Equity 23-21 and 32-4 Oil and Gas Wells, Dakota Prairie Grassland, Billings County, North Dakota

Résumé

The Forest Service will prepare an environmental impact statement to document the analysis and disclose the environmental impacts of the construction of the well pads, access roads, production facilities, utilites, and pipelines proposed under the Surface Use Plan of Operations (SUPO's) for the Equity 23-21 and 32-4 oil and gas wells located in the Bell Lake Inventoried Roadless Area (IRA). The purpose and need of these oil and gas well projects is to honor valid existing lease rights which grant the exclusive right to drill for, mine, extract, remove and dispose of all oil and gas (except helium) in the lands described within the lease, together with the right to build and maintain necessary improvements thereupon. This proposal is consistent with the provisions of the Dakota Prairie Grasslands (DPG) Land and Resource Management Plan (LRMP), specifically Goal 2c, Objective 1, which focuses on providing opportunities for oil and gas exploration consistent with the DPG LRMP. This proposal is consistent with key energy legislation including the Energy Security Act of 1980, the Federal Oil and Gas Royalty Management Act of 1982, the Federal Onshore Oil and Gas Leasing Reform Act of 19