Interior details onshore oil and gas lease sales for 2010

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said on Tuesday the department next year will hold 38 onshore oil and natural gas lease sales on public lands, mostly in the West, including one in Alaska.

The announcement signals the Obama administration's commitment to development of fossil fuels as it ramps up investment in energy production from renewable fuels, Salazar told reporters during a conference call.

"Our nation needs a balanced and appropriate use of our conventional and renewable energy resources. That means oil, gas and coal will continue to play an important role in our energy mix as we develop and expand the use of wind, solar, geothermal and other renewable sources," he said.

Petroleum industry trade groups have criticized the administration for what they consider a slow rate of lease sales this year, but Salazar said his department is working on behalf of the taxpayer's interest, not the interests of energy companies.

Interior's Bureau of Land Management conducts quarterly lease sales based on recommendations from industry. Bureau officials evaluate nominated lands with input from the National Park Service and the Fish and Wildlife Service and then delineate eligible property into parcels to be auctioned off.

In recent years between 40 percent and 50 percent of lease sales have been sidelined by costly lawsuits, many filed by environmental groups. Salazar said Interior is conducting a comprehensive review of the onshore program to clarify policies and reduce the likelihood of litigation in the future.

"Right now, too many leases from the federal government offered today get tied up in protests and litigation. It costs taxpayers money, it costs companies money and it wastes time," he said.

"We believe industry deserves greater certainty when they go into a lease auction. They should never be given the false promise of a lease parcel next to a national park. The American people don't want that, and industry shouldn't want that either. The bottom line is Americans want a comprehensive energy strategy that includes coal, wind, solar and other resources," he said.

Bob Abbey, director of BLM, said Tuesday's announcement was intended to assure industry and the public that oil and gas development continues to be part of the nation's energy portfolio.

The 2010 lease sales will include parcels in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska, and are scheduled for Aug. 11. "There's certainly potential for oil and gas development in that area," Abbey said. The last lease sale in the NPRA was in September 2008.