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November 22, 2024
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Biden Admin Proposes to Restrict Federal Coal Leasing in North Dakota

The Epoch Times

Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) said the administration’s proposed plan ‘stifles North Dakota’s energy development’ and its production.

The Biden administration unveiled its final resource management plan for North Dakota on Aug. 9, which suggests restricting future coal leases on federal lands in the state.

The final plan, released by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), proposed designating areas beyond 4 miles from areas with existing coal mine permit boundaries as “unavailable” for future coal leasing.

The BLM also proposed closing oil and gas leases in any areas of North Dakota identified as having “low developmental potential” or state-designated drinking water source protection areas.

“Where oil and gas are available for leasing, no surface occupancy, controlled surface use, or timing limitation stipulations would apply to most areas,” it stated.

Wendy Warren, the BLM’s Eastern Montana/Dakotas district manager, said in a statement that the plan “represents a significant step forward in guiding public land use and balancing energy and mineral development.”

The BLM said it received 535 public comments during the 90-day comment period on the draft plan, which included a 30-day extension granted at the request of the North Dakota governor. The resource management plan will be subject to a 30-day public protest period before it is finalized.

North Dakota is one of the largest coal-producing states in the country, contributing 5 percent of the U.S. total coal supply, and holds almost 2 percent of the nation’s natural gas reserves, according to the U.S. Energy information Administration.

Potential Impact

Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) said in a statement that the final resource management plan would restrict access to federal-owned coal and oil reserves in North Dakota, reduce the state’s revenue, and impede its energy development.

“It stifles North Dakota’s energy development and our production, it closes off almost 50 percent of fluid leasable minerals and 90 percent of the coal leasable minerals in North Dakota,” he stated.

Cramer said the final resource management plan did not include the changes requested by the North Dakota delegation in May. The delegation—which included Cramer, Sen. John Hoeven (R-N.D.), and Rep. Kelly Armstrong (R-N.D.)—had urged the BLM to revise its initial draft plan.

“It is disappointing but not surprising to see the lengths that the Harris-Biden administration will go to in order to promote its Green New Steal agenda at the expense of our own economy and energy security,” he said.

In a May 6 letter to the BLM, the delegation said that the state would lose $34 million annually in royalties and tax revenue from oil and gas if the initial draft plan was implemented.

They warned that “North Dakota and the nation will be denied access to vital energy reserves and corresponding economic activity” if the BLM proceeded with its proposed plans.

“Unlike large continuous tracts of federal lands more common in the Western United States, federal subsurface acres in North Dakota are scattered and intermingled with state and privately-owned minerals,” the letter stated.

“When federal agencies like the BLM impose restrictions, they inevitably dilute or cut off the development of resources not under their control.”

In May, the Biden administration proposed ending new coal leasing on federal lands in the Powder River Basin in northeast Wyoming and southeast Montana, the largest coal-producing region in the United States.
The Powder River Basin produces nearly half, or approximately 43 percent of the nation’s total coal, according to the U.S. Energy information Administration.

The BLM published two proposed plans that would block companies from applying for new coal mining rights on federally owned lands in the area that covers more than 13 million acres across the two states.

In its final environmental impact statement for the two proposals, the BLM elected a “no future coal leasing alternative,” having found that continued coal leasing in the Powder River Basin would result in significant consequences to the climate, public health, and the environment.

Katabella Roberts contributed to this report.

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