BLM allows more exploratory drilling north of Baggs

The Associated Press

More exploratory drilling for natural gas is being allowed along the Atlantic Rim north of Baggs, Wyo.

Warren Exploration and Production, Double Eagle Petroleum Co. and Anadarko Exploration and Production are proposing to drill 24 wells to see if the area holds commercially viable amounts of gas.

Two injection wells are also planned to dispose of water that must be pumped off coal seams to draw off the gas. Other water might be used for livestock watering.

Sixteen wells will be drilled on Bureau of Land Management land. The other eight are proposed for private land to develop privately owned gas. Kurt Kotter, manager of the BLM Rawlins Field Office, concluded that the drilling would cause no significant environmental harm. The wells would be drilled over about a year.

The project is one of nine groups of wells to be developed to produce data for a massive environmental study the BLM is developing on potential gas drilling.