ELR Citation: ELR 20078
No(s). s. 07-1486, -1709 (D.D.C. Mar 31, 2009)

A district court upheld the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM's) decision to grant oil and gas drilling permits in south-central Wyoming. BLM's decisions were not arbitrary, capricious, or otherwise unlawful under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). BLM took the requisite hard look at environmental effects before approving the drilling permits, it evaluated a reasonable range of alternatives, it complied with NEPA's public-participation requirements, and it did not prematurely commit agency resources. In addition, BLM's reliance on adaptive management for mitigation and its analysis of the project's effects on mule deer were not arbitrary or capricious. Nor did BLM violate the Federal Land Policy and Management Act. BLM complied with the Act's multiple-use and sustained-yield principles and the project was consistent with the resource management plan for the area.