California Public Land Sold to Frackers Despite Public Outcry

[xchrom]

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2012/12/12-12



The US Bureau of Land Management continued its widespread sale of public land to the fracking and oil industry on Wednesday in a federal auction of nearly 18,000 acres. The auction was met by dozens of anti-fracking protesters who say the continual sale of public lands to the fossil fuel industry, including 800,000 acres of land in Utah, Colorado, and Wyoming for tar sands and oil shale development, puts short-term profits ahead of the planet.

BLM spokesman David Christy said eight different groups—including oil companies—bid for the land Wednesday in Monterey, San Benito and Fresno counties. The agency plans to announce the "winners" within 24 hours.

Dozens of protesters in hazmat suits carried barrels labeled “Warning: Toxic Fracking Fluid” outside of the auction Wednesday morning.

“A fracking boom will devastate California’s beautiful public wildlands,” said Rose Braz, climate campaign director at the Center for Biological Diversity, who organized the protests along with several other groups. “The federal government should protect these beautiful public places, not sell them off to be drilled and fracked, risking irreparable harm to our air, water and climate.”

[CRH]

1. It is incredible sometimes the way the government operates, ...

18,000 acres in California, Why not, start an 'adopt an acre' for different organizations to maintain, and within restraints develop, to preserve the environment. Anyone from a highschool to a family business, can for advertisement purposes adopt from 1-5 acres for restoration of wet lands, native tree planting, managed gardens when realistic, wildlife habitat, the possibilities are boundless. Every year, judge the quality of environmental stewardship of the parcels, the winning programs receive grants for the following years, and free advertisement in local media markets.

If the government is going to remove government land from protection, then return it to people who will promote the original intent.