gas leases on 77 parcels of public land in Utah — could not have sent a clearer signal that his department is under new management. It also was a strong indication that the Obama administration intends to take a more measured approach to energy exploration on the public lands and that its predecessor’s drill-now, drill-anywhere policies are a thing of the past.
… Industry is complaining that any change in the Bush-Cheney approach would damage its ability to develop domestic energy supplies. This is nonsense. For one thing, industry has yet to explore large areas to which it already has access, onshore and off. All Mr. Salazar wants is balance and restraint, and after years of hyperactive leasing, this is not too much to ask.
About Ben Beach
A graduate of Harvard with a law degree from Catholic University, Ben worked for The Wilderness Society from May 1984 to November 2011, making him our longest-serving staff member. He edited Wilderness magazine and our newsletter. Ben was also... More about Ben Beach
