The Garfield County Board of County Commissioners approved a comment letter on Oct. 13 reiterating the county’s support for the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) proposed action in a supplemental environmental assessment related to greenhouse-gas emissions and air quality for oil-and-gas leasing in Colorado covering the 2015–2020 lease-sale period.

County staff explained the letter reiterates comments previously submitted to BLM and emphasizes the local significance: Garfield County has nearly 14,000 acres across 15 lease parcels that fall within the draft EA’s scope, and the letter asks the BLM to affirm its prior decisions and to offer and issue authorized leases with existing stipulations. The staff memo said the county supports offering and issuing 285 authorized leases and 21 pending leases reviewed in the draft EA; staff noted 15 of the leases referenced are in Garfield County.

The board voted to approve the comment letter and authorized the chair to sign. Commissioners said the letter reflected previously filed comments and that they were comfortable reiterating the county’s position.

Why it matters: the county’s letter is a formal local-government input to the BLM’s federal environmental review and emphasizes Garfield County’s interest in preserving lease rights and existing stipulations for parcels within county boundaries.

Quote from the record: County staff summarized the letter: “Garfield County Board of County Commissioners appreciates the opportunity to submit these comments back to the BLM, on their draft EA for the greenhouse gas emissions and air quality related to oil and gas leasing in Colorado from May 2015 through December 2020.”

Next steps: the county will transmit the letter to BLM as authorized; the federal process and any changes to lease issuance will proceed under BLM’s EA schedule.