Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Assessment and Possible Plan Amendment Concerning Oil and Gas Leasing in the Buffalo Field Office, Wyoming

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This Notice is intended to satisfy the requirements at 43 CFR 1610.2(c) for amending an RMP (if deemed necessary) pursuant to the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA), and initiates scoping under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The purpose of this EA is to examine land use allocations for oil and gas leasing and lease stipulations in light of new information, including new development scenarios since 1985, in the Buffalo Field Office (BFO). This action has been prompted by recent rulings of the Interior Board of Land Appeals (IBLA) and the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals (the Court) which upheld the IBLA's April 26, 2002, determination that the 1985 Buffalo RMP/EIS and the Wyodak EIS were insufficient to support certain leasing decisions because the RMP did not discuss the impacts to air and water of coal bed natural gas (CBNG) extraction and production. See Pennaco Energy v. DOI, 377 F.3d 1147 (10th Cir., August 10, 2004).