Allard Announces Anvil Points Clean-Up Contract Signed

Press Release

ALLARD ANNOUNCES ANVIL POINTS CLEAN-UP CONTRACT SIGNED

Clean-up Would Bring Hundreds of Millions of Dollars to Colorado

U.S. Sen. Wayne Allard (R-Colo.), received word today that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has signed a contract for the clean-up of the Anvil Points site near Rifle in Western Colorado. Under current law, BLM lease revenue in Colorado is allocated to a trust fund to fund the clean-up of the Anvil Points site. Only after BLM certifies that there is adequate funding to return the research site to its' natural state will lease revenue begin to flow to Colorado. Today's action is the final step necessary before Colorado will receive certification.

"My concern about this issue has grown each month as I receive updates from the Department of the Interior on the balance of the Naval Oil Shale Trust fund," said Allard. "Colorado cannot afford to miss out on the millions of dollars in royalty payments generated each month. Those funds should be returned to local communities who deserve them and I am pleased to see this critical step completed."

Allard has repeatedly emphasized the importance of the clean up to prevent Colorado's loss of royalties. The timing of this announcement is particularly important in light of an upcoming lease sale for the Roan Plateau, currently scheduled for August 14. This lease sale is anticipated to generate as much as $1 billion at the time of the sale in the form of bonus bids. Without the Dept. of the Interior certification before August 14, Colorado would have lost half of the generated revenue. Certification of the clean-up will ensure that Colorado will receive its' rightful half share of royalty revenue.

Allard is an advocate for taking the royalty sharing process one step further, offering a 2007 legislative proposal that would direct royalties to local communities affected by development. The estimated nine trillion cubic feet of recoverable natural gas under the federal lands in the Roan area, according to Allard, should represent revenue specifically for local western slope communities. Click HERE. for more information regarding Allard's legislation.

BLM estimates that federal revenue from oil and natural gas royalties and lease sales are expected to generate between $857 million and $1.13 billion over the next 20-years. The State of Colorado could receive an estimated $428 to $565 million as the state's share of federal royalties and federal leases.

"Development on top of the Plateau is the result of a lengthy and thoughtful planning process that has put the needs of Colorado first," said Allard. "The development is one of the most environmentally conscious plans ever created, representing over seven years of collaboration between local, state and federal officials. It will be conducted in a staged, ridge-by-ridge approach, and minimize wildlife habitat fragmentation."

Allard supports the BLM's plan to confine development on the Plateau to corridors along existing roads, limiting surface disturbance on top to one percent, or approximately 350 acres, at any one time. This phased approach to development encourages innovation in minimizing disturbance and reclaiming disturbed areas.

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