HOUSE
                           Final Reading
                       May 11, 2011First Regular Session
              Sixty-eighth General Assembly
                    STATE OF COLORADO
                                                  ENGROSSED
 
 LLS NO. R11-0978.01 Holly Mandis                HJR11-1024
                    HOUSE SPONSORSHIP
 Bradford,  Scott
 
                   SENATE SPONSORSHIP
 King S., 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 House Committees
 Senate Committees
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                  HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION 11-1024 
       Concerning the restriction of research, development, and
            demonstration of oil shale resources in Colorado.
       
       
            WHEREAS, Reliance on foreign oil drastically undermines
       America's economic and national security interests; and
       
            WHEREAS, Increased domestic production of oil shale has the
       potential to substantially lessen that foreign dependence; and
       
            WHEREAS, Early research and development that is focused on
       determining how to commercially extract oil shale has been a significant
       economic driver in northwest Colorado, and a longer-range commercial
       oil shale push would be a massive boon to the region and the state's
       economy; and
       
            WHEREAS, The world's largest oil shale deposits are found in the
       Green River formation in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming, and the U.S.
       Geological Survey estimates that 1.5 trillion to 1.8 trillion barrels of oil
       are trapped in these formations; and
       
            WHEREAS, Conservatively assuming that only 800 billion of the
       estimated 1.5 trillion barrels of oil shale are economically recoverable, the
       oil shale resources in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming could still meet 25%
       of the current U.S. oil demand for more than 400 years; and
       
            WHEREAS, Research, development, and demonstration (RD&D)
       permits were issued by the Bureau of Land Management in 2009 so that
       energy companies could test technologies for commercially extracting oil
       shale in a manner that protects water and other natural resources; and
       
            WHEREAS, These RD&D permits are themselves subject to
       significant environmental restrictions; and
       
            WHEREAS, A final decision on whether to allow commercial
       production of oil shale on federal lands cannot, under federal regulations,
       commence until after the RD&D process is complete and subsequent
       environmental reviews and approvals are completed; and
       
            WHEREAS, The purpose of the ongoing RD&D process is to
       determine whether oil shale can be produced in a manner that is
       economically feasible and environmentally safe; and
       
            WHEREAS, It is appropriate that current and future RD&D
       permits be allowed to proceed without unreasonable obstruction, delay,
       or other artificial obstruction; and
       
            WHEREAS, In February 2011, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar
       imposed new regulations for oil shale development on the RD&D
       process, overriding the regulations promulgated during previous
       administrations; and
       
            WHEREAS, The Democratic and Republican members of
       Congress who represent the majority of the areas with the nation's oil
       shale resources have criticized Secretary Salazar for his actions, which
       will significantly slow down the RD&D processes that are currently
       underway; and
       
            WHEREAS, Secretary Salazar did not proactively consult with
       local elected leaders or the citizens in their communities before these new
       directives were issued from Washington, D.C.; now, therefore,
       
            Be It Resolved by the House of Representatives of the Sixty-eighth
       General Assembly of the State of Colorado, the Senate concurring herein:
       
            That we, the members of the Colorado General Assembly:
       
            (1)  Urge Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar to immediately end
       the obstruction of and intervention with current and established oil shale
       regulations and allow the RD&D process to proceed, for both current
       permits and new permits;
       
            (2)  Encourage the federal government and its RD&D partners to
       move with a deliberate pace to refine the technologies that would make
       the environmentally smart production of America's oil shale resources
       commercially possible; and
       
            (3)  Urge the Interior Secretary to, in the future, proactively
       communicate with local communities, including elected officials, prior to
       unilaterally issuing decisions that impact those communities.
       
            Be It Further Resolved, That copies of this Joint Resolution be sent
       to Ken Salazar, United States Secretary of the Interior; Bob Abbey,
       Director of the United States Bureau of Land Management; and the
       Colorado Congressional delegation.