A new Forest Service rule on oil and gas leasing led environmental advocates to seek clarity on how the change will affect drilling in a national forest along the Alabama-Florida border.
The Center for Biological Diversity filed an objection to an oil and gas leasing plan for the Conecuh National Forest last month after the Forest Service decided in December to continue to allow oil and gas leasing on 81,300 acres of the forest in Alabama.
The agency imposed restrictions on 28,300 acres, where it plans to allow below-ground drilling but no surface-level disturbance, according to an environmental assessment. The areas where surface disturbance will not be allowed include a number of recreation zones within the forest.
Last month, the Forest Service — which is part of the Department of Agriculture — adopted a final rule governing how the agency coordinates with the Interior Department’s Bureau of Land Management, which oversees mineral rights below the surface of Forest Service lands. The change will allow agencies to “seamlessly coordinate when issuing permits,” according to a news release.
