The San Juan Public Lands Center has released for public review and comment a Supplement to the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for its Land and Resource Management Plan Revision.
The supplement was developed primarily to incorporate new information on oil and gas development projections in the Paradox Basin into the San Juans ongoing long-term planning effort, according to a written statement from the San Juan Public Lands Center.
Known as the Gothic Shale Gas Play Area, approximately 646,400 acres in Montezuma, Dolores, San Miguel, and La Plata counties have been identified as viable and economical for the extraction of natural gas from shale geologic formations, according to the public lands center. More than half of the area involves federal surface ownership. It is estimated that approximately 1,700 wells could potentially be developed on federal and nonfederal mineral estate to extract shale gas.
The supplement discloses new information on projections for the number of wells, road miles, and acres of disturbance associated with developing the shale gas, as well as the results of a recently completed air quality model that incorporates the new development projections and potential impacts to air quality.
The supplement is available online on the San Juan Plan Revision website at: http://ocs.fortlewis.edu/forestplan. CDs or hard copies can be requested by contacting Elysia Retzlaff at 970-385-1253 or [email protected] The draft land management plan and related draft environmental impact statement and supporting documents that were published in 2007 are also posted on the website.
The public is encouraged to provide written comments on the Supplement during the 45-day comment period, which will end on Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2011. During the comment period, open houses will be held from 6-8 p.m. on the following schedule:
Thursday, Sept. 1 Norwood at the Norwood Community Center.
Wednesday, Sept. 7 Durango at the Durango Public Library.
Thursday, Sept. 8 Dove Creek at the Dove Creek Community Center.
Wednesday, Sept. 14 Cortez at the Montezuma County Annex Building.
All earlier public comments received on the draft plan and environmental impact statement remain valid and will be addressed in the final environmental impact statement. The final plan and environmental impact statement are anticipated to be released in summer 2012.
For more information on the open houses or questions on the supplement, contact Shannon Manfredi at 970-385-1229.
