Witnesses to Detail Impacts on Their Communities and States

WEST-WIDE ENERGY CORRIDOR
CONGRESSIONAL HEARING ADVISORY
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
10:00 a.m. Eastern/8:00 a.m. Mountain

-Two Congressional Subcommittees Examine Federal Agencies' Dedication of Thousands of Miles for Pipelines and Power Lines Without Regard for State and Local Concerns, Accommodating Renewable Sources of Energy, or Avoiding Protected Lands

The failure of federal agencies, led by the Department of Energy and Bureau of Land Management, to coordinate the West-wide Energy Corridor designation process with state and local officials, consider placing the corridors near renewable sources of energy, and avoid harming wildlife and protected lands will be the focus of a congressional hearing next Tuesday, April 15. The average proposed corridor is 3500-feet wide and meant to incentivize future oil, gas and hydrogen pipelines and electricity transmission and distribution facilities that would crisscross federal lands in 11 Western states (CA, NV, AZ, UT, CO, ID, MT, NM, OR, WA, & WY). Corridors will also be designated throughout the rest of the country, starting later this year.

This congressional hearing follows closely on the heels of a rushed public comment process concluded February 14 where westerners from diverse states such as Utah and California denounced the agencies for failing to conduct a proper environmental review or truly determining if corridors were needed in spots such as Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in Utah and California's Joshua Tree National Park.

For more information on this entire process as mandated by the Energy Policy Act of 2005, please visit: http://www.wilderness.org/Library/Documents/upload/WWEC-FactSheet-Feb08.pdf
For more information, PLEASE ALSO CONTACT Nada Culver at (303)-650-5818 x117.

WHAT:
"The West-wide Energy Corridor Process: State and Community Impacts"

A Hearing Held By House Natural Resources Committee Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands and Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources

WHEN:
Tuesday, April, 15, 2008; 10:00 a.m. Eastern/8:00 a.m. Mountain

WHERE:
1334 Longworth House Office Building
If you can't make the hearing, please consider watching the Web cast at: http://resourcescommittee.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=273&Itemid=

WHO:
We expect two panels of witnesses, with representatives from the federal agencies, a state energy department, a county commissioner and renewable energy industry representatives testifying. Please contact Drew Bush if you would like details on specific speakers.

CONTACT: Drew Bush, The Wilderness Society, 202/429-7441