WASHINGTON - As the Department of Interior and Bureau of Land Management evaluate the impacts that oil and gas development would have on red rock wilderness lands in Utah, conservation groups are calling for ongoing protection of these treasured areas. Following the Bush Administration’s attempted last-minute auction of 77 parcels of lands last year, the courts ruled that BLM did not follow proper procedures.

“Today is a great day for the people of Oregon — and the country — as the U.S. Department of the Interior withdrew legally flawed plans for the management of Oregon’s western public forests under the Bureau of Land Management. This important decision will help preserve ancient forests that provide critical wildlife habitat, clean drinking water and outstanding recreational opportunities — all of which positively impact the economic vitality of Oregon’s coastal communities.

Conservation groups today applauded a new report from Interior Secretary Ken Salazar that points to flaws in a December 2009 Utah oil and gas lease sale. The report indicates that among the BLM’s shortcomings was a failure to inform the National Park Service of a last-ditch effort that added more tracts of land to the lease sale.

“We are extremely heartened that the Department of the Interior is acknowledging that there were important errors that need to be fixed in this lease sale,” said Nada Culver, Legal Counsel at The Wilderness Society.

WASHINGTON — Earlier today, Congress approved legislation permanently establishing the National Landscape Conservation System, which will protect and restore the most scenic, ecologically and historically significant lands under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management. The System, the first of its kind in 50 years, consists of National Monuments, National Conservation Areas, Wilderness Areas, Wild and Scenic Rivers, National Scenic and Historic Trails and other protective designations totaling over 850 sites and 26 million acres.

More than 110,000 acres of Utah wilderness will be protected from oil and gas companies as a result of a ruling last night by Judge Ricardo M. Urbina of the U.S. District Court. Judge Urbina granted a temporary restraining order that prevents the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) from moving forward with these leases. A coalition of conservation groups, including The Wilderness Society, filed a lawsuit on December 17, 2008 to prevent the leasing of public lands.