Director's Message

In late June, the Republican-led House of Representatives dealt the Bush Administration a significant setback by rejecting two key elements of the president's national energy strategy. Seventy Republicans broke party ranks to prevent oil and gas leasing in the Gulf off Florida, while 47 Republicans voted to prohibit oil drilling in national monuments. The Bush energy plan is in trouble -- but this did not happen in a vacuum. How did we get here? What still lies ahead?

The convergence of two separate events -- largely Big Oil taking up residence in the White House, but also energy distribution problems in California -- have prompted a renewed debate about America's energy future.

Under cover of California's energy shortage, President Bush started pushing the pro-development agenda of his key oil industry supporters as soon as he entered office. He warned that a summer of blackouts, layoffs, business closings and skyrocketing fuel costs will lead to a "darker future" for America without his aggressive plans to drill for more oil and gas on public lands in the West.

His plan, developed by Vice President Dick Cheney, would open to drilling Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and other protected public lands such as monuments, wilderness areas and national forests. Additionally, it would remove or ease drilling restrictions on other public lands, such as the Powder and Green River Basins. These restrictions, known as stipulations, are the result of extensive environmental and public review, and are essential to properly managing non-extractive resources such as wildlife, water quality, historic places and recreational opportunities.

While greasing the wheels for oil and gas development, the president's plan glaringly reduced funding for the development of alternative energy sources such as solar, wind and hydrogen fuel cells. Meanwhile, Vice President Cheney blithely discounted the important role of conservation as merely a "personal virtue."

However, in a recent New York Times/CBS News survey, 68 percent of respondents favored conservation over increasing the production of oil, gas and coal and 57 percent said the nation should protect the environment even if it meant paying higher prices for gas and electricity.

Nonetheless, Wyoming Representative Barbara Cubin, chair of the Subcommittee on Energy and Minerals, keeps pushing to remove stipulations placed on federal oil and gas leases to protect open space and wildlife. Citing misleading statistics in her latest "Dear Colleague" letter, she encourages her fellow representatives to support increased access to public lands for oil and gas development.

Knowing that the powers in Washington needed to be educated about the on-the-ground realities of massive energy development, WOC staffer Tom Darin and I braved the unbearable heat and steamy humidity of Washington in June to bring the story of oil and gas development in Wyoming to a number of influential representatives and senators. Tom and I, along with WOC member and Powder River Basin rancher Bernie Barlow and colleagues from Colorado and Utah, spoke with a number of Members of Congress and their staffers about the potential impacts of Bush's proposals, the unique qualities of threatened areas such as the Green River and Powder River Basins and what it all means on the ground.

Members of Congress and their staffers' knowledge of the impacts of energy development varied dramatically, driving home the critical importance of making sure that the people making legislative decisions actually understand the issues surrounding the bills they vote on.

The day after Tom returned to Wyoming, the House of Representatives passed bills strongly repudiating specific elements of the Bush-Cheney "drill, drill, drill" energy plan.

While the debate over the nation's energy policy is far from over, a few common themes have emerged. First, Congress is in no mood to sacrifice precious public lands in the West at the altar of free-wheeling oil and gas development. Second, American voters place a high priority on strong environmental protections, even when faced with uncertainties about energy and the economy.

WOC is and will remain a key player in the national energy debate. Count on us to bring your concerns and perspectives directly to decisionmakers in Wyoming and in Congress. Without your support we could not do it. Together we really can make a difference. Thanks!