“Royalties for drilling on the public land that we all own have not been updated for 100 years, and the Department of the Interior’s new report further confirms that the federal government’s onshore oil and gas program is completely outdated and is short-changing taxpayers and locals. Adopting the reforms outlined in the report will improve economic prospects across the West by maintaining high quality of life and world class recreation opportunities for locals and visitors. It is time to manage oil and gas to meet today’s needs as we transition to clean energy. Congress must move swiftly to pass these reforms into law through the Build Back Better Act and invest in America’s public lands in ways that enhances rural economies for the long term.”
–Ashley Korenblat, Managing Director

 

Public Land Solutions works with communities in transition across the west.  For much of our country’s history, public lands have provided necessary resources of all types, including oil and gas. Yet as we work towards cleaner energy sources, new opportunities for rural economic development are needed.

Two major economic trends are currently providing these new opportunities: growth in remote work and demand for outdoor access. As more and more professionals, entrepreneurs, and corporations seek high quality of life for themselves and their employees, communities with access to public lands have the opportunity to utilize these lands to recruit both visitors and business investment.

However, current oil and gas systems and regulations are poised to leave these communities in the lurch.  Low Royalties, insufficient bonding, poor well pad management, among other outdated policies, all leave public landscapes diminished and reduce opportunities for outdoor access and the quality-of-life recreation assets can provide. With these realities in mind, Public Land Solutions welcomes the oil and gas leasing reforms propose by the Biden administration.

Read the Department of the Interior Press Release