NPR-A draft plan comment period extended

The federal Bureau of Land Management has extended the comment period for the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska draft plan to June 15.

BLM-Alaska State Director Bud Cribley said in a statement that the agency received requests from several stakeholders to extend the comment period. “The plan is complex,” Cribley said, and the agency “... decided that we could balance the need to complete the plan in a timely manner and the need to be responsive to our stakeholders by extending the comment period for an additional two weeks.”

Four alternative future management strategies are proposed in the draft plan, which is the first to cover the entire NPR-A, including lands in the southwest portion of NPR-A not included in previous plans.

The plan includes decisions on availability of acreage for oil and gas leasing, surface protections, Wild and Scenic River recommendations and Special Area designations.

The comment period began March 30 and with the extension will run 77 days.

—Petroleum News