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Oil Shale Leasing

The United States is home to approximately 50% of the world’s oil shale deposits -- most of which are located in the Green River formation of western Colorado, eastern Utah, and southern Wyoming. This oil shale can, in theory, be heated to extreme temperatures of up to 700° F for conversion into low- to medium-grade oil -- literally creating oil from rock. In this region of the west, industry estimates that oil shale could be converted into up to 1 trillion barrels of oil. The problems of cost and serious environmental concerns, however, have so far kept this resource in the ground.

The idea of producing oil from oil shale is enjoying a popularity not seen in over 25 years. During the late 1970s and early 1980s, the oil industry poured billions of dollars into failed oil shale projects in western Colorado. Notwithstanding the high oil prices of the day, oil shale remained prohibitively expensive. That boom ended abruptly on May 2, 1982 -- Black Sunday -- the day that Exxon announced it would close its $5 billion Colony II project near Parachute, Colorado, putting 2,200 people out of work in a single day.

However, with oil prices climbing the time is apparently ripe to reconsider oil shale development. The Bureau of Land Management has asked the public for terms to be included in oil shale research and development leases, and WRA prepared comments detailing environmental concerns and recommending particular provisions to address risks to the landscape, communities, and human health. The U.S. Congress included provisions in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 that seek to accelerate activities related to eventual leasing and development of oil shale and tar sands resources.

There’s an old saying in Colorado that “Oil shale has a fantastic future -- it always has, and it always will.” Despite the current flurry of interest, only time will tell whether development of oil shale will see the light of day, given its significant risks and exorbitant costs.

WRA Condemns Oil Shale Lease Plan: Almost 2.5 Million Acres of Public Land Are at Stake

On March 20, 2008, WRA led a coalition of 23 conservation groups in opposing the plan by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to open up almost 2.5 million acres of public land in Colorado, Wyoming, and Utah for industrial oil shale and tar sands development. The BLM plan would prematurely permit commercial leasing of public lands for oil shale and tar sands development before completion of industry research to accurately assess the social, economic, and environmental impacts of these proposed developments, and in the case of oil shale, ahead of the development of technology that can even extract it.

Oil shale and tar sands development, if approved, will consume great quantities of energy and scarce water resources, compromise air quality, release large amounts of greenhouse gasses during production, destroy wildlife habitat, diminish recreational opportunities and have negative consequences that will be felt on a local, regional, and national level. Additionally, large-scale oil shale and tar sands development would require up to 10 new coal-fired power plants, thwarting efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. These power plants alone would consume almost as much water each year as all of metro Denver, straining municipal water supplies and permanently altering the agricultural economy of the three states.

Oil shale deposits in Wyoming and Colorado are sedimentary rock layers that are infused with a compound called kerogen from which petroleum products can be derived. The tar sands of Utah are layers of sand or clay that contain bitumen, a thick, gooey precursor to crude oil. Both resources are more difficult to extract than regular crude oil and cause even greater environmental impacts. The BLM’s plan is awaiting review by the U.S. Congress.

WRA remains committed to protecting the West’s land, air, and water from the unnecessary risks of oil shale and tar sands development. Click here to read the comments.

Oil Shale and Water Resources

Oil shale development is projected to have a dramatic effect on Colorado’s valuable water resources, yet estimates of the water needed for modern development methods have not been made public. WRA recently joined other conservationists calling on the energy industry to fully disclose to West Slope residents and government officials how development will impact water supplies and water quality. Before steps are taken which could lead to large-scale development, we need a thorough understanding about how water for oil shale development fits into the regional water needs for agriculture, recreation, fish and wildlife, and community growth.
For more information, click here (35KB).