BLM pines for opening more Alaska land to drilling

[theoceansnerves]

ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- The federal government wants to expand by 387,000 acres the land available for oil and gas development in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska.

The expansion is part of a proposal by the Bureau of Land Management to amend a 1998 activity plan and environmental impact statement for the northeastern region of NPR-A on Alaska's North Slope.

The original plan called for opening to development 87 percent of the region's 4.6 million acres. The new plan, announced Wednesday, would open about 96 percent.

The additional acreage is within the Barrow Arch -- a potentially oil-rich geologic vein that runs through the reserve -- and includes caribou and waterfowl habitats near Teshekpuk Lake.

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http://www.sltrib.com/2004/Jun/06102004/nation_w/174258.asp