PRIA, Government Policy, Made Personal

Summary

The Secretary must not approve oil, gas, or geothermal leases on certain federal lands. That includes lands a surface manager has recommended for wilderness, lands inside Bureau of Land Management wilderness study areas, lands Congress has labeled as wilderness study areas (unless the law that made them study areas says leasing can continue), and lands set aside for wilderness or more study in Executive Communication 1504, Ninety-Sixth Congress (House Document 96–119), unless a land plan or an act of Congress allows other uses. The Secretary of the Interior (or the Secretary of Agriculture for some National Forest lands) can still permit limited exploration for oil, gas, coal, oil shale, phosphate, potassium, sulfur, gilsonite, or geothermal resources if no new roads are built or existing roads improved and the work fits with preserving the wilderness environment.

Title 30, §226–3

Mineral Lands and Mining, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Prohibition

The Secretary shall not issue any lease under this chapter or under the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 [30 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.] on any of the following Federal lands:

(1)Lands recommended for wilderness allocation by the surface managing agency.

(2)Lands within Bureau of Land Management wilderness study areas.

(3)Lands designated by Congress as wilderness study areas, except where oil and gas leasing is specifically allowed to continue by the statute designating the study area.

(4)Lands within areas allocated for wilderness or further planning in Executive Communication 1504, Ninety-Sixth Congress (House Document numbered 96–119), unless such lands are allocated to uses other than wilderness by a land and resource management plan or have been released to uses other than wilderness by an act of Congress.

(b)Exploration

In the case of any area of National Forest or public lands subject to this section, nothing in this section shall affect any authority of the Secretary of the Interior (or for National Forest Lands reserved from the public domain, the Secretary of Agriculture) to issue permits for exploration for oil and gas, coal, oil shale, phosphate, potassium, sulphur, gilsonite or geothermal resources by means not requiring construction of roads or improvement of existing roads if such activity is conducted in a manner compatible with the preservation of the wilderness environment.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

The Geothermal Steam Act of 1970, referred to in subsec. (a), is Pub. L. 91–581, Dec. 24, 1970, 84 Stat. 1566, which is classified principally to chapter 23 (§ 1001 et seq.) of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see

Short Title

note set out under section 1001 of this title and Tables.

Amendments

1988—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 100–443, § 5(c)(1), inserted “or under the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970” after “under this chapter” and directed that “oil and gas” be stricken which was executed by striking those words where they appeared after “not issue any” in introductory provisions, but not where they appeared in par. (3) as the probable intent of Congress. Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 100–443, § 5(c)(2), inserted “, coal, oil shale, phosphate, potassium, sulphur, gilsonite or geothermal resources” after “oil and gas”.

§226–3 Lands Not Subject to Oil and Gas Leasing