Since taking office in January, U.S. Department of the Interior Secretary Salazar has made renewable energy a priority, putting the brakes on the preceding administration’s full-steam-ahead approach to destructive oil-shale development and canceling oil and gas leases on the edge of Utah national parks as well as in historic sites on nearby public land.
Yet Salazar’s measured approach has provoked a backlash by the oil and gas industries that had enjoyed a privileged status during the George W. Bush administration. Secretary Salazar’s understanding that he is a steward of our public lands and not the servant of the oil industry is a breath of fresh air.
With the Obama administration placing conservation and renewable energy issues high on the agenda, these steps should be the first of many toward the reforms needed to make sure the oil and gas industry doesn’t wreck more of our fragile Western landscapes.
Secretary Salazar should continue the agency’s shift from giving the oil industry what it wants to insisting on a balanced approach.
This article appears in May 21-28, 2009.
