#multiple use

BLMers go abroad to help Argentina manage oil and gas resources

In March, Bureau of Land Management fluid minerals experts from New Mexico and Colorado assisted the Provincia de Salta (Salta) in Argentina with their oil and gas program. Salta is located in the far north of Argentina and borders Chile, Bolivia, and Paraguay. Salta has been producing conventional resources for the past few decades. Since this production has begun to decline, Salta requested assistance from U.S. Department of State in leasing fifteen oil and gas blocks. 

Throughout the week, a group of experts from the Department of the Interior and BLM discussed the data available for potential bidders on their upcoming leasing round of fifteen blocks.

The BLMers also looked at other ways that Salta could encourage investment in the province and improve the management of their oil and gas program. The agency suggested Salta encourage existing operators to look at beginning an enhanced oil recovery program, create a web-based library for the geology in the area, and continue to encourage current and previous operators to plug and abandon their idle wells. Salta Province encounters many of the same issues as BLM when it comes to managing and cleaning up idled and orphaned oil and gas wells. 

International trips like this allows BLM employees to bring back a stronger understanding and appreciation of our role in the agency. Salta has major challenges in front of them with a limited budget, limited staff, and limited investment in the area; however, they are doing everything they can to improve Salta’s management of oil and gas.

Learning the Ropes as a BLM Intern!

Story and photos by Beverly Sanchez, BLM intern.

When I first received the phone call from the HACU (Hispanic Association for Colleges & Universities) National Internship Program that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) wanted to interview me for an internship position in Washington, D.C., I thought to myself what is the Bureau of Land Management? Coming from Central Florida, I had never been exposed to any of the work from the BLM. Nonetheless, I was extremely excited to work as the Digital Communications Spring 2017 Intern.

Get Ready for Some Weekend Inspiration: Springtime in Nevada

Bureau of Land Management - Nevada is taking over the My Public Lands Instagram this weekend! Follow along to see stunning photography from the desert!

The BLM manages nearly 48 million acres of public land in Nevada, which accounts for about 63 percent of the state's land base.

In Nevada, the BLM ensures that grazing, mining and energy development on public land are sustainable and compatible with other land uses. The BLM also manages wildland fire, wild horse and burro populations, recreation and National Conservation Lands such as Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area in Southern Nevada.

Thanks!

Multiple is fine 💋

The Bureau of Land Management's multiple-use mission was set in the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 and mandates that we manage public land resources for a variety of uses, such as energy development, livestock grazing, recreation and timber harvesting, while protecting a wide array of natural, cultural and historical resources.

This month, the @BLMWyoming Facebook page takes on the question by highlighting the wide variety of uses and jobs that BLM specialists do. 

Multiple Use is… managing sage-grouse. Wyoming is home to about 54 percent of the Greater Sage-Grouse in the United States, and the BLM in Wyoming manages millions of acres of potential sage-grouse habitat. The BLM-Wyoming works with the State of Wyoming, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Wyoming Game and Fish Department, Wyoming Department of Agriculture, the energy industry, environmental groups and others to address habitat conservation and provide for environmentally responsible resource use activities on public lands.

Multiple Use is… wind! An estimated 43 percent of the public lands in Wyoming have wind energy development potential. The renewable energy team is strategically located to focus resources on processing wind energy right-of-way applications. The public lands in the southern half of Wyoming have the highest potential for wind energy development and consequently, most of the project and site testing right-of-way applications currently being processed by BLM-Wyoming are located in the Casper, Kemmerer, Lander, Rawlins and Rock Springs Field Offices.

Multiple Use is... recreation. Recreation opportunities abound on over 18 million acres of BLM-administered public land in Wyoming. BLM focuses on providing undeveloped recreation opportunities such as fishing, four-wheeling, sightseeing, river floating, hiking and hunting.

Multiple Use is… asset management. The primary goal of BLM's asset management program is to ensure that the infrastructure is maintained in a sustainable fashion that supports the BLM's mission effectively and efficiently. BLM places an emphasis on safety and security, functionality, efficiency, sustainability, and accessibility. In Wyoming, this includes administrative and recreation sites, roads, culverts, bridges and even dams.

Multiple Use is... cadastral survey. BLM's Cadastral Survey Program is one of the oldest and most fundamental functions of the United States Government. Established by the Land Ordinance of 1785, cadastral surveys are the foundation of our national land tenure system creating, reestablishing, marking, and defining land boundaries. In addition to conducting surveys to meet BLM land management needs, Wyoming Cadastral Survey completes surveys for all federal agencies and Indian Tribes in Wyoming and Nebraska.

Multiple Use is... wildlife management! More than 3,000 species of wildlife occur on BLM's more than 245 million acres in 23 States, dispersed over some of the Nation's most ecologically diverse and essential habitat. In fact, the BLM manages more wildlife habitat than any other federal or state agency. BLM-managed lands are vital to big game, upland game, waterfowl, shorebirds, songbirds, raptors and hundreds of species of non-game mammals, reptiles, and amphibians.

Multiple Use is... coal! The top 10 producing coal mines in the country are located in the Wyoming portion of the Powder River Basin. These mines produced about 375 million short tons in 2012. Coal mines in the Powder River Basin in Wyoming employed over 7,000 personnel in 2010.

Multiple Use is...planning. BLM is cooperating with the Black Hills National Forest, Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest, and Thunder Basin National Grassland on the Teckla-Osage-Rapid City 230 kV Transmission Line Project. 

Multiple use is… wildland fire management. The BLM, a leader in our nation's wildland fire management efforts, undertakes a broad range of activities to safely protect the public, the natural landscape, wildlife habitat and recreational areas for our country's citizens. The program includes fire suppression, preparedness, predictive services, fuels management, fire planning, community assistance and protection, prevention and education, and perhaps most significant, safety.