Supporting our operative theory that positive change has arrived in Washington DC in matters concerning the management of public lands, new Interior Secretary Ken Salazar will cancel oil and gas leases on 77 parcels of BLM land in Utah. The leases, covering 110,000 acres adjacent to Arches National Park, Dinosaur National Monument, and other special wildlands, were offered in the last days of the Bush Administration.
Sharon Buccino, an attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Council responded: "What's significant here is you really do have Salazar taking a very critical first step toward restoring some sort of balance to the management of public lands. We can have energy security without sacrificing the West's wild places."
Check out the full story from the Washington Post here.