Opinion, Rep. Doug Lamborn (Washington Examiner) – The Biden administration is systematically removing every acre of working land that it can. Historically, preservationists have been pleased with national parks, wilderness areas, and national monuments, while conservationists have relied on U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management land for their needs. If the current administration has its way, this balance will not last long.
In my home state of Colorado , the Bureau of Land Management has proposed removing 1.6 million acres of federal land from oil and gas leasing and is designating tens of thousands more acres as “Areas of Environmental Critical Concern” that will no longer be available for use. This rule would kill thousands of jobs, obliterate an entire industry, and spike energy prices for people across the country. Unfortunately, this draconian decision is not unprecedented for this administration.
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In May, the Department of Interior released a proposed rule that would allow conservation groups to lease federal land managed by the Bureau of Land Management, effectively preventing all industry from accessing it. This rule stands in stark contrast to the bureau’s multiple-use policy. In June, the administration withdrew 336,404 acres of federal mineral estate surrounding the Chaco Canyon National Historic Park, and just days ago, the Biden administration announced it would lock up a staggering 1.1 million acres in Arizona to be a national monument. This has all occurred on top of the administration’s refusal to issue almost any off or onshore leases.
The administration has done all of this for two reasons. The first is supposedly to protect the sage grouse, which is an endangered bird that lives on the western plains. The second, and more underhanded, reason is to obliterate the fossil fuel industry in America.
Every environmental and energy policy that the administration has put in place is to fulfill President Joe Biden’s promise to end fossil fuels in the United States. This includes banning gas stoves , removing helium from the critical minerals list, stopping all oil and gas lease sales, and now removing working land from energy development. The Biden administration is actively doing everything it can to prevent fossil fuels from providing reliable, affordable energy to millions of people.
Yet oil and gas production has existed hand in hand with responsible environmental stewardship. Colorado’s elk herd is the largest in the nation and has increased from 40,000 elk in the early 1900s to 300,000 today. Colorado’s mule deer population has grown by 40,000 since 2018, and Colorado’s population of antelope has grown from 5,000 in the 1940s to 85,000 today.
The Biden administration claims to protect the sage grouse through this drastic action, but this species has experienced a 24% increase in its Colorado population since 2019. Not only has gas production not impeded the restoration of these birds, but they have flourished in a shared environment. Colorado is the fourth-largest producer of oil and eighth-largest natural gas producer in the country. This supply is crucial in keeping energy prices down for people across the country and must continue while we restore our natural areas.
If Biden officials were serious about mitigating harm to wildlife, they would look closely at how we use our land acreage. The U.S. has lost over 24 million acres of natural areas and 11 million acres of farmland since 2001 due to urban development, which has hurt endangered species far more than oil and gas production. According to the Interior Department, in 2018, U.S. oil and gas hit a record production high while using the smallest amount of surface acreage disturbance in our nation’s history by utilizing horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing. In contrast, the Bureau of Land Management recently announced a whopping 1,000-acre solar farm in the De Tilla Gulch region of Colorado, which takes up far more critical habitat than oil and natural gas while producing less electricity. This is an irresponsible use of taxpayer dollars and inappropriate stewardship of our nation’s wild areas.
The reality is clear: Oil and gas production does not hinder wildlife restoration, but irresponsible land use does. By locking up 1.6 million acres from mineral production in Colorado, the Biden administration will reduce the supply of energy, which will increase prices for people across the country. We have seen this happen under the Biden administration for the last three years, and the time has come to re-implement realistic and responsible policies.
Rep. Doug Lamborn, a Republican, represents Colorado’s 5th Congressional District.
