Shoshone National Forest Withdraws Oil and Gas Leases

by Dan Heilig

The federal government has withdrawn three oil and gas leases in prime grizzly bear habitat on the Shoshone National Forest, in response to a federal court lawsuit filed by WOC and seven other conservation groups against the Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). Our suit challenged the government's attempt to issue these leases without analyzing and avoiding impacts on grizzly bears, as required by the Endangered Species Act.

"The government withdrew these leases in an effort to avoid a court ruling on the legality of its oil and gas leasing program," said Tim Preso, an attorney for the Earthjustice Legal Defense Fund who represented WOC, the Greater Yellowstone Coalition, American Wildlands, Native Forest Network, Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance, Dubois Wildlife Association, Northwest Wyoming Resource Council and the Sierra Club in the case.

The disputed leases would have conveyed oil and gas development rights to 1,776 acres in the Brent Creek/Ramshorn Peak area northwest of Dubois and to 1,760 acres along Gooseberry Creek near Meeteetse. Both areas provide important habitat for grizzly bears, moose, goshawks, wolves and lynx.

Between 1988 and 1996, at least 18 grizzly bears used the Brent Creek area, which is also an important migration corridor and calving ground for the Wiggins Fork elk herd. The Washakie Pack, the first wolf pack to venture outside of Yellowstone National Park, hunts in the area, although several of its members have either been killed or relocated after preying on dogs and calves on nearby ranches.

Construction of pipelines, roads and well pads in these areas would have destroyed grizzly habitat, created air and water pollution and forever compromised the wild character of the landscape. The cumulative effects of such industrial development could have been devastating to big game, fisheries and recreational opportunities.

"The BLM's withdrawal of these leases is a victory for grizzly bears, and also for elk hunters, wolf enthusiasts, bird watchers, hikers, backpackers and everyone else who enjoys the magnificent country where the Forest Service and BLM were planning oil and gas development," said WOC executive director Dan Heilig.