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IPFS News Link • Environment

Congress Moves To Encourage Drilling On Public Land, Sell 3.3 Mil Acres To Private Interests

• trueactivist.com

As many environmentalists and anti-drilling activist anticipated, it didn't take long for the Republican-majority Congress to make major moves to further the expansion of fossil fuel extraction nationwide. This past Monday, Congressman Paul Gosar (R-AZ) introduced H.J.Res. 46 aimed at gutting a key National Park Service regulations relating to "General Provision and Non-Federal Oil and Gas Rights." These regulations, also known as the "9B" rules, require that private fossil fuel interests present detailed plans for extraction and also set safety standards for drilling within the more than 40 national parks that have "split estate" ownership. Mostly located in the American West, these "split estate" parks are technically government-owned except for the subsurface mineral rights, which can be claimed and traded between private interests. They include Cuyahoga Valley National Park (Ohio), Theodore Roosevelt National Park (North Dakota), and Mesa Verde National Park (Colorado) among others.


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