Earth Equity News

Mark Udall Promises to Keep Pushing for Oil-Shale Leasing Ban. By David O. Williams, RealVail.com, October 19, 2008. "Even as Republican Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman declared his state 'open for business' to the oil-shale industry last week in Golden, Democratic congressman Mark Udall of Colorado vowed to fight the Bush administration's fast-tracking of commercial leasing in the West. 'We will go back to work and make sure that the interests of Colorado are protected when it comes to oil-shale development,' Udall told RealVail.com. 'If we're going to have a few months here where the Bush administration wants to try and pull another fast one like they've done on so many other ways, let them, but in January I believe that Republicans and Democrats will join together to make sure that the oil-shale development is done right.' Udall, who's running against former oil and gas executive and Republican congressman Bob Schaffer for Colorado's open U.S. Senate seat, helped impose a one-year ban on commercial leasing that expired last month. Now Huntsman and other Bush allies want to see royalty regulations written and leases issued by the Bureau of Land Management before a new president and Congress come into power."