Good for Interior Secretary Ken Salazar for swatting back at critics from the oil and gas industry who are trying to paint him as the anti-driller.
In fact, Salazar has pursued a reasonable, middle-of-the-road course on public lands energy development that serves the country’s needs and is mindful of environmental concerns.
Energy trade groups have been upping the volume on their complaints in recent weeks, saying the Obama administration has scared off exploration.
“Trade groups need to understand that they do not own the nation’s public lands. Taxpayers do,” Salazar said.
It’s a refreshing attitude that should give some environmentalists, who had initially criticized Salazar’s nomination, reason to believe he will stand firm against pressures brought to bear by powerful energy interests.
What this administration has done, at least to this point, is pull back last-minute plans by the prior administration that would have irresponsibly expanded offshore drilling and allowed exploration near some fragile and beautiful land, such as Arches National Park and Dinosaur National Monument.
Interior, under Salazar, also has offered 32 leases for sale this year, which covered more than 2.7 million acres of Western land and generated some $126 million in revenue.
It is part of an Obama administration strategy to create a mosaic of alternative and traditional energy source development that would begin to reduce this country’s dependence on fossil fuels.
We’ve been encouraged by the progress Interior has made in this regard. But we also have some sympathy for offshore drilling interests that want to see quicker progress on a new plan for expanded exploration.
Offshore drilling needs to be part of the country’s energy portfolio, and Interior needs to produce its five-year plan for offshore energy exploration.
The plan will replace the one the Bush administration pitched just days before heading out the door. The Bush blueprint would have opened vast new areas for offshore drilling. Salazar pulled back those plans for further consideration.
Since then, the Interior Department has held a series of public hearings about offshore drilling, and gave itself an additional six months to come up with a cogent path forward.
We’re glad to see Salazar’s Interior has allowed enough time for thoughtful contemplation of a plan for expanded offshore drilling, which would begin in 2012.
But the time has come to give the energy companies the information they need to make decisions about deploying resources. We hope to see the offshore plan soon.
It should be an important part of an overall comprehensive energy strategy that includes sensible energy exploration on public lands, alternative energy development and conservation.
It’s encouraging that Salazar is holding steady on that course despite pressure from industry groups.
