Guide to the Oil Shale and Tar Sands Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement

Listed below are summaries of each major section of the Oil Shale and Tar Sands Draft Programmatic EIS with links to the full text of the (PEIS) in Adobe Acrobat PDF format.

If you wish to obtain a CD-ROM or paper version of the Draft Programmatic EIS, it is also available at selected BLM offices.

For your convenience, the EIS is available for download by volume (3 larger files) or by chapter (21 smaller files).

Download by Volume

	Volume 1: Chapters 1-3 (11 MB, 420 pages)
	Volume 2: Chapters 4-6 (11 MB, 673 pages)
	Volume 3: Chapters 7-9, Appendices A-H (5 MB, 371 pages)

Download by Chapter

Volume 1: Chapters 1 Through 3

	Volume 1 Front Matter: Cover, Contents, Notation, English/Metric and Metric/English Equivalents Summary: Front matter for Volume I of the Draft PEIS including cover page, letter to readers, table of contents, notation, and units of measure.
	Front Matter (597 KB, 32 pages)

	Executive Summary Summary: A brief overview of the Draft PEIS, including a description of the planning area and the scoping process, and summaries of the alternatives.
	Executive Summary (43 KB, 8 pages)

Chapter 1: Introduction

Summary: Why is the BLM Proposing to Amend Land Use Plans to decide which areas will be open to application for oil shale and tar sands leasing and future commercial development? Includes discussion of the purpose and need of the PEIS, scope of the analysis, list of cooperating agencies, and a discussion of the relationship of the proposed action to other BLM and cooperating agency programs, policies, and plans.

Chapter 1 (454 KB, 16 pages)

Chapter 2: Descriptions of Alternatives

Summary: Description of the three alternatives analyzed in detail in the PEIS: (1) Alternative A – the no action alternative; (2) Alternative B – designation of approximately 2 million acres of public lands for oil shale and 430,000 acres of public lands for tar sands as available for application for leasing; and (3) Alternative C - designation of approximately 830,000 acres of public lands for oil shale and 230,000 acres of public lands for tar sands as available for application for leasing. Other alternatives considered but eliminated from detailed study are also described. A summary comparison of the environmental and socioeconomic consequences of the analyzed alternatives is presented.

Chapter 2 (1.8 MB, 88 pages)

	Chapter 3: Affected Environment Summary: What is the current environment in the area where future leasing of public lands for oil shale and tar sands development may occur? Overview of the nature and condition of resources in Colorado, Utah, and Wyoming that might be affected by construction, operation, and reclamation activities occurring with future oil shale and tar sands development.
	Chapter 3 (8.7 MB, 276 pages)

Volume 2: Chapters 4 Through 6

	Volume 2 Front Matter: Cover, Contents, Notation, English/Metric and Metric/English Equivalents
	Front Matter (539 KB, 32 pages)

Chapter 4: Effects of Oil Shale Technologies

Summary: What are the generic potential impacts of future oil shale development? Description of the types of impacts that could occur with construction, operation, and reclamation activities for a single hypothetical future oil shale facility, using either surface mining, underground mining, or in situ development techniques. Resource-specific mitigation measures that could be used to minimize, avoid, or compensate for project-specific impacts are also presented.

Chapter 4 (1.4 MB, 190 pages)

Chapter 5: Effects of Tar Sands Technologies

Summary: What are the generic potential impacts of future tar sands development? Description of the types of impacts that could occur with construction, operation, and reclamation activities for a single hypothetical future tar sands facility, using either surface mining or in situ development techniques. Resource-specific mitigation measures that could be used to minimize, avoid, or compensate for project-specific impacts are also presented.

Chapter 5 (1.1 MB, 144 pages)

Chapter 6: Impact Assessment for Oil Shale and Tar Sands Technologies

Summary: What are the impacts of the no action and action alternatives? Presents the impacts of land use plan amendments to designate public lands available for oil shale and tar sands leasing, and of future commercial development under the two programmatic action alternatives, as well as the impacts of no action. The cumulative impacts of the action alternatives in the context of other actions taking place within the study area in the foreseeable future are presented. Finally, the unavoidable adverse impacts, tradeoffs between short-term use of the environment and long-term productivity, and irreversible and irretrievable commitment of resources under the action alternatives are discussed.

Chapter 6 (8.4 MB, 306 pages)

Volume 3: Chapters 7 Through 9, Appendices A Through H

	Volume 3 Front Matter: Cover, Contents, Notation, English/Metric and Metric/English Equivalents
	Front Matter (517 KB, 19 pages)

Chapter 7: Consultation and Coordination

Summary: What agencies and groups were consulted with or coordinated with in the preparation of the draft PEIS? Gives information on the public scoping process used to prepare the draft PEIS, government-to-government consultations, cooperating agencies, and an explanation of the public protest process that can be used for the proposed land use plan amendments.

Chapter 7 (38 KB, 8 pages)

	Chapters 8 and 9: List of Preparers/Glossary Summary: Who Prepared the PEIS, and what are the terms used in the PEIS? Chapter 8 lists the names and credentials of PEIS authors. Chapter 9 is the Glossary that defines oil shale and tar sands-related terminology, as well as other technical terms used in the PEIS.
	Chapter 8 (19 KB, 4 pages)
	Chapter 9 (117 KB, 30 pages)

	Appendix A: Oil Shale Development Background and Technology Overview Summary: Describes the oil shale resources in the study area; past development efforts; current research, development, and demonstration projects; and current technologies likely to be used for development. Attachment A1 describes the anticipated refinery market response to future oil shale production.
	Appendix A (2.4 MB, 124 pages)

	Appendix B: Tar Sands Development Background and Technology Overview Describes the tar sands resources in the study area, past development efforts, and current technologies likely to be used for development. Attachment B1 describes the anticipated refinery market response to future tar sands production.
	Appendix B (940 KB, 60 pages)

	Appendix C: Proposed Land Use Plan Amendments Associated with Alternatives B and C for Oil Shale and Tar Sands Summary: Provides specific information for each land use plan that would be amended under the proposed action of the PEIS.
	Appendix C (111 KB, 26 pages)

	Appendix D: Federal, State, and County Regulatory Requirements Potentially Applicable to Oil Shale and Tar Sands Development Projects Summary: Federal, State, and County Regulatory Requirements Potentially Applicable to Oil Shale and Tar Sands Development Projects.
	Appendix D (91 KB, 26 pages)

	Appendix E: Threatened and Endangered Species within the Oil Shale and Tar Sands Study Area Summary: Presents a table with federally listed and state-listed threatened, endangered, and candidate species, species of special concern, and BLM-designated sensitive species that occur in the study area.
	Appendix E (223 KB, 42 pages)

	Appendix F: Proposed Conservation Measures for the Preferred Alternative Summary: Recommended conservation measures from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to support the conservation of species listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).
	Appendix F (58 KB, 16 pages)

	Appendix G: Socioeconomic and Environmental Justice Analysis Methodologies Summary: Analytical methods for socioeconomic and environmental justice impacts, including social disruption impacts.
	Appendix G (62 KB, 12 pages)

	Appendix H: Approach Used for Interviews of Selected Residents in the Oil Shale and Tar Sands Study Area Summary: Summary of sampling strategies and format for interviews.
	Appendix H (18 KB, 4 pages)