Oil Shale Frenzy: Bush rules a gift to oil industry
Excerpt:
The Bush administration's Interior Department wants to open millions of public acres in Utah, Colorado and Wyoming to oil companies to extract kerogen, a sludgy form of oil, from shale rock. As Bush's days in Washington wind down, his agents are working to give Big Oil a firm toehold on public lands by sidestepping the usual public-appeal process and adopting regulations that give companies a deal on royalties.
New rules would require payment of only a 5 percent royalty on oil shale for the first five years of production, while regular oil and gas wells pay 12.5 to 18.8 percent -- a nice gift to energy companies that American taxpayers could end up paying for in environmental degradation.
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Mike Anderson, J.D.
Mike has been with The Wilderness Society since 1985. His main focus is national forest management and policy, ranging from roadless area conservation to watershed restoration. He also helps coordinate all of The Wilderness Society's litigation activities.
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