The Boar's Tusk. Photo by Mike McClure

Over 80,000 people commented that they were in favor of protecting the Jack Morrow Hills of Wyoming -- an area that is only 10 percent of the total Greater Red Desert -- from new oil and gas development. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) failed to listen and has decided to allow a minimum of 255 natural gas and coalbed methane wells to be drilled in the area. With the wells will come roads, pipelines, and compressor stations. The plan could potentially allow for hundreds of additional wells, too.

The Jack Morrow Hills is home to more than 350 wildlife species including mule deer, golden eagles, ferruginous hawks, antelope and wild horses, and is one of the most coveted elk hunting areas in Wyoming.

“The Jack Morrow Hills is my recreation area, where I spend my free time, and if oil and gas go in there the wildlife herds will get smaller, the number of hunting licenses will get smaller and Wyoming’s open space and places of refuge for me and for wildlife will get smaller,” said Monte Morlock of Rock Springs, United Steelworkers of America Local 13214. “I would like to see some of my public lands kept for me, America’s children, grandchildren and for the wildlife. If an NCA is how we get that done, then I am for it.”

A National Conservation Area, a Congressional designation, would protect the outstanding cultural, ecological and scientific values of the specific landscape for the benefit of current and future generations. The BLM would then manage the area as “healthy, open and wild.” Future oil, gas, coalbed methane and large-scale mining would be prohibited while ensuring that existing uses continue, including hunting, grazing, outfitting, recreating, and travel on county roads in the area.

Reverend Warren Murphy, Director of the Wyoming Association of Churches, advised, “It can be argued that God has provided some very special places to serve as a spiritual respite from our hectic and materialistic world. To open these special areas up to development in a blind quest for energy is both unwise and unthinkable. We urge citizens to work to redirect the BLM in such a way that would protect the beauty and sacred energy of the Jack Morrow Hills.”

Home to the Mormon Pioneer, Pony Express, Oregon and California National Historical Trails, 12,000 year old Petroglyphs, the largest active sand dune field in North America, opportunities for hiking, wildlife watching, scenic driving and biking the Jack Morrow Hills is a hub of the public’s special values and interests.

Many citizens feel that the BLM ignored the 80,000 comments urging the agency to safeguard the Jack Morrow Hills. “I thought we lived in a democracy where majority ruled. It truly is a sad day when stewards of Federal and State lands are becoming stewards of the oil and gas companies. Why are the Federal agencies that are supposed to watch the lands for the public giving up their roles as stewards of the land?” said Kassel Weeks of the Eastern Shoshone Business Council.

“We are proud to be making a contribution to meet the nation’s energy needs, but we are also proud of the wild open spaces that make Wyoming our home,” added Joy Owen of Friends of the Red Desert. “The people of this nation and especially those in Wyoming are continuing to fight for the Jack Morrow Hills by campaigning for a National Conservation Area designation. Because the BLM didn’t listen to the public during the administrative process, we are left with no choice but to look to Congress for help. We want to keep our state’s outdoor heritage intact and keep the Jack Morrow Hills an area for the benefit of many instead of the profit of a few.”

This diverse coalition is part of a broader movement across the West where similar groups are fighting to safeguard their most precious lands from oil and gas drilling such as the Otero Mesa and Valle Vidal in New Mexico, the Rocky Mountain Front in Montana, and the Roan Plateau in Colorado. National Conservation Area designation for the Jack Morrow Hills will leave a legacy for our children and will help to protect Wyoming’s wildlife.

Joy Owen works with Friends of the Red Desert in Wyoming.