Destroying Wyoming's Wetlands- Corps of Engineers to Issue Wetlands Well Drilling Permit

by Mac Blewer

Can you imagine waking up one morning and having an oil and gas development the size of a baseball field in your favorite fishing creek?

The Corps of Engineers may soon release a permit that will allow the destruction of up to one acre of wetlands for each oil or gas well drilled in Wyoming. The permit (General Permit 98-08), which will apply to both public and private lands, has huge ramifications for the state, given that an increase of more than 15,000 wells is projected over the next decade throughout the state.

In Wyoming, where wetlands cover a mere 2% of the landscape, and there are millions of acres of high, dry ground available for drilling by the oil and gas industry, one might ask why such a permit is necessary. Do we want wells placed smack dab in the middle of marshes or along streams to endanger our waters with toxic discharges?  In 1998 alone, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Emergency Response Notification Team reported 4,576 produced water spills (water pumped up from oil and gas operations) in Wyoming. Seventy-five percent of these spills affected surface waters. GP 98-08 would only increase this threat to our water quality.

Good and Bad News
Fortunately, the news isn’t all bad. Many WOC members and other concerned citizens submitted detailed comments about the Corps’ permit proposal, including people from as far away as California and New York. Thanks to conservationists’ comments, the Corps has substantially improved the second draft of its General Permit, lowering allowed wetlands destruction from two acres to one, eliminating a provision allowing for the "temporary" (three-month) stockpiling of fill materials in rivers and wetlands and increasing replacement requirements for lost wetlands.

Unfortunately, the permit may violate the general permit requirements of the Clean Water Act by allowing more than just "minimal" impacts to wetlands, permitting oil and gas drilling directly in wetlands as well as within 100 feet of springs and allowing almost unlimited reservoir construction along Wyoming waters.

Waterlogged Wealth
Wyoming has lost 38% of its wetlands since pre-colonial times, and loses more each year to development and agricultural conversion. This dwindling habitat is enormously important to Wyoming’s wildlife and to water users both here and in other states. Consider the following:

• About 90% of Wyoming’s wildlife species use wetlands daily for food and shelter.
• 75-80% of all waterfowl breed in or around wetlands.
• 43% of all federally listed species depend on wetlands for survival.
• The productivity of Wyoming’s fisheries depend on wetlands. Each year, anglers provide an estimated $212,421,000 to the state’s coffers and support nearly 3,900 jobs.
• Wyoming is the nation’s "headwaters state," supplying water to Montana, Colorado, Idaho, Utah and Nebraska. The Snake, the Green, the Bighorn and the Yellowstone rivers all originate within our borders.

The Corps and other federal agencies are under intense pressure from Wyoming’s federal decisionmakers and other elected officials to "streamline" the permitting process for oil and gas development throughout the state. WOC hopes that the Corps will either substantially improve its General Permit or drop the proposal entirely. We’ll keep you informed about new developments on this timely issue.

As always, thank you for your help!

What You Can Do
Please write a short letter to the editor to the Casper Star-Tribune as well as to your local newspaper. Say why wetlands, creeks and rivers are important to you and why the Corps of Engineers’ proposal threatens Wyoming’s fish and wildlife, our region’s water resources and our quality of life. Please send a copy of your letter to the Corps as well as to WOC. For more information, please contact Mac Blewer at WOC.

Mail, fax or email your letter to the editor to:
Claudette Ortiz
The Casper Star-Tribune
P.O. Box 80
Casper, WY 82602-0080
Fax: (307) 266-0568
E-mail: letters@trib.com

Send a copy of your letter to WOC and to:
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Wyoming Regulatory Office
2232 Dell Range Boulevard, Suite 210
Cheyenne, WY 82009-4942
Fax: (307) 772-2920
E-mail: thomas.b.johnson@nwo02@usace.army.mil