Do oil and gas wells make good neighbors to a national park and scenic byway?

That question is being contemplated by BLM and Mesa Verde National Park officials, La Plata County commissioners, environmental groups, and residents of Montezuma County.

A proposal by the BLM Tres Rios field office to lease land for oil and gas shows several parcels near the eastern border of Mesa Verde National Park.

The lease sale was deferred last year, but was recently re-scheduled by the BLM for November. If fully developed, the area could suddenly sprout wells, compressors and pipelines.

The proposed leases include 3,365 acres of BLM land and 6,845 acres of private land between Hesperus and Mancos.

The land is mostly in La Plata County, with a portion of a parcel in Montezuma County. The subsurface contains federally owned minerals available for lease to the energy industry.

Cliff Spencer, superintendent of Mesa Verde National Park, believes the oil and gas industry can coexist with tourism if development is done properly.

“Energy development is vital to the nation’s security, but it has to be weighed against the scenic appeal of why people visit a national park, so it is a balancing act,” Spencer said in an interview. “With proper safeguards, energy development and natural resources can both be protected.”

Clean air a priority

Environmental concerns over air quality and lack of public awareness prompted the BLM last year to defer the sale temporarily in order to gather more information.

“It was put on hold so our managers could do more outreach and communication on the proposal,” said Tracy Perfors, a BLM natural resource specialist in Dolores.

Now the leases are back on the auction block, scheduled for a sale in November.

Perfors emphasized that the lease sale is a preliminary step toward actual drilling. There could be takers or not. If there are companies interested in the lease, then a drilling operation permit is put in place with environmental controls and studies addressing air quality, dust, and wildlife habitat.

“During the well permit process, we do more mitigation for air quality,” Perfors said. “Leases near national parks get more attention from the public.”

In a letter to the Cortez Journal, BLM state director Helen Hankins stated that there are no stipulations for air quality protection in the lease’s environmental assessment, but the BLM can apply Conditions of Approval (COAs) on well permits as mitigation measures for air quality.

The National Park Service regional Denver office has expressed concerns that nearby oil and gas operations threaten air quality standards already at risk at Mesa Verde.

In a comment letter, John Wessels, director for the NPS Intermountain Region, urges the BLM to wait on the lease sale until it can be analyzed under updated air quality data in a new San Juan Public Lands management plan due out this Fall.

“We believe that the current proposed Tres Rios leasing decision does not adhere to (BLM) policy given the lack of an air quality assessment for Mesa Verde NP,” stated Wessels. “Air modeling analyses indicate that significant air quality impacts may occur.”

The NPS regional office is pushing for more rigorous air quality mitigation and wants tougher requirements be put in writing during the lease proposal. They point to studies showing the impact the oil and gas industry has on regional pollution levels.

“Monitored ozone levels are elevated across the region, and are hovering just below the national ambient air quality standard in Mesa Verde NP,” writes Wessels. “Regional cumulative modeling assessments indicate that emissions from the oil and gas sector contribute substantially to ozone formation in the region.”

Mesa Verde NP Superintendent Spencer pointed out that even with energy development in the area, the air quality at the park has stayed good, a testament to effective environmental controls.

“The Four Corners has some of the most pristine air quality in the country. The scenic beauty and clean air here is a major draw for people. If energy development is done responsibly, it is compatible with tourism,” he said.

View of oil derrick?

The oil and gas industry fuels the local economy, but so does tourism in the form of road trips on the San Juan Skyway, a national scenic byway that includes Highway 160 and Mesa Verde NP.

Connie Clementson, Dolores BLM Field Manager, explained that the lease sale was temporarily put on hold to bring newly elected La Plata county commissioners up to speed, and to address scenic impacts.

“It was a good learning process because there is always a misconception that a lease sale means a development proposal. They are different processes,” she said.

La Plata County is concerned that oil and gas wells could mar the viewshed of the scenic byway, but officials say that can be mitigated.

“We can request that a well does not occupy a surface in the viewshed by requiring operators to use direction drilling (from another well) to access resources in that view area,” Clementson said.

In a June 25 comment letter to the BLM, La Plata County commissioners state that “oil and gas development is an important piece of our economy (but) we are also economically dependent on ... recreational opportunities . . . that attract hundreds of thousands of tourists each year.”

The letter stresses that the “balance between oil and gas development and preservation of other resources” including Mesa Verde NP are threatened by the proposed lease sale being re-offered this November.

“By making the decision to lease now, the BLM appears to be shutting the door on a smart approach to protect the treasures that are so important to our local community and economy,” the commissioners state.

Montezuma County commissioners have not weighed in on the issue, but they have been updated on the lease sale by the BLM.

However, some Montezuma County residents and former employees of the Mesa Verde NP park have voiced opposition to the potential for energy development near the archeological park.

Park staff concerns

In a February, 2013 letter to Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar, former park superintendent Alan Whalon and former assistant superintendent Betty James, both of Mancos, said they feared the oil and gas development near the park “could further impair the already degraded air quality at Mesa Verde, harm important scenic values and negatively affect the local economy.”

They, along with former superintendent Charles Wilson and former research chief Linda Towle, both of Cortez, point out that preserving the park is paramount for the local economy.

“In 2010, Mesa Verde NP generated $41.3 million in revenue for nearby communities and supported over 700 jobs.”

According to the letter, a recent study by Headwaters Economics estimates that 11 percent of the per capita income in Montezuma County and 5 percent of the per capita income in La Plata County can be attributed to the presence of Mesa Verde and other protected lands.

The BLM noted that it does not target areas for energy development; rather parcels with underground federal minerals are nominated by industry companies. The identity of those companies is not revealed to the public, said Jimbo Buickerood, a land specialist with San Juan Citizens Alliance, a regional environmental group.

“We feel it is the public’s right to know who is considering drilling in our area,” Buickerood said. “It is in our interest as a community to look into the track record of these companies.”

The Alliance opposes the plan to lease the land for energy development, due to its proximity to the national park. Finding out about proposed leasing sales has been a challenge, Buickerood said, and Alliance members feel process should be more transparent.

“Under the 2010 Leasing Reform Act, stakeholders should be notified by e-mail of proposed leases,” Buickerood said. “They say it is just leasing, but what comes next is what we are concerned about.”

Clementson, of the BLM, said landowners affected by leasing are contacted through the permitting process.

“We inform them that these minerals have been nominated for leasing,” she said.

A 30-day protest period for the lease sale begins August 15, offering another opportunity for public comment.

jmimiaga@cortezjournal.com